Quintal claims World Title, Skindog through the quarters at 2019 Taiwan Open of Surfing

Quintal claims World Title, Skindog through the quarters at 2019 Taiwan Open of Surfing

THE LEFT, TAITUNG / TPE (Friday, December 6, 2019) – Florida’s Justin Quintal (USA) has claimed his maiden WSL World Longboard Championship at the 2019 Taiwan Open of Surfing in pumping three-to-four foot surf at ‘The Left’ in Taitiung. With a number of his closest opponents dropping out of the draw earlier in the day, all Quintal needed to do was win his Round 3 heat against Josh Constable (AUS) which he did comfortably, gifting the 29-year-old the highlight of his career.

“I’m feeling so good – this is definitely the coolest accomplishment of my life,” Quintal said. “The last few days I’ve kind of been holding my breath because I wasn’t really sure if it was going to happen and the conditions have just been getting crazier and crazier, so I’m so stoked to finally see this thing through and get it done. It feels amazing.”

Quintal won two of the first three stops of the revamped 2019 WSL Longboard Tour to set himself up for a strong tilt at the title coming to Taiwan. Although Justin has an incredible competitive record, namely 10 Vans Duct Tape Invitational titles, winning the 2019 World Longboard Championship in his first full year of competing in WSL events is the clear highlight of his surfing career.

“The duct tapes have all been so special and at times have felt like world titles, but this is the top tier so I’m really proud to call my myself the World Champ – I can tell my kids one day that their pop was the world champ.”

Being a goofy-footer, Quintal was thrilled to have the opportunity to compete for his title at The Left in Taitung, with today being arguably the best of the entire 2019 Longboard Tour.

“We’ve all invested a lot of our time and energy and everything into this all year so to get to the end of the season in amazing waves like this means so much to us. These types of venues are what the sport needs at this level, so this is pretty special. This wave is just amazing and to have the contest here is so unreal. It’s one of the coolest setups I’ve ever seen. Taiwan has been so fun, it’s a beautiful country with a beautiful culture.”

Once Men’s Round 3 was wrapped the focus shifted to the Women’s World Longboard Title where there are three competitors with a shot at taking the win. Rachael Tilly (USA) and Honolua Blomfield (HAW) are both looking for the second title while current rankings leader Chloe Calmon (BRA) is in the hunt for her first. All three progressed into the Quarterfinals with Calmon and Tilly posting the highest heat totals of the entire event, each scoring a two-wave total of 15.33. All surfers were extremely excited to have their season culminate in such epic surf at the Left.

“The wind is pretty crazy now, but the waves are so perfect,” Calmon said. “This is such an amazing opportunity for the longboarders to move to this location and finish the year off at such a great location. I have been surfing at this spot all week with all of the other competitors so to come out here with only one other surfer out was so good. I’m looking forward to continuing tomorrow and seeing how far I can go towards the final.”

With one day left in the event window and more incredible surf expected at ‘The Left’, competition is expected to get underway at 8:00 a.m. local time as the event looks to crown its winner’s along with the 2019 Women’s World Longboard Champion.

The Taiwan Open World Longboard Championship runs from December 1 – 7. For more information and to watch all of the action from the Taiwan Open of Surfing, head to www.worldsurfleauge.com or download the free WSL App.

Taiwan Open World Longboard Championships Men’s Round 3 Results:
HEAT 1: Harrison Roach (AUS) 12.50 DEF. Cole Robbins (USA) 9.16
HEAT 2: Taylor Jensen (USA) 14.74 DEF. Taka Inoue (JPN) 9.10
HEAT 3: Ben Skinner (GBR) 11.10 DEF. Kaniela Stewart (HAW) 6.86
HEAT 4: Lucas Garrido Lecca (PER) 11.27 DEF. Steven Sawyer (ZAF) 9.97
HEAT 5: Kai Sallas (HAW) 13.73 DEF. Kevin Skvarna (USA) 12.83
HEAT 6: Rodrigo Sphaier (BRA) 15.30 DEF. Edouard Delpero (FRA) 13.46
HEAT 7: Justin Quintal (USA) 14.14 DEF. Josh Constable (AUS) 11.34
HEAT 8: Tony Silvagni (USA) 11.27 DEF. Phil Rajzman (BRA) 9.90

Taiwan Open World Longboard Championships Women’s Round 3 Results:
HEAT 1: Lindsay Steinriede (USA) 11.56 DEF. Zoe Grospiron (FRA) 6.90
HEAT 2: Tully White (AUS) 10.00 DEF. Soleil Errico (USA) 8.93
HEAT 3: Kaitlin Mikkelsen (USA) 10.90 DEF. Kirra Seale (HAW) 8.40
HEAT 4: Honolua Blomfield (HAW) 11.40 DEF. Natsumi Taoka (JPN) 8.60
HEAT 5: Chloe Calmon (BRA) 15.33 DEF. Ophelie Ah-Kouen (REU) 8.96
HEAT 6: Emily Lethbridge (AUS) 8.83 DEF. Hiroka Yoshikawa (JPN) 6.33
HEAT 7: Rachael Tilly (USA) 15.33 DEF. Kelis Kaleopaa (HAW) 9.86
HEAT 8: Alice Lemoigne (FRA) 10.73 DEF. Sally Cohen (HAW) 7.96

Taiwan Open World Longboard Championships Women’s Quarterfinal Matchups:
HEAT 1: Harrison Roach (AUS) vs. Taylor Jensen (USA)
HEAT 2: Ben Skinner (GBR) vs. Lucas Garrido Lecca (PER)
HEAT 3: Kai Sallas (HAW) vs. Rodrigo Sphaier (BRA)
HEAT 4: Justin Quintal (USA) vs. Tony Silvagni (USA)

Taiwan Open World Longboard Championships Women’s Quarterfinal Matchups:
HEAT 1: Lindsay Steinriede (USA) vs. Tully White (AUS)
HEAT 2: Kaitlin Mikkelsen (USA) vs. Honolua Blomfield (HAW)
HEAT 3: Chloe Calmon (BRA) vs. Emily Lethbridge (AUS)
HEAT 4: Rachael Tilly (USA) vs. Alice Lemoigne (FRA)

For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.

Boy knocked off surfboard by shark

Boy knocked off surfboard by shark

Grom, Chandler Moore, 7, was out surfing with his dad, Shaun at New Smyrna Beach in Volusia County, Florida with a GoPro attached to his board.

The footage that his dad sent out via social media shows Chandler surfing and the shark rudely dropping in. Moore’s dad said “something like a fish” jumped out of the water and scared him.

If you check out the frame grab of the moment Chanler falls you can see the animal is clearly a small shark drop in, damn kook.

Sperm whale dies with 100kg of plastics and litter in stomach

Sperm whale dies with 100kg of plastics and litter in stomach


Phots c/0 SMASS

A sperm whale has died with after stranding itself on a beach on the Isle of Harris was found to have 100ks of fishing nets, rope, bags and plastic cups in in stomach.

Locals found the whale on Seilebost beach. The Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme dissected the whale to try and find the cause of death.

“Just on our way back from a stunning (it was on Luskentyre beach), fascinating, briefly alarming (it sort of exploded) and shameful (there was a load of marine debris in its stomach) sperm whale necropsy on Harris this weekend. This case was a subadult male which live stranded and died on sandbanks on Thursday morning- by the time we got to it had been dead for 48 hours and pretty much most of the guts blew out of the side when we stuck a knife in it. Animals this size are so well insulated that even though the temperature outside barely got above freezing, they don’t cool down and hence decompose incredibly quickly.


Not a great sight.

In this whale’s stomach was approximately 100kg of marine debris- a whole range of plastic including sections of net, bundles of rope, plastic cups, bags, gloves, packing straps and tubing. All this material was in a huge ball in the stomach and some of it it looked like it had been there for some time. The animal wasn’t in particularly poor condition, and whilst it is certainly plausible that this amount of debris was a factor in its live stranding, we actually couldn’t find evidence that this had impacted or obstructed the intestines. This amount of plastic in the stomach is nonetheless horrific, must have compromised digestion, and serves to demonstrate, yet again, the hazards that marine litter and lost or discarded fishing gear can cause to marine life. It is also perhaps a good example that this is a global issue caused by a whole host of human activities. This whale had debris in its stomach which seemed to have originated from both the land and fishing sectors, and could have been swallowed at any point between Norway and the Azores. We are looking in more detail to see if we can work out quite why this animal ended up with so much of it in its stomach.


Netting removed from the whale.

As a place to do a necropsy, you can’t get much better than a crisp sunny day on Luskentyre – it’s quite simply an utterly beautiful part of the world. It is worth therefore giving particular thanks to members of the coastguard and the Western Isles council disposal team who helped us necropsy and then bury the whale, and therefore return the beach to its pristine glory. Surrounded by fragile dune ecosystems, there was no option to move a 20 tonne animal elsewhere, towing out to sea wasn’t an option so it needed to be buried on site. This was completed as light fell yesterday, so hopefully, if you go to the beach today, there should be almost no evidence that there was a large sperm whale necropsy undertaken there this weekend.

Patagonia – Black Friday – Double Your Impact to Fight the Environmental Crisis

Patagonia – Black Friday – Double Your Impact to Fight the Environmental Crisis

DOUBLE YOUR IMPACT TO FIGHT THE ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS

But this Black Friday, and all through the festive period, Patagonia is making it easier for concerned citizens to double their positive impact on the planet. Make a donation to a grassroots environmental NGO fighting to protect our home planet. Patagonia will match it, pound for pound.

Donations to environmental non-profits make up a tiny percentage of philanthropic giving. And the planet is burning. That is why this holiday season, Patagonia is matching all donations made in support of grassroots environmental organisations through Patagonia Action Works from 29 November (Black Friday) until 31 December 2019. Additionally, we are providing a platform for you to give the gift of giving and donate to an environmental protector in the name of a loved one.

Donors can choose to send a digital eCard, print a card from home, or pick up a physical card in any Patagonia store in the U.S. or Europe. No purchase of Patagonia product is required for donations to be eligible for matching.

PATAGONIA ACTION WORKS WEBSITE

Shark Proof Wetsuits, Yay!

Shark Proof Wetsuits, Yay!

A new wetsuit material tested by Flinders marine researchers can help reduce blood loss caused by shark bites, to reduce injuries and prevent the leading cause of death.

The study published in PLOS ONE tested two types of protective fabrics that incorporate ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene fibres (UHMWPE) onto widely used neoprene material in wetsuits, and compared their resistance to bites against standard neoprene without protective layers.

Associate Professor Charlie Huveneers, from the Southern Shark Ecology Group, says new technological advances in fabric have allowed the development of lightweight alternatives that can be incorporated onto traditional wetsuits.

“The aim of this study was to assess the ability of new fabrics incorporated into neoprene to reduce injuries from white shark bites,” says Associate Professor Huveneers.

“Our results showed that both fabrics tested may provide some protection against shark bite and could be used as part of a shark bite mitigation strategy.”

“We tested the fabric on white sharks because it is the species responsible for the most fatalities from shark bites.”

The tests included 10 variants of two different fabrics using two laboratory tests, puncture and laceration tests, along with field-based trials involving white sharks ranging 3–4 m.

White shark bite force was also measured at the Neptune Islands Group Marine Park using load sensors placed between steel plates surrounded by foam.

“We found that the new fabrics were more resistant to puncture, laceration, and bites from white Sharks than standard neoprene.”

“More force was required to puncture the new fabrics compared to control fabrics (laboratory-based tests), and cuts made to the new fabrics were smaller and shallower than those on standard neoprene from both types of test, i.e. laboratory and field tests.

Prof Huveneers says the results are positive but more testing is required in an incorporated wetsuit design and on the potential damage to human flesh underneath for more robust recommendations.

“Although these fabrics may reduce blood loss resulting from a shark bite, further research is needed to measure the magnitude of injury to human flesh.”

For more info check out the blog here.

The paper, ‘Effectiveness of novel fabrics to resist punctures and lacerations from white shark (Carcharodon carcharias): Implications to reduce injuries from shark bites’ by Sasha K. Whitmarsh, Dhara B. Amin, John J. Costi, Joshua D. Dennis, Charlie Huveneers, has been published in Plos One.

Photos: Flinders University