Bruno's Fiji Firecracker…
Bruno Santos and a sublime slice of South Pacific perfection…
Pierre's Guide To Airs … For Surfers.
There’s nothing that seems to enflame the surf online world than airs. Be it 360/540/720. Medina’s air from the weekend we added to FB today calling it a 540, as various knowledgable snowboarding heads have. People shouted we were clueless gimboids.
But. If you care to watch the above film by Pierre Wikberg who also knows his onions you can stop shouting now.
Medina’s air was a backside 540. Straight up and down. No more surf math.
— toddrichards (@btoddrichards) October 11, 2015
The controversy even got one Robert Slater to chip in…
Edit: 13/10/15 and more from Kelly…
Medina's 540 & Other Quik Pro Goodness…
MEDINA’S BACKSIDE 540. So the contest has continued to pump, the quarterfinalists have been MEDINA’S BACKSIDE 540 decided and it’s set up for an awesome finale. The girls are live MEDINA’S BACKSIDE 540 now so hit the WSL site for the feed MEDINA’S BACKSIDE 540. As for yesterday the highlight was MEDINA’S BACKSIDE 540. Reproduced in various angles in the videos presented here. Seen a better air this year?!?!
The Quiksilver Pro and Roxy Pro France, Stop No. 9 on the 2015 Samsung Galaxy World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT), ran in pumping conditions, deciding the men’s and women’s Quarterfinalists at Culs Nus. Huge crowds gathered on the water’s edge to witness an epic day of mind-blowing performances from the world’s best surfers.
Gabriel Medina (BRA), 21, reigning WSL Champion, blew up in his non-elimination Round 4 matchup and posted the men’s event first perfect 10 point ride for a no-grab stratospheric full-rotation. Medina then turned to maximum-risks vertical backhand hooks to back it up with a couple of 9 point rides and put his opponents in a combination situation. The 2011 Quiksilver Pro France winner, Medina looked unstoppable in the pumping conditions and will look to go all the way and post his first event win of 2015 when the competition resumes.
“It felt like I was free surfing, surf against Wilko and Owen we’ve been doing this for a long time as we always stay in the same house as a team. It was sick, I had a lot of fun,” Medina said. “This might have been the biggest air I’ve ever done. It feels good to be in the quarters. I’ve had a couple of losses early this season and I’m surfing more relaxed now, not thinking about World Titles and just enjoying.”
The high-flying Brazilian will be joined by defending event champion John John Florence (HAW) in a much anticipated superheat when the event resumes.
Julian Wilson (AUS), 26, current WSL No. 5, dominated his Round 4 bout to put an end to a series of unlikely 13th place finishes in Tahiti and Trestles. Wilson fired up and entertained the capacity crowds with aerial maneuvers and carves on the glassy canvas conditions provided.
“The waves are fun, the tide just turned before our heat and gradually as our heat went on the waves got a better shape to them,” Wilson stated. “The medium ones are definitely the best, but even on those big sets if you know it’s going to reform with a big section in the inside, you can roll the dice under priority, there was lots of opportunities out there.”
Mick Fanning (AUS), 34, three-time WSL Champion, marched through Round 4 to get one step closer to an unprecedented fifth event title in France, as the current Jeep Rankings Leader unleashed his signature power carves to rack up two excellent scores. Fanning did not let yesterday’s close call against wildcard Huscenot hinder his momentum and looked lethal in the rippable peaks.
“It felt like I’m building and my surfing is getting a bit better,” Fanning reflected. “Hopefully comes final day it can peak and I can put another good performance. I like these big matchups, even though they are stressful, they keep you in a good frame of mind. Sometimes when you surf easy heats, then you get those big matchups and you sort of forget what to do.”
Adriano De Souza (BRA), 28, followed right into Fanning’s path with a similar approach to dispatch of Jeremy Flores (FRA) and John John Florence (HAW) on his way to an exciting quarterfinal matchup against Owen Wright (AUS). De Souza laid down his sharp forehand turns to collect the day’s second-highest total of 18.50.
“I was watching conditions since the first heat of the day and I realized our heat was going to be pumping,” De Souza said. “I watched John John’s last heat, he smashed it and Jeremy grew up here and knows everything about it so I really had to do everything I could. I’m happy to make this heat and am looking forward to finals day.”
WSL Top17 athletes had previously launched the day’s action with the completion of Round 3 at the Roxy Pro France to determine the first four surfers in the quarterfinals. With waves pulsing all the way through the changing tide, the women later took it to the lineup to complete the fourth round as well.
Local favorite Johanne Defay (FRA), 21, continued her successful Roxy Pro France campaign with an important win this morning to skip a round and obtain her quarterfinal ticket. Defay chose her waves wisely in a tricky lineup and applied her smooth style on the clean shoulders to send defending event champion Tyler Wright (AUS) and Sage Erickson (USA) to Round 4.
“The tide was pretty low and there was a little rip in the inside and a little backwash, the smaller waves were the best with an open face whereas the sets just closed out,” Defay explained. “Tyler beat me in the semis here last year and put me in combo in the first round this year so I’m happy to get a win over her. I’ll get some rest now and prepare for the quarters.”
Coco Ho (HAW), 24, upset current Jeep leaderboard frontrunner Courtney Conlogue (USA) and 6-time WSL Champion Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) in Round 3 to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since the Oi Rio Women’s Pro. With two disappointing early exits in the last two events, Ho’s position on the Samsung Galaxy Women’s Championship Tour is all but certain for 2016 and this result will help in her re-qualification campaign.
“I kind of wasn’t even in the heat until Steph let out my 8, I was really lucky and that’s when the ball started rolling for me,” Ho admitted. “And getting that last wave of the set to back it up was great. Courtney and Carissa in that title race are pretty close, but I’m more focused on my own game and trying to get the results that I know I can.”
Capitalizing on Conlogue’s setback, Carissa Moore (HAW), 23, seized the opportunity to send the World Title race to the last event of the season in Hawaii when she advanced into the quarters. Moore performed her surgical approach on a clean righthander with three solid turns and a little cover up for an 8.90 and the win.
“It’s crazy, balancing energies and stuff. I had such a fun time this morning in my warm up session and I didn’t want to come in but I had to keep myself at a pretty even energy level,” Moore said. “I didn’t really know how Courtney’s heat ended and I focused on myself and stayed in my own bubble. I’m happy to take the battle home to Maui.”
Conlogue would be eliminated later in the day by an in-form Tyler Wright (AUS). With Conlogue’s elimination, Moore will overtake the frontrunner position on the Jeep Leaderboard with a Semifinals berth in France.
The Quiksilver and Roxy Pro France is webcast LIVE on worldsurfleague.com and via the WSL app.
QUIKSILVER PRO FRANCE QUARTERFINAL MATCH-UPS:
QF 1: Julian Wilson (AUS) vs. Italo Ferreira (BRA)
QF 2: Mick Fanning (AUS) vs. Bede Durbidge (AUS)
QF 3: Adriano De Souza (BRA) vs. Owen Wright (AUS)
QF 4: Gabriel Medina (BRA) vs. John John Florence (HAW)
QUIKSILVER PRO FRANCE ROUND 5 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Italo Ferreira (BRA) 16.23 def. Jadson Andre (BRA) 15.07
Heat 2: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 18.30 def. Kolohe Andino (USA) 10.20
Heat 3: Owen Wright (AUS) 18.50 def. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 16.17
Heat 4: John John Florence (HAW) 16.80 def. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.87
QUIKSILVER PRO FRANCE ROUND 4 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Julian Wilson (AUS) 17.37, Jadson Andre (BRA) 12.93, Kolohe Andino (USA) 10.47
Heat 2: Mick Fanning (AUS) 16.67, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 15.43, Italo Ferreira (BRA) 13.73
Heat 3: Adriano De Souza (BRA) 18.50, Jeremy Flores (FRA) 14.00, John John Florence (HAW) 13.37
Heat 4: Gabriel Medina (BRA) 19.83, Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 16.00, Owen Wright (AUS) 15.56
There's Gold In The Brine…
Come see the ocean dance courtesy of the lens of Conor Hegyi… Beautiful work, cracking edit to a bit of Hans Zimmer n’all.
South Carolina V Hurricane Joaquin…
Don’t see South Carolina that much in vids… Well this is what happens on hurricanes.
Filmed Oct. 2 – 4 on Folly Beach, South Carolina by Andy Lassiter and Keller James. The film offers a good look at the flooding and storm swell brought in by Hurricane Joaquin on the East Coast, which made for some epic surfing conditions.
Quik Pro France: Day 1
The legendary beachbreaks of Hossegor have finally come to life for the Quik Pro. Tubes a plenty in the autumnal Landes sunshine… Here’s the results, highlights reel and stuff…
Round 1 of the Quiksilver Pro France, Stop No. 9 of 11 on the 2015 Samsung Galaxy WSL Championship Tour, was completed today in clean six-to-eight foot (2 – 2.5 metre waves) at Culs Nus.
Offshore winds groomed the solid swell on offer, creating a tube riding feast for the world’s best surfers, who proceeded to put on a high-performance surfing spectacle for the thousands on the beach and many more watching online and via broadcasts around the world.
John John Florence (HAW), 22, defending event champion, picked up where he left off last season with his unparalleled comfort in conditions of consequence, pulling into a sizable forehand barrel and topping it off with a massive layback snap to collect a near-perfect 9.93 out of 10.
“There’s a lot of water moving, but it’s really fun and clean,” Florence said. “I love coming back here. It’s been flat the whole time we’ve been here so I was a little worried but when I woke up this morning and saw this bank with the righthand barrels I thought this would be fun.”
Mick Fanning (AUS), 34, three-time WSL Champion and four-time event champion, is in the Jeep frontrunner position again and overcame a treacherous Round 1 matchup against Tahitian powerhouse Michel Bourez (PYF) and local event wildcard Maxime Huscenot (FRA). Fanning threaded through a heavy Hossegor barrel to belt an incredible 9.73 and advance straight into the third round.
“It can be heaven or hell out there, if you get the waves it’s great and there are some amazing ones, but you can also easily get lost real quick,” Fanning said. “You’ve got to pick your spot and hopefully they come so there’s a little bit of luck involved today. All my wins here were really different, I think in 2010 it was somewhere around here, out the back and pretty massive, very similar conditions to this and it was never about scores and results but just about getting barreled with only one other person out, so probably the funnest year.”
Julian Wilson (AUS), 26, current WSL No. 5, put on a deep barrel-riding clinic at Cul Nus, to collect the day’s highest combined heat total, an impressive 18.80 out of 20. A former runner-up in France (2011), Wilson found two brilliant right-handers back-to-back and surfed the fast, throaty barrels flawlessly to advance into the third round.
“I got into a really good rhythm with the sets and got two waves back to back, it was really fun out there,” Wilson explained. “I want to have a really consistent year, two 13th obviously never feels good but there’s a lot left to go in the year.”
Dane Reynolds (USA), 30, followed in Wilson’s path and dominated his opening round matchup to relegate WSL No. 4 Owen Wright (AUS) to the second round. Reynolds proved lethal as a wildcard in Fiji earlier this season and will look to advance through a few more heats in the pumping French surf he adores.
“I’m definitely inspired to surf good and do my best, good waves make it exciting and I think the performance excites me,” Reynolds reflected. “A lot of time you’re at the contest area and you know the good ones are straight out or to the left or right, but we were down the beach so I had no idea what to expect. That first one came right to me and you just got to pick them when they come in, they’re good barrels.”
When confirmed as the event wildcard, Reynolds announced he would give away his entire prize-money to the NGO ‘Surfers, Not Street Children’ association in South Africa.
“They take street children in Durban (South Africa) and they provide mentorship and education all through surfing,” Reynolds continued. “I had a friend who visited them this year and suggested it. I just wanted to come here and surf on somebody’s behalf, and that kind of felt like it would be a good motivation. I have great sponsorship money and I just felt like somebody else could need it more and benefit from it.”
Brett Simpson (USA), 30, current WSL No. 35, took an important win in the opening heat of competition over 11-time World Champion Kelly Slater (USA) and last year’s runner-up in France Jadson Andre (BRA). Simpson, currently sitting outside the requalification Top 22, will need big results in the last three events of the WSL CT season to remain amongst the world’s best in 2016.
“First heats are always hard, it was a bit foggy this morning and I didn’t really have a freesurf,” Simpson said. “It’s really fun, there’s peaks everywhere and I was able to get two good waves. I almost made a mistake at the end, I had priority and Kelly got a wave, I made the decision not to go and he almost got the score. I haven’t had much success as of late and it feels great to get a win. It’s nice when the waves are like this and you’re excited and you get good barrels.”
Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 8am to assess conditions.
The Quiksilver and Roxy Pro France is webcast LIVE on worldsurfleague.com and via the WSL app.
QUIKSILVER PRO FRANCE ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Brett Simpson (USA) 14.84, Kelly Slater (USA) 14.84, Jadson Andre (BRA) 10.90
Heat 2: Julian Wilson (AUS) 18.80, Miguel Pupo (BRA) 10.83, Aritz Aranburu (ESP) 5.66
Heat 3: Dane Reynolds (USA) 17.00, Sebastian Zietz (HAW) 15.90, Owen Wright (AUS) 8.94
Heat 4: Tomas Hermes (BRA) 11.57, Adam Melling (AUS) 10.97, Filipe Toledo (BRA) 9.93
Heat 5: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 16.00, Caio Ibelli (BRA) 6.37, Keanu Asing (HAW) 4.97
Heat 6: Mick Fanning (AUS) 16.73, Michel Bourez (PYF) 10.73, Maxime Huscenot (FRA) 8.87
Heat 7: Gabriel Medina (BRA) 14.33, Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 6.76, Dusty Payne (HAW) 4.33
Heat 8: John John Florence (HAW) 18.60, Alejo Muniz (BRA), 10.93, Jeremy Flores (FRA) 2.83
Heat 9: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 18.40, Italo Ferreira (BRA) 14.84, Ricardo Christie (NZL) 9.50
Heat 10: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 13.70, Glenn Hall (IRL) 6.43, Nat Young (USA) 4.67
Heat 11: Kolohe Andino (USA) 14.40, Kai Otton (AUS) 11.10, Josh Kerr (AUS) 9.90
Heat 12: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 15.43, Wiggolly Dantas (BRA) 10.73, Joel Parkinson (AUS) 10.50
UPCOMING QUIKSILVER PRO FRANCE ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Filipe Toledo (BRA) vs. Maxime Huscenot (FRA)
Heat 2: Owen Wright (AUS) vs. Caio Ibelli (BRA)
Heat 3: Kelly Slater (USA) vs. Aritz Aranburu (ESP)
Heat 4: Jeremy Flores (FRA) vs. Dusty Payne (HAW)
Heat 5: Italo Ferreira (BRA) vs. Alejo Muniz (BRA)
Heat 6: Nat Young (USA) vs. Ricardo Christie (NZL)
Heat 7: Josh Kerr (AUS) vs. Glenn Hall (IRL)
Heat 8: Wiggolly Dantas (BRA) vs. Michel Bourez (PYF)
Heat 9: Joel Parkinson (AUS) vs. Keanu Asing (HAW)
Heat 10: Kai Otton (AUS) vs. Adam Melling (AUS)
Heat 11: Matt Wilkinson (AUS) vs. Sebastian Zietz (HAW)
Heat 12: Jadson Andre (BRA) vs. Miguel Pupo (BRA)
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