Category: ASP World Tour

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From Flawless to Ridiculous – Volcom Pipe Pro 2016 Final Day

“Are you kidding me!” was the phrase of choice for the commentators on the final day of the Volcom Pipe Pro. After utter perfection the day before, Pipe and Backdoor were a little meaner and bigger on finals day, but there were some ridiculous performances from the likes of Jamie O’Brien, Bruce Irons, Makai McNamara and of course the winner, Kelly Slater. (All 4 made the final). Jamie’s one wave at Pipeline had Kelly quoted as saying it was the best Pipe wave he had ever seen. So sit back and watch the show…

Volcom Pipe Pro Official Results
Shown in order of 1st through 4th. Surfers from Hawaii unless otherwise noted.
1st – Kelly Slater (USA) $16,000 and 3000 pts
2nd – Jamie O’Brien (HAW) $10,000 and 2250 pts
3rd – Makai McNamara (HAW) $4,750 and 1680 pts
4th – Bruce Irons (HAW) $4,250 and 1580 pts

Todd Chesser Hard Charger Award – Bruce Irons

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Absolutely Flawless Pipeline – 2016 Volcom Pipe Pro Day 2

Light trade off shores, groomed lines, jumping whales and perfect pits greeted surfers on Day 2 of the Volcom Pipe Pro 2016. For those of us on the opposite end of the earth, it meant another sleepless night as we watched in awe as tube after magnificent tube were ridden. It was a truly flawless day at Pipeline with a few gems at the Backdoor. Stand out surfers were Bruce Irons, Chris Ward, Jack Robinson and of course the man who has won this event more than any other, John Florence.

In a nail biter heat, Bruce Irons (HAW) jumped from third place to first with just forty seconds left on the clock. Sitting on the Backdoor side, Irons pulled into one of the biggest right-hand barrels of the day and navigated an exit as an explosion of cheers erupted from the beach crowd. With a 9.40 score, Irons secured the heat win and a slot into Round 4.
“The conditions are as good as it gets,” said the Kauai surfer. “It’s definitely probably one of the best days of winter. Lefts, rights, 8-10 feet offshore, what more do you want?”

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The Ballito Pro 2015 – Ladies Finals & the Trials

We had an action packed day 1 down at the Ballito Pro with both the mens trials and the ladies competition surfing to completion. In the trials we saw Brazilian domination with Roberto Santos taking the win from Flavio Nakajima, who both got wildcards into the main event. In the ladies it was Nikita Robb taking the win from Faye Zoetmulder in the final and walking home with a R10’000 payday. We also caught up with top junior surfer, Ntando Msibi and ladies competitor, Tarry Chudleigh. This insert was broadcast on the Expresso Show on SABC 3.

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WSL Big Wave Awards – Ride of the Year Nominees

The awards for the most mental surfers on the planet approaches and these are the nominees for the Ride of the Year. While Brad Domke is pretty spectacular on his finless wonder, I think it is a 2 horse race between Shane Dorian, that drop at Puerto is crazy, and Dean Morrison, as if we are remembering it is the “Big Wave” awards and his wave at the Right is absolutely insane. I will be posting the awards nominees during the day and week.

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Kelly & John John dominate Day 3 at the Volcom Pipe Pro

Kelly Slater and John Joh Florence put on a show at Pipeline and Backdoor to firmly stamp their intentions on winning the Volcom Pipe Pro in 2015. The defending champion, Slater was in classic form, taking off deep on backdoor bombs and making impossible tubes. JJ was not to be outdone and as the swell waned later in the day he took to finishing his tubes with massive airs. SA surfer, Dale Staples, got through his Round 3 heat behind Kelly, but could not carry that momentum through Round 4.

With a pretty variable forecast, it will be interesting to see how the rest of the Volcom Pipe Pro plays out.

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The Big Wave Boss – Twiggy wins the Surfer Poll Heavy Water Award

The current Big Wave World Champion has once again made South Africa proud by winning the coveted Surfer Poll Heavy Water Award for 2014. Always humble though, Twiggy paid homage to big wave charger, Shane Dorian and all those responsible for water safety in big wave surfing during his speech. In my opinion, he should have been the SA Sportsman of the year back home. Check out the video highlights and his speech below.