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SoCal Goes Off!!!

Evan — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 21:29:35 +0000

I showed up at Huntington Beach on Saturday morning to gentle offshores and pumping lined-up swell. It was double overhead on sets. Unfortunately, I had read surfline’s forecast that predicted 2-4 ft. surf so I had my fish and was a bit undergunned. The swell ended up lasting from Thursday to Tuesday, lighting up SoCal with a mix of Northwest and Southwest Swells. Here’s what it looked like from above (from Surfline):

The Southern California Surf Forecast blog posted some great shots by Toby of an Orange County beach break, here’s one from their post. The second shot is of Malibu from Surfline’s photo feature on the same swell.

Getting Barrelled with a Great White

Evan — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:43:07 +0000

From the Surfers Village.

Fergal Smith, 21, was two miles off the coast of Perth in Western Australia when he caught a wave. Fergal, of County Mayo, Ireland, only realised he was inches from the shark when photographer Phil Gallagher showed him the photo.

Contributors to Australia’s Surfing Life magazine awarded Fergal the “Euro surf-dude of the month” award. ASL website reads: “Just imagine being in the barrel and looking at a massive shark like you’re at the bloody aquarium or something. Hats off to you Fergal Smith, you’re our Euro surf-dude of the month.”

Photographer Phil Gallagher, 29, from Perth, said: “Great Whites are common out here but I have never seen one that near to a surfer before.” Fergal Smith said he “couldn’t help but laugh” when he saw the photograph but added that his mother Brid, 51, had “freaked out big time”. He added: “I saw a grey shape in the wave but I thought it was the reflection of a slab of rock - how wrong was I?”

Since 1876 Great White sharks have been responsible for 65 deaths and 242 recorded non-fatal attacks worldwide. Australia has had the most fatal Great White attacks in the world with 27 deaths, the most recent in 2005.

Kelly Slater Wins 9th World Title

Evan — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:20:49 +0000

Kelly Slater won his 9th world title today, uneventfully at Mundaka (ASP Tour). He became both the youngest (22) and oldest (36) surfer to win world titles. He also compiled an impressive list of other records (5ones.com).

ASP Records Held by Kelly Slater:
Most ASP World Titles: Nine (2008, 2006, 2005, 1998, 1997, 1996, 1995, 1994, 1992)
Most ASP World Tour Victories: 39
Oldest ASP World Champion: 36-years-old (2008)
Youngest ASP World Champion: 20-year-old (1992)
Highest Heat Total: Only perfect 20 out of 20 ever earned (Tahiti – 2005)
Most Event Wins in a Season: Seven in 1996

Currently, Kelly is followed in ranking on the ASP world tour by Taj Burrow, Bede Durbidge, Adriano De Souza, Joel Parkinson, and Mick Fanning. Although the year is not finished yet, Taj, Bede, and Adriano all had impressive showings, but ultimately could not stop Kelly at the top of his game. From the first event at Snapper Rocks in Australia, which Kelly won, he rolled the competition and so far has won 5 of 8 events. Bede and Adriano showed themselves to be world title contenders and stepped up the competition in the top 10.

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Video Candy: Boost Mobile Pro - Trestles

Evan — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:00:05 +0000

There’s something about the fall. On the ASP tour it’s most concentrate number of contests with the Boost Mobile Pro Trestles, Quicksilver Pro France (Hossegor), Billabong Pro Mundaka, and Hang Loose Pro Santa Catarina, Brazil all being run off in quick succession. Incredibly, Taj Burrow actually has a chance at catching Kelly Slater for the world title (assuming Kelly implodes and Taj turns it on for the last couple of events). But watching this video of Kelly at the Boost Mobile Pro makes it hard to argue that he’s not the best surfer in the world.

See more skate, snow, surf, and moto videos at Shred or Die

23 Shark Attacks in One Year - New Smyrna Beach, FL

Evan — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 21:54:24 +0000

New Smyrna Beach, FL set a new record for most shark attacks in a year at 23. In case you don’t think that’s a lot of shark attacks, consider that in 2007 there were 74 shark attacks globally! My question is why is anyone out there surfing at all?! The Fear Beneath reports on the last attack. Although with three months left in 2008, I doubt that the sharks of New Smyrna will rest on their laurels.

Flying Sharks… It’s all over.

Evan — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 21:48:48 +0000

Insane Wave - Cornwall UK

Evan — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 22:17:05 +0000

OK, granted this actually happened in January of 2008, it’s still worth posting. A couple of bodyboarders decided to charge huge storm waves in Cornwall, England. Originally posted in the Daily Mail UK, the newspaper claims the waves are 50 ft. The whitewash might be 50 ft, but the waves look more like 12. Still pretty heavy for the UK. This guy either charged hard or got caught in the worst rip current of his life.

Unbeatable: Kelly Slater

Evan — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:14:01 +0000

Kelly took second place behind Adrian “Ace ” Buchan at the Quicksilver Pro France (more on the finals at 5ones.com). So far this year, he’s won 5 out of 8 events and taken second twice. Still Taj is 1800 points behind (competitors are awarded 1200 points for finishing first in an event) with three events left. Mundaka and Brazil are wildcard events because of inconsistent conditions meaning there’s no particular advantage to Kelly Slater but he’s always done well at Pipeline (the last event on the WCT tour in December). So Taj get over losing at Trestles and lock down a couple of wins here if you want any chance at winning the World Title. Official ASP rankings below. Oh and by the way, this will be Kelly’s 9th World Title.

Video Candy: Barrel of the Year at Shipsterns and Urban Surfing

Evan — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:03:49 +0000

Couple video clips from Surfline TV. First up is one of the craziest barrels I’ve seen: Michael Brennan at Shipsterns’ Bluff. The Second clip is off urban surfing in San Francisco.

See more skate, snow, surf, and moto videos at Shred or Die

Quicksilver France Kicks Off

Evan — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 18:52:55 +0000

Quicksilver Pro event on the beaches of Hossegor kicks off. Round one and two have already been held and they’re waiting for the surf to build again for round three. Andy Irons made it through the first round only to be a no-show for his heat for round two. How can a pro surfer not show up for his heat is incredible to me, but he’s Andy Irons. Seems like he’s just rolled over to Slater and given up on competing this year. He’s been pretty mediocre on the tour this year (ASP rankings). Check out the slideshow at Transworld Surf.