Quiksilver Pro Africa Recap - Day Four
Apr 19 2007 / Durban, South Africa
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Amidst rain squalls and gusting winds some red-hot surfing took place in the round of 96 of the Quiksilver Pro Africa. The conditions fluctuated between three to four-foot, and the rain hit the beach sporadically throughout the day. The surfers took to the water with gusto despite the sometimes difficult conditions, with a fair smattering of good-to-excellent high scoring rides being awarded by the judges, though the storm did affect the live feed from the QuikProAfrica.com website.
The first heat in the water was straight into a major upset situation, with hot favorite local surfer Travis Logie bowing out of the event, in a heat that saw blinding rain, few waves and some fierce paddle battles. Durban North surfer Brandon Jackson vindicated his wildcard into the event by taking the heat, against Jorge Spanner from Brazil in second, Bacalso Kekoa from Hawaii in third and Logie in fourth.
"The waves weren’t too good for that heat, so it all came down to competing," said a stoked Jackson after his heat. "Quiksilver gave me this opportunity by providing me with a wildcard and I’m not going to waste that opportunity. I gave nothing in that heat, despite the hassling."
In contrast, South African surfer Dylan Stone from Port Elizabeth won his heat with relative ease, seeming not to even notice the other competitors in the water. Dylan, who came up against American Darren O’Rafferty, and Simao Romao and Bernado Mirando, both from Brazil , hooked into some great waves to take the win.
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"I was trying to get some of the waves close to the pier, but could see that there were some good wide ones coming through as well," said Stone. "It seemed like there were waves for everyone. There was no-one near me when I got the good ones. I’m stoked to get this far but for sure I want to go a lot further."
Heat eight was a really high-scoring and tight heat, with the two South Africans Ricky Basnett and Rudy Palmboom both from The Bluff, coming up against American Ben Bourgeois and Shaun Gossman from Australia . Gossman, previously from Durban and a former local at New Pier, went head-to-head with the young Rudy Palmboom, with WCT surfer Ricky Basnett as well as Bourgeois struggling to find any waves or rhythm.
"It was quite difficult out there. The rain came down and it was difficult to see where the sets were going," said Gozzy on the beach. "The waves near the pier were looking so good during my heat. They were a bit thicker, and were throwing a bit, where some of the wide ones were looking quite flat. It was a really high-scoring heat, so I’m stoked to get through."
In heat 10 Mason Ho decided not to surf after incurring a serious injury during his heat the previous day. Hawaiian Ho, son of Hawaiian legend Michael Ho, was pulling his board back after a wave when it shot at him and sliced his foot, resulting in a laceration that needed nine stitches. "It wasn’t that painful at the time," said Ho on the beach today, sporting a heavily bandaged foot. "I was planning on surfing today, but as the day progressed it got more and more painful so I decided against surfing my heat." Ho was philosophical about his decision though. "Yeah, everything happens for a reason, and I’m having a great trip anyway."
The waves remained stormy, but were improving throughout the day. Heat 15 was a cracker, with Dane Reynolds coming up against the Hawaiian duo of Nathan Carrol and TJ Barron, as well as Tanio Barreto from Brazil in good conditions.
"The waves were fun out there. I had a bit of a slow start to my heat, and my board felt a bit funky underfoot, but I eventually got going," said Dane in the pouring rain after his heat. "I was just looking for some space out there. I don’t really like to hassle with the other competitors so I was just looking for empty waves. If the surfers go wide I tend to go deep, and if they go deep I tend to go wide."
As stated earlier, due to the heavy downpour of rain, the live webcast had a bit of a difficult start, but was up and running by lunchtime.
The contest starts again today at 9 o'clock local time with the round of 48. The event runs through until Sunday, April 22, when the finals will be held.
Watch the live webcast at QuikProAfrica.com website.
--Press Release
