Wow, what a mind blowing event Tahiti was. The surfing fraternity just witnessed the most exciting contest ever. Regardless if you are a surfer, botanist, or you produce porn on the Internet, if you were lucky enough to tune into the event on Fuel TV, you would have been captivated by the raw power and beauty that Mother Nature provided the Top 34 surfers in the world.
I must admit, I was a little worried about all the hype leading up to the waiting period. However the event exceeded everyone’s expectations by a bloody country mile. Kelly Slater said it best; “It’s the best day I’ve ever surfed at Teahupoo.” Every athlete I have spoken to since is still in shock to what actually went down during those two weeks of competition.
How did my predictions fair up from Tahiti? To be honest it was quite the mixed bag. There were massive upsets early on in the event. Nathan Hedge scoring the first perfect 10-point ride putting a huge dampen on Adriano De Souza’s World Title campaign. Next to drop was Taj, Joel and the biggest upset of Round 3, an inform Mick Fanning. It was the giant killer Dion Atkinson aka Italian Stallion. He surprised everyone by not only taking down last years World Champ but he also packed Kai Otton’s bags sending him back to Tathra a few days early too. It was John John Florence who finally pulled the rains on the Italian Stallion in the Quarter Finals.
It was pretty obvious that Kelly Slater and John John were in a league of their own the entire event. I feel that Slater took backhand tube riding to a whole other level. Not only was he riding a 5’11 but the lines he was drawing was out of this world. He was literally toying with the 10-15 foot slabs like it was a fun beach break. Yes Florence was more aesthetically pleasing to the pupils but technically Kelly was unbeatable.
At the end of the day it was Gabriel Medina who tactically played a perfect game of chess. He put Slater in Checkmate in the Final. Kelly made a few priority errors and Medina just stuck to his game coming away with his third event win for the season. Gabby has been by far the most consistent athlete this year. He rises to the occasion at every event and deserves this year’s world title and a probably few more. I will be surprised if he doesn’t go on to win a few more events in 2014.
Trestles: Time to mix it up like a DJ boys
Now that the lads have had a few weeks to clean their undies after surfing in the most petrifying event ever, it’s time to battle in the most playful high performance wave on Earth, Trestles. For me it’s one of the most enjoyable events to watch. Each athlete has there own distinct way of interpreting the wave. There is more variation and style than a Woman’s Weekly Magazine.
You probably couldn’t give two hoots about how much I enjoy watching Trestles but here are my blurred predictions on the Hurley Trestles Pro for 2014. The reason I say blurred is because I have had a long think about this event and I believe it will depend on how the judges set the scale from the first heat. From a judging point of view I feel that it’s the most subjective contest in the world.
Will the panel be mesmerised by the power, style and grace of lets say Joel Parkinson, Mick Fanning or Jordy Smith? Or will they spray in their jocks when they see Gabby Medina, John John Florence and Miguel Pupo take it to the sky? It’s a tough call but in my opinion the two defining factors are the size of the waves and variation in repertoire. Mixing up combinations and having a complete approach has been a common trend with past winners. The athlete’s must keep the judges excited and interested, always surprising them at any given moment. With that being said and solid surf forecast predicted, here are the athletes that are tickling my fancy.
The Chameleons
Jordy Smith, after a horrid performance in Tahiti this big chunk of South African Biltong will be looking for redemption. He mixes it with the best in all categories; he can fly higher than a Boeing 747, and has a better rail game than Pablo Escobar. In my eyes the most complete athlete out Trestles.
Jordy Smith will be gunning to turn his dreadful year around at the Hurley Pro. Photo: ASP/MorigoJulian Wilson has more tricks than Shaun White in the X-Games. There is no other wave on tour more suited to Julian’s style and approach. Technically he is up there with the best but sometimes I feel he has been infected by the same virus as Parko making it look all a little too easy. Regardless I’ve been waiting all year for this fiery sunny coaster to flare up, it’s his time to shine.
Julian Wilson, one frequent flyer that is hoping to spread his wings at Lowers. Photo: JoliThe Tradesmen
Joel Parkinson, Mick Fanning, Michael Bourez and Taj Burrow. Yes it’s predictable but we all just fucking love them. Competitively they are still the best athlete’s on tour and all play an integral part in pro surfing. Some kooks will say, “They are so boring to watch.” But without these tradies the tour itself would be boring. With the world title slowly slipping away from them all, they will put their tool belts on and be doing overtime to catch up.
Joel Parkinson has definitely got small wave game. Photo: JoliCheetahs in the long grass
Carlos Muniz and Tanner Gudauskas. These two wildcats will be prowling in the long grass waiting to pounce. I have been surfing on WQS tour with Carlos and he is by far one of the most exciting and unpredictable surfers on tour. So beware this young Costa Rican will be looking devour some fresh carcass in this year’s event. Tanner Gudang is a massive threat too. Born, bred and raised in San Clemente, he lives and breathes Trestles. He has the support and the hometown advantage, so keep your eye on this slippery cat.
Wildcard Tanner Gudauskas could certainly spoil the party. Photo: JoliIt’s pointless of me not to put Kelly Slater and Gabby Medina in my favourites. We all know what they are capable of and have the skills to easily win at Trestles. You have rocks in your head if you don’t have them in your fantasy surfer team. As stoked as I would be for Gabby to take the win, it would make the world title race about as boring as watching metal rust. It’s highly likely that Kelly will go on to win this event and prove my words of wisdom to be a fart in the wind. Either way I hope he can somehow tighten up the gap on the title race.
Don’t count out the king just yet. Photo: JoliIn summary I really don’t have a clue who will win Trestles. I just feel that the surfers who have a holistic repertoire of manoeuvrers and can combo them up have the best chance of winning the event. Now all you have to do is sit back, relax and appreciate the best surfers in the world go absolutely loony bin in pumping waves.
