I’m reclined in the lazy boy. Heat 3 of the Opening Round at Lowers just started. Why is Kelly a wildcard? He’s 53 years old, for crying out loud. He can’t compete with anyone on the face of the wave these days, not even Alejo Muniz.
It’s pretty shitty Lowers. Sheet glass, beautiful conditions, but inconsistent and only about shoulder high. In the last heat (2), Yago, Alejo, and Connor O’Leary all got caught inside of what looked like the best set of the day. Definitely head high.
Italo just got the best wave that I’ve seen this morning. Kanoa has the highest score so far, a 7.50 that I didn’t see in the first heat, and this came in just under, for a 7.0.
Kelly is out in the lineup making some sort of scene about his Apple Watch. He keeps holding his hand and his wrist up in the air. He’s grabbing and looking at the watch and just holding his hand up limp. I don’t know what it means? He’s been competing since there was a priority buoy. Why does he care about the Apple Watch? He always plays these games. I like it when he’s winning, but I hate it when he’s losing.
I would have much rather seen Julian Wilson as the wildcard. Didn’t he just get 2nd in the Snapper event? Well it was supposed to be Snapper, ended up at Burleigh Heads, right?
Truth is, obviously, I’ve been Out Of The Loop. I haven’t surfed in 5 months. Five fucking months. My last session was in January. I’m disgusted with myself. I’ve got all the excuses in the world. I’m not even going to get into the why’s. It doesn’t matter. The fact is that I’ve completely fallen off the horse, and it sucks.
I see clips of surfing on my social media pages, and I just scroll past without even a second thought. I know I saw Griffin’s 10 point air out at Margaret River, but when my (judging) friend asked me about it at the Angels (Athletics) game last night, I couldn’t remember it. I was embarrassed.
I’m typically the guy on the panel who’s always up-to-date. Informed and in form. Steadily surfing. Eye on the forecast. All of that shit. And I’ve lost my groove. I don’t even know who I am anymore.
Kelly hasn’t caught a wave yet. I think Italo’s on wave 6. Marco Mignot has caught at least 3. The choice to give him (Kelly) the Wildcard is almost laughable (OuterKnown is the headline sponsor of the event).
The waves look much better than the last heat. Sometimes it’ll be heat on, heat off. I learned that back in my competitive days. But, with 30 minutes on the clock, or however long they give em, there should be time for at least one proper set to roll through. That could be it for the ‘heat off’ though. Paramount to get in tune with the ocean today.
Italo just waxed Kelly and Mignot, and it looked like he was in First Gear. He may win this thing and grab the Yellow Jersey back from Jordy. Speaking of Jordy, he’s in the next Heat, and it’s a cracker – Current World Number 1, vs Dimitri Poulos, who absolutely rips and is a very worthy Wildcard, vs local heartthrob Crosby Colapinto, who will be feeling some hometown love.
Jordy looks slow on his board in comparison to Italo. He’ll need the waves to get a little bigger to have a shot. Sunday and Monday have that potential, but will he make it all the way there?
I predict it’s either going to be Griffin, or a Brazilian (Yago, Filipe, or probably Italo) to win. It would make sense for Griffin to win now that it’s a regular season event, after choking 2 years in a row during the Final 5. Too much pressure for him. He can fake that zen stuff as much as he wants, but he can’t clinch it like Robbo can in the clutch.
Sorry I’ve been gone so long. I had some shit to straighten out. No excuses though. And no promises either. Who knows what’s to come going forward. All I know is that this writing is a step in the right direction, and I’m stoked to be back. It’s like a microcosm of surfing in itself – completely meaningless and useless, but it feels good and it’s fun. Stepping back into the hvoide.
Barron Mamiya, Jake Marshall and Seth Moniz are next up, and I’m signing off. It’s going to be a long day of competition. Men’s R1, Women’s R1, and Men’s R2 are scheduled to run today.
As mentioned, Sunday and Monday are looking to hold. They will presumably run another round or two, however many it takes to get to Finals Day before then. That’s my guess.
Enjoy the so-called ‘SoCal Skatepark’. If you’re feeling frisky, drop a comment with who you think wins the event. Any correct answer wins a prize.
Until next time, cheers.
-hwilsin
-Drew Stanfield