The WSL’s tour-opening Hawaiian leg certainly had its moments but I’m still trying to understand several of them.
Like why, despite all the talk about gender equality, at the Hurley Pro Sunset they put the women out for eight critical heats in absolute rubbish when they knew they had reasonable forecast ahead before the window closed.
Steph made it look better than it was, and Molly Picklum was one of only a couple to get a two-wave score in double figures.
It was too painful to watch, so I switched off and did myself a huge favour by catching the end of a far more exciting small domestic pro event, about which more in a minute.
And how deep do you have to be in the barrel at Sunset to score more than a four? If I ever get another barrel in a comp – and I think the last one was in the late ‘60s – and don’t get a 10 I’m going home!
Seriously though, I was astounded by the low scores dished out for technically difficult exits in fairly heavy water Sunset. Jack Robinson was threading them as well as anyone, but being a smart surfer he went to turns to finish up third and retain the yellow jersey.
After an ordinary Pipeline Pro, the GOAT, Kelly Slater, 51 last week, needed a result at Sunset if he wants to stay in the mid-season cut conversation, but on the biggest and best day, no matter how far up the point he paddled and no matter how far back down it he came hidden from view under a chandelier of water, the judges remained unimpressed.
Kelly now sits below the cut line at equal 16 in the rankings going into Portugal, with the Australian leg to decide who gets the axe.
Will Slater realise he’s not rocking their boat anymore and avoid the coldwater face plants of Peniche, the ice cream headaches of Bells Beach and the hold-downs at Margie’s?
I’d like a buck for every time we’ve pondered that, but this year I reckon he’s close to an honourable exit, maybe with a couple of wildcards to ease the relevance deprivation.
Meanwhile, in the land of the living, rookie Molly Picklum from the NSW Central Coast, is sharing the yellow jersey with multiple world champ Carissa Moore after pulling off a major upset in knocking off Tyler Wright in the semis and going on to win her first WCT. Molly and Tyler and now the only two Australian women above the mid-season cutline, with defending champ Steph Gilmore just outside.
In the men’s our Jack Robinson sits on top of the pile above defending champ Felipe Toledo, who won at Sunset, with only Ethan Ewing and Liam O’Brien just squeaking into the 16 for Australia. The Brazilian Storm has twice as many contenders. Sign of the times.
Coco goes hard at Caba
As I watched the WCT girls struggling in mush the other day, I sought light relief in the form of finals’ day at the Oakberry Tweed Pro, a regional qualifier being decided in pretty little waves at Cabarita. I tuned in just in time to see our own Coco Cairns convincingly take out a semi and make her first WQS final.
I’ve written about Coco in these pages fairly recently, so I don’t want to make too much of a fuss, but I could only agree with the commentators who raved about the Noosa girl’s style and flair.
Like a new-gen Steph Gilmore, she smashed her turns, then cruised between sections in a little soul arch like a prettier version of Rob Machado. The new maturity in her surfing was wonderful to watch, but she then had what the commentators described as a generational clash when she met the veteran South African Sarah Baum in “a thrilling matchup between two event standouts”.
To quote the final report: “Cairns came out of the gates strongly, posting multiple scores early, only to be chased down by Baum, whose backhand surfing had been impressing the judges all week. Baum took the lead and then played defence for the remainder of the heat. Cairns found a couple of waves under priority, but in the end, the experience of South African-born Newcastle local Baum took the win, the biggest and most important of her career.”
The win would have been nice, but Coco was stoked, and couldn’t stop saying so: “This is the biggest result of my career, so I’m stoked,” Cairns said.
“I don’t have plans to qualify for the Challenger Series just yet, and I’m not putting any pressure on myself, so I’m thrilled to have made it this far and get this experience.”
A couple of days later Coco took out a creditable 13th at the Gold Coast Open, pocketing more than $3500 for her two appearances and rocketing up the QS ladder from 54th to 13th. With top four and a wildcard making the cut for the International Challenger Series (the gateway to the world tour), it no doubt gave the teenager plenty to think about, back in school in Noosa this week.
FOOTNOTE: Another one of this column’s favourite surfers, pro longboarder and Noosa World Surfing Reserve president Kirra Molnar, made the final of the Queen of the Point event in the Philippines this week. As we went to press she’d surfed but was awaiting the result at a presentation, which is quaintly old school. More next week, but for now the photos show that she was having fun!
