Editor’s Note: Apologies for the late arrival of this report, which was due yesterday. Model confidence remains low in the North Atlantic.
Finals Day has now been cut into three servings with the first course the two-heat Quarter-final day on Sunday, and last night seeing the second course consisting of the remaining two women’s Quarter plus the men’s Quarters. We’ll come back at some point to finish off the Semis and Finals.
The days of an integrated finals day where we ran women’s and men’s Quarters onwards seem to be over. Some of that is due to surf quality issues and some is down to WSL directives which have not been made public. Either way, it’s contributed to a sense of fractiousness on tour this year. Comps with some degree of momentum which have a coherent beginning, middle, and end have been the anomaly. We’ve mostly had random days, really unfavourable forecasts, and more short days than I can ever recall.
Lakey (WSL/Geada)
Regardless, they got the right guys and girls for the Finals. Starting with the women, Lakey Peterson snuck into the Semis against a local wildcard who may not turn out to be a CT surfer. That was a lucky draw. Similar to the one Italo got.
Lakey was forced into a menial grind as rips and closeouts plagued the lineup and a lone three-turn left was enough to get through against her Portuguese opponent who came up with nothing substantial.
The next Quarter carried much heftier world title implications. Really, for Molly Picklum to not just defend her title but offer a credible argument to be the best female surfer in the world, and hence a legitimate world champion, she had to win this heat against Erin Brooks. It’s been a lacklustre second half of the year for Pickles. She won one heat in Tahiti, lost first showing in Fiji – two events where she would be expected to shine with charging and tube-riding chops.
Pickles’ recovered at Trestles, winning two heats to make the Semis, and entered this heat with Brooks still sitting pretty at third in the world.
Pickles (WSL/Geada)
I still see Picklum as the best female surfer on earth. She’s got the power and athleticism of Carissa, the full package rail game, tube-riding skills forehand and backhand, charges big waves, and can do airs. There are no arm-waving or weird distracting style elements to her surfing either. It’s aesthetically pleasing in all conditions.
There wasn’t a great deal of complicated strategy in Picklum’s winning performance. It was all about execution of opportunity, she told us later. In a lineup primarily consisting of closeouts she found a big closeout reo in the opening minutes and then built on that ride. Brooks took her chances but was unable to find an open doorway and after 11 attempts could only manage a 6-point heat total.
Erin (WSL/Geada)
Stating the obvious, but it still needed to be said, Picklum said later: “It’s all coming down to World Title time obviously. That was a really crucial heat.”
One quick digression before we move into the men’s quarters.
Whilst the women’s Quarters played out, Yolanda ‘Yoyo’ Hopkins was in the booth as a colour commentator. She reiterated comments she had made earlier this season on the glass which I found instructive and illuminating.
To wit: Yoyo made the point that she was a full frothing charger and that there was a place for her on tour based on that assessment. She said it without ego or arrogance but it’s a fundamentally true observation and incredibly astute.
There is a place on the women’s tour for an out and out charger and that creates an interest and a storyline that people will tune in for and follow along to. She has already created a fan base from her efforts in Tahiti, Fiji, and now Supertubos. Even if her approach lacks some surf IQ, knowing Yoyo is going to put the head down and charge makes the investment in watching her heats worthwhile.
It’s a template for pro surfers, male or female, in this climate of denuded sponsorships. You have to create yourself, a storyline, a reason for people to tune in and watch you. No-one else is going to do it for you. Already I’m looking forward to seeing that white helmet over the blonde mop at Pipeline and hope Yoyo gets the opportunity to show some charging.
Gabe (WSL/Poullenot)
The Men’s Quarters made me stop and reflect that my negative assessments of Supertubos had been too harsh. Tubes, airs, turns – the best guys and girls pushing it right to the buzzer and desperately trying to find the open corners in mostly closeout beachies. What more could you ask for?
‘There or thereabouts’ seems to sum up Medina’s season. Close to great but not quite there. Surfing 80% better than anyone on Earth but unable to find that missing top end when coming up against a top order opponent who can extract that bit more performance. Yago at Winkipop, for example, or Filipe at Snapper and Raglan.
This was shades of the old Medina though. Charlie on the steps, scowling with a face dark as sin. Gabe constantly looking back shorewards as if seeking the disapproving Step Dads sanction. And the key feature of the Medina beachbreak game – relentless and constant movement and sharking through the lineup.
Morgs (WSL/Poullenot)
I’ve been lucky enough to surf with Gabe at a local beachbreak. His movement and wave count was astounding. There he is by the wall finding an inside wedge and blowing it to smithereens, now he’s down the beach finding a left. He’s straight back out into a right that slips under the crowd. He must have caught twenty waves to each one of mine. With minutes counting down and Morgan Cibilic holding a slender lead, Gabe paced the lineup, finally finding an open left for a neat tube and closeout slice to win the heat.
Of note and in comparison to Yago Dora who took down Ethan Ewing in a one-sided clash.
None of Medina’s air attempts were successful, while all bar one of Dora’s were – even if his scoring rides were from tubes.
Yago (WSL/Poullenot)
That’s the tiny sliver of top end performance Dora has been able to execute successfully under pressure, and which has eluded Medina. If Dora and Medina face off in the Final that will be the decisive factor.
Four men in the Semis – three Brazilian goofyfoot world champs and Griffin Colapinto. No Aussies.
If the year ended right here, that’s a fair assessment of the state of play.
Unless some very weird kink related to the 1.5x points at Pipe occurs the world champ will have to be one of those four.
//STEVE SHEARER
MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal Presented by Corona Cero Women’s Quarterfinal Results:
HEAT 3: Lakey Peterson (USA) 10.00 DEF. Teresa Bonvalot (POR) 5.10
HEAT 4: Molly Picklum (AUS) 11.33 DEF. Erin Brooks (CAN) 6.83
MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal Presented by Corona Cero Men’s Quarterfinal Results:
HEAT 1: Gabriel Medina (BRA) 10.60 DEF. Morgan Cibilic (AUS) 10.00
HEAT 2: Italo Ferreira (BRA) 12.83 DEF. Guilherme Ribeiro (POR) 6.84
HEAT 3: Yago Dora (BRA) 15.84 DEF. Ethan Ewing (AUS) 3.00
HEAT 4: Griffin Colapinto (USA) 14.50 DEF. Seth Moniz (HAW) 14.17