An Epic June
Friday - June 16, 2006
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Jamie O’Brien on a thick Pipe dream in the heat of a summer
day
Howzit, surfers and beach-goers!
I’ve got to start off with Monday, June 12th. This day was rare ... almost miraculous. The country waves were so good and so big it was like a movie - 6-10 feet WNW perfection and hot summer sunshine to go along. Can it be true that we’re in the middle of June? I had to keep slapping myself ... Oh yeah, it’s June! June! I yell as we’re all scratching for the horizon on a big set. “Hey, Surfer Joe, what month is it?”
These waves which graced the North Shore were some of the best we’ve seen since September 2005! They angled in from the extreme west or from your left. The lines were the length of football fields marching in with eight-wave sets. They stacked beautifully far out on the horizon. The trades brushed the tops off with spray over 10 feet high. It was not for the faint of heart. The power could be felt - especially if you ate it. There were barrels and long rides galore, every where! If you were not in shape you felt it. I thought my four-hour session was good until at sunset I spoke with a surfer who pulled off eight hours! Now that’s happiness. He’s probably still sleeping. Sweet dreams.
Thank God we’ve had such a great summer so far. The weather and waves have been near “all time” in consistency. Our trades have returned to normal and it seems the sun and surf will never end. What a blessing. This is a perfect time to celebrate International Surfing Day, which falls on the summer solstice, Wednesday June 21. It’s easy to overlook how much our beaches and our ocean need us just like we need them. Find out how you can go surfing and give something bac - contact Scott Werny at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Mahalo!
Hey, watch out, there’s a young man on the move and he moves fast when he’s on a surf board. He’s Nathan Rex from Kilauea, Kauai. Nathan could be named a T-Rex in the coming years not only because he’s the new state surfing champ! That’s impressive, but consider this: He just started competing last winter and he’s won two of the toughest divisions, the juniors and the open men’s. Plus, he’s got that something in his character that marks many champions: humility. He surfed all weekend with a “good luck” surfboard that was held together by duct tape. The board was made by his father, Steve Rex. Regarding his victories: “It’s starting to sink in a little bit,” says Rex, a senior-to-be at Kapa’a High. “But all the other guys are really good. Anybody can win it at any time. I was just the one who got it this time.” We’ll be keeping an eye out for Nathan T-Rex!
A name you hear quite a bit of these days in competitive surfing is Lani Hunter of Punalu’u. She is our new state surfing champ, too - again! She’s won this title two times in just three years. After the Nationals, Lani will embark on a new professional career in surfing; that made this event extra special. Once you turn pro you don’t enter the amateur events anymore. So you move on to make new friends and beat new competitors. Good luck, Lani!
For results of the OP State Championship log on to surfnewsnetwork.com and scroll the flash paper. It’s so fun.
Hey, guess what else is going to be fun! This weekend at Kewalos, for one day only, Saturday the 17th, Hurley and Local Motion are teaming up to give youths 16 and under a free unique contest. This isn’t any average event. The first 48 kids to enter will get to pick a personal board of one of the Pro Team riders: Rob Machado, Timmy Curran, Pat O’Connel, Joel Centeio, et al. When their heat starts, the pros will paddle out with them and even coach them from the channel! This is every surfer kid’s dream come true! All the young surfers will win this day! It’s going to be popular so we must limit the number of entries to 48. Those entries can only be found at Local Motion in Waikiki. Call 523-SURF or go down and get yours in. First come, first surf! Bring the whole family down for a day of surf with the pros of Hurley. Cool idea. That’s giving back.
That’s a surf wrap for this MidWeek. Mahalo for being here now. I’ll see you in the line up (there’s tons of South Swell!) and back here next week! Stoked!
GQ, dropping in 4 U!
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