The OK Fiji Pro

Just managed to get to this now.

Wow some high seeds biting the dust.

Go Wilko and would like to see Julian get a result (Stu Kennedy too).

You got your wish , Zen . Adriano sent to the sheds by Stuart Kennedy. Nice.

What are Quiksilver up to ? It seems like Leonardo Fioravanti is as likeable as they come. Same as Jack Robinson. Could it be that groms ar e finally being groomed for life as opposed to being set free to lose their souls on the sodom and Gomorrah of the world tour as soon as they display prodigious talent ? That's got to be a plus.

Rosie , mate , if things fall over with your current fella , have no fear - you can always find a warm bed at my place. Just don't go investigating that hole in the gyprock wall above the bed too closely and you'll love it.

Crass jokes aside , digging the Rosie / Blakey combo . Relaxed , honest , sharp and considered.

Ronnie by far the best commentator the WSL has ever had.

Joan duru just punched through the guts of a little inside nugget against Jordy on the replay . Live Cross to Strider in the channel and Ronnie delivers the news that Strider's kids have landed on Tavarua and they're creating Mayhem , chaos at the pool.

Love the way he's not intimidated by , or sycophantic towards the surfers in any measure.

Fucker is all class.

So is his brother , really. The surf media is all the better for their involvement.

How much money would they have to throw at you to face a camera and yell , with passion " No , no , I'm Gabriel Medina !"

I'm no Thurston Howell , nor am I performing favours for Johns at the local train station's men's shitters , so I'm saying $5000.

Let's call it $50 if they throw in dinner with Strider.

Just kidding.

Or am I ?

Actually , yes. I am kidding. Nice fella , I guess , but remember when he hit on those chicks in " On the road with Spike " ?

Grandpa !!!

Tuned into the OK Pro for the very first time today, watched three guys bobbing about for ten minutes, then they went on hold.

Pumped.

Might be a stupid question but I assume the later round seeding works so that QF1 gets the winner of Rd5H1, QF2 gets Rd5H2, and so? - If so Wilko will get Julian or Italo.

Much better looking surf today. Though inconsistent... I saw one wave in ten minutes.

Surf looks lovely.

Wilko on a tear. Don't want to put the mockas on him but hope he can go all the way.

Connor O VERY lucky to get through.

Shitty wave but I reckon Joan got the score.

That's pro surfing for you.

Fck there's been some weird priority decisions this morning......mostly in all of Parko's heats!!!

Reckon Parko was nuts lucky to beat Stu Kennedy with two regulation hits and an 80s era floater. Ended up being the highest scoring wave of the heat, and yeah, it was a large wave which the judges seem to like but it was also wonky, warbly, and wobbly.

Totally.

Stu Kennedy knew it too.

Wilko, nail biter.

Jeez, I'm a bit suss on the judging though.

Yeah I thought Bourez had him for sure after his barrel only got a 6.5

Bourez thought so too but he took it with a smile. Of all the competitors on tour, Bourez is the bloke I'd like to see have a full tilt blow up. No Brazo fly boy hissy fit but a glowering, flexing Tahitian war cry that'd have the tower quivering on its stilts and cause anyone who laughed at his girlie name to dive for cover.

Bring it Michelle.

Anyway, five heats in and Connor O'Leary registers his first 8 point wave of the comp in the semis.

Really digging Connor's surfing.

No doubt Wilko's one man Japanese fan club is a happy chappy.

I can't believe how robbed Michel Bourez was against Wilko. He'd be fully justified in a full war cry raid on the judges' tower.

I didn't see the final, I went surfing and just got in now- was it any good?

I agree, Michel was robbed (Stu Kennedy too) but stoked Wilko got up, I reckon Wilko was robbed last year at Trestles against Brett Simpson, but hey, wouldn't be a contest without a few iffy calls. Here's hoping J-Bay is pumping.

Actually Stu, there's two of us but the other fella don't rite so good.

Surfed turned on, perhaps the best of the event, though I didn't see any of the earlier rounds so I'm talking out my arse really. O'Leary stepped up his performance, his clinical slices remodelled as blunt force trauma on the open face, while Wilko dropped the bundle, twice, before lancing a beast and sealing the deal. No controversy, fella earned it.

Meanwhile, Medina has dropped out of the Top 10 and surely can't be considered a title threat now.

Maybe Medina is burnt out ?

His entire life focussed with enrelentin intensity on the one possible future.

Perhaps it's time for a couple of years on the lounge with a 1/2 chicken and chips washed down with a 6 pack ?

It's happened before.

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQkEDdNF7HfipFNN_E…

Now that he's failing so miserably, Gabs needs to reinvent himself as a Brazo freesurfer. It's what Brazil needs. Bung on a few accoutrements such as a beard (have to ditch the Gilette sponsorship), slip an outdated planshape under his arm, and drop platitudes such as "grow your own" and "organicalways" into his Instagram feed next to shots of his pissant kale crop.

Be no less convincing than the current charade of charlatans.

Re Joel and Bedes priority ruling. Seeing a competitive sportsman protesting a judging decision that actually went their way is unusual in any sport ,, onya Parko , I wonder how Toledo would have responded if he was involved in either side of that decision?

Or he could give Charlie a bit of a holiday and take some pressure off his shoulders.

Are you on the beers , Stu ?

Nah, just irritated.

Is this an acute pain that you're confronting today , or has the stage managed theatrics of the non competitive professional surfer been festering in your mind for a while ?

Have you ever considered withholding from talking on Tuesdays as an aid to reducing your pain ?

Maybe scrawling glib statements in infantile hand writing on the bottom of your boards ?

Mid-season and Kelly is in 18th. Wonder if that's a lowest ever? A reverse PB if you will. Will he go all the way and risk not making the cut off or subtly bow out with dignity?

@Blowin

While I was on my recent sabbatical I took an oath to be less judgemental. Do unto others or some shit....or maybe it was not casting the first stone. I forget.

Anyway, whatever it was it didn't last a day, but it ain't my fault. Who can stay strong in the face of such hypocrisy?

"Paid well to exploit the commerciality of their non-commerciality' as P Jarratt calls it.

So yeah, it's been festering for a bit and for some reason the thought of a Brazo freesurfer - when are they coming? - gave me a kick.

Pretty sure Kelly had a shocker on one of his first years on tour . Maybe his second ? In the teens for sure, but at least he was on the ascendency , career wise , unlike now.

I reckon he'll borrow a leaf out of Fanning's book and if the wheels are getting wobbly he'll play the untameable swell hound and bail on any comps where the conditions won't play to his strengths.

An idea that would be inconceivable during his prime . Though he might have done it at Jefferys one year when something similar was going down.

Not that he's not the most core surfer on the planet , it's just that dominating other surfers took precedence to perfect swells previously , even if he had to belittle them in rubbish surf.

And whilst a large portion of this prioritorial change will be genuine and he's got very little interest in another 8 point two wave total victory over a lesser talent , you just know he'd still march on through the pain if total victory was an option come years end.

Pretty sure their is Brazzo freesurfers already , but maybe the uncontested pretension doesn't translate between cultures so well ?

PS Sabbatical you say ? Any spiritual goals striven for ? Or was it just time to get the fuck out for a bit ?

I've been on a bit of a journey of self discovery of sorts myself of late .

The do unto others as they'd do unto you deal is all well and good when surrounded by similar minded folk.

I was inclined that way myself till I landed on the East coast and started tying to enjoy the various pointbreaks with that approach .

Got me nowhere but wave starved and resentful . I do resentful particularly well.

Took the opposite approach and started paddling around EVERYONE. As a result it was more waves than I needed. Only on the points though. Put me back on a beachie and I'm meek as a lamb . Which only made it stranger when one of the inbred locals at a certain location had a red hot go at me one sunny day with 4 people out on a perfect peak. A fella I truly hadn't ever hassled for a wave and he wants to demonstrate his amateur boxing skills on me.

So the lesson is ?

Either way , I've cooled my jets and I'm back to being the innocent lamb. For now , anyway.

Spiritual goals? I went out of my way to become an empty vessel, if that counts for anything. No writing, no books, no uncessary thinking. Just eat, surf, repeat. There's wisdom in there somewhere.

And Slater's 'bad' year was '93 when he ended sixth overall - a titanic fall from grace after his world title debut and the hopes of a nation thrust upon him. Though I think he also had Pammy's shoulder to cry on about then.

This year KS's places are: 5, 13, 13, INJ, 13, to be placed 18th.

In 1993 his first five comps were: 33, 9, 5, 17, 33.

So maybe he was ranked lower at this time of the year in 1993, though with the way rankings and point spreads have changed, who knows?

And while I'm stumbling down this rabbit hole of trivia, here's the names of the five guys who beat him in those '93 contests. Kong, Fabio Gouveia, Matt Hoy, Nicky Wood, and Todd Miller.

If I was Todd Miller I'd have the heat results tattooed on my chest.

Pretty sure Slater would have been lower rated in 93 at the same stage than this year given those results. What intrigued me most was how many basic errors KS made in that heat that he lost to Connor chasing a 4 or something. He had about 20 odd minutes left to get a 4 and wouldn't take off on anything unless it could have been an 8 plus. Got too deep and out of position and looked like a rookie. Pretty basic errors for someone so expeeienced. Gave Connor a lifeline though

Connor had a pretty lucky run through that comp really......all credit to him, he did step on the gas when it was required but you'd have to think he wouldn't get that lucky again so soon.
Slater anywhere near his prime would have had him for breakfast in that rd3 heat.

Cool write ups , cobber.

Freeride 76 I couldn't disagree with you more. Don't you remember Oleary
in his 1st ever wct event got into the quarter finals was that a lucky run as
well not to mention has not had a lower finish than 13th is leading the
rookies comfortably and unless you blind has to be one of the sharpest and
fastest surfers on tour. If you cant see that may I suggest a date with Spec Savers

Yep he surfed good no doubt but pretty lucky that Kelly couldn't get a 4 in their heat. If He had then Connor's run would have ended then.

No shit sherlock and if Wilko didnt get his score in the last 2 minutes Oleary
would of won the whole contest. Im dumbstruck you actully said that. For the
record every surf contest is full of what ifs. You do know that Oleary has beaten
Kelly 2 out 2 dont you.

Yep did notice that. Just saying that theres a big difference when you're getting through a heat because someone who is the GOAT couldn't find a 4. Connor surfed really well in the semis and final and his heat scores then reflected that. Early rounds he snuck through on some low scoring heats. But yeah every comp is full of 'what ifs'. No denying that!

Evo, did you watch any of the other heats?

Connor was VERY lucky to have squeaked through his quarter final with Joan Duru. In fact, in my opinion he was beaten. Should have been Duru through to the semis and Michel in the final based on form.

Connor was lucky but he did surf what was on offer better than the opposition and with Luke Egan's help, surfed tactically well. How many times in every surfers career does luck play a big part though?? Goes both ways so take the good when you can !!
In the finals he stepped it up and surfed very well. After watching the final a second time and replaying each wave a few times, imho I think he probably won it but it was close,so Wilko got the nod for the established surfers.
I personally think the kid certainly is a great addition to the CT and has a bright future in front of him plus he's coming in at the right time with a few of the older established surfers reaching their used by dates in the not too distant future .

Joan Duru def beat Connor. Connor surfed well and is growing with every event. Some of the judging was strange to say the least. Wilkos technique is obviously so average compared to Bourez, John John, Connor and Duru.