The J'Bay Open was always gonna be a trying event. Before the first hooter sounded the weather charts, both short and long range, showed the Southern Ocean storms were skipping South Africa and expending their energy further east. J'Bay was temporarily off the grid with only trickles of energy rounding the point.

The Championship Tour takes a month long break after J'Bay, and Rip Curl were looking to send Gabriel Medina and Wilko on a Search mission. Should they stay in Africa or head elsewhere..?

Swellnet advised them to head east, follow those storms into the Indian Ocean, then track north to where the tradewinds work their magic. "The largest swell of the season is due to hit directly after the J'Bay waiting period," wrote Craig Brokensha via email. "And the high tides are lined up through the middle of the day."

The forecast held firm as both Gabby and Wilko made early exits from J'Bay - Quarters and Round 3 respectively - so together they flew from Africa to Asia, from the world's best right point to the world's best left.

They collected Garut Widiarta along the way, and the highly co-ordinated mission was deemed a success when the three of them intercepted the building swell.

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