Pipeline: Big and ugly opens South Bay Fall Classic
Big and ugly opens South Bay Fall Classic
David Slay tries to jump the pier on his way to winning the 12th Annual South Bay Surf League Kick Off Classic. Photo by Malene Pedersen
The South Bay Surf League Fall Classic got under way Saturday morning under grey skies, threatening rain, slight onshore winds, and a 7-foot high, incoming high tide with a 4- to 6-foot, thick bumpy shore break on the South side of the Hermosa Beach Pier. It was hard finding a wave that held up long enough for a quick roller coaster, making long rides almost impossible and testing the spirits of the new, energetic, hyper high school surf team surfers.
At the start of the semi finals you could see black clouds on the horizon. The onshore winds picked up making the waves harder to catch, but giving the surfer a lip cushion to bank off the top.
Nick Green started with a monster backside bowl, then carving a deep cutback as he neared the pier. Derrick Bogenalt made a fast coaster while Nathan Quinn took over on a scarce, long right bouncing off the top down the line. David Slay owned the heat with his explosive coasters and roundhouse cutbacks.
The last semi heat was loaded with talent that welcomed the gnarly walls pushing through the pier. Payne English tried his best to keep up with the rest getting big air and a backside floater, but Kevin Piper caught a big outside and made some huge coasters. James Pratt put the pressure on riding the super sized bowls off the pier where he landed some nice floaters, but Redondo’s Connor Beaty owned the semi by going for broke on every set wave with exciting tubular sections that doubled up through the pier, getting maximum speed before downshifting off the top and landing every coaster.
In the finals, four of the six surfers fought for wave position, hoping to get a wave to hold up near the pier while the other two took their chances down the beach. The wind got stronger, pumping up the sets to double overhead with no place to go. Nathan Quinn told me if he could make one wave he would be alright for the rest of the heat. On the first wave of the heat Nathan made a quick bounce off the top before pulling into a closed out tube. On his second big right off the pier Nathan shot out of the tube, getting a long right down the beach.
Mira Costa’s Payne English looks for an opening. Photo by Malene Pedersen
James Pratt found a semi make able right, awarding him two big coasters. James caught a backside boomer for his last wave of the final narrowly missing a pier pilling coming off the top. John Hobbs told me the surf wasn’t too good, but still managed to pull one out of his surf bag of tricks, landing a nice floater next to the pier. Redondo crowd favorite Connor Beaty said, “It’s always fun when you make the final.” Connor couldn’t find a ride able wave near the pier but forced his board off the top of some big close outs. He still needed one high scoring wave to win the heat. It seemed like his prayers were answered when he dropped down the outside wave of the day and went for broke trying a 360. He made it half way but then his fins started to drift and Connor couldn’t hang on.
When I asked Kevin Piper about the surf conditions for the final he kind of smiled and said, “It’s good enough to do something great.” On his first wave he flew three feet past the lip but couldn’t stick the landing. On his next two waves Kevin flew off the lip down shifting on the way down to stick the landings to finish second.
David Slay, a Mira Costa High School senior, told me the waves were horrible before paddling out in the final. The skinny freckle faced regular foot was the only finalist with a game plan. It paid off with him catching the medium sized, better shaped rights sectioning off the pier. David never let up, making radical coasters and floaters down the line. He went into full drift coming off the lip on a backside left near the pier to beat Kevin by a point.
David said, “I lucked out getting a few corners that gave me longer rides.”
Next Saturday the South Bay Surf League Fall Classic continues with the girls, body board and long board heats at Torrance Beach. ER
See Connor Beaty’s overhead head-plant video at www.easyreadernews.com/sports/surfing