| |
Every summer in California, one of the biggest competitions
is held. It is the US Open of Surfing. The contest has traditionally been held in Huntington Beach. This event is part of a professional world tour
that is coordinated by the Association of Surfing Professionals. The
event attracts the world's best surfers and always produces top notch
action.
|
 |
| |
|
More about Huntington Beach |
| |
Along a palm tree lined portion
of Pacific Coast Highway you will find Huntington Beach.
Huntington Beach is located in Southern California. The typical
summer daytime temperatures range from 69-80 degrees Fahrenheit.
The typical summer water temperatures range from 67-71 degrees. Huntington
Beach has long been home to one of the world's biggest surfing
competition: The US Open of Surfing. Not a big surprise, as Huntington Beach has produced a distinguishable surfing subculture. Huntington Beach is not only home to many professional surfers but is
a magnet for professional skateboarders and snowboarders too.
This world class event is held on the South Side of the Huntington Beach
Pier.
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
ASP North America, or the Association of
Surfing Professionals of North America, is one of the seven branches of ASP International
and is hosting this particular contest. ASP has a direct presence
in South Africa, Australia, Japan, Europe, Hawaii, North America and
South America. The ASP uses a rating system
to classify the level of event. Each event has a star rating ranging
from 1 star to 6 stars. 6 star events, like the US Open in Huntington
Beach, are the largest and have bigger
prizes. The ASP claims a 30 year history of surfing tours. Overall the association
produces a world class tour and in many ways serves as a foundation for
a growing industry. Although ASP Tour Competitors do not yet command
earnings comparable to basketball or football players, some professional surfers have earned over 1 million dollars during their career span. The association has attracted sponsors
and exhibitors such as Honda, O'Neill, Foster's, Verizon, and Paul
Mitchell for the 2007 US Open. |
ASP World Tour T-Shirts
|
| |
|
|
| |
In these contests, numbers of
surfers come from around the globe to prove themselves. The judges are
looking to choose one winner. Winners have to impress the judges, have a unique style, and have the potential
to be consistent. There is an official Judging Criteria that can be viewed online. During the competition, each
contender definitely
has only one thing on their mind: to make the top sixteen of the World
Qualifying Series. The top 16 gain a spot on the World Tour. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
This year, numbers of qualified
men and women joined together in Huntington Beach to compete in areas
such as short board and long board, and juniors. The roll call
included Sunny Garcia, Shane Beschen, Dane Reynolds, Adam Wickwire,
Sally Fitzgibbons, and Courtney Conlogue. The contest ran from July 23,
2007 through July 29, 2007. There were
approximately 400,000 visitors in attendance. |
|
| |
. |
More about Surfing |
|
The competition was hot from the start. The first few days were sunny and the waves were two to four feet high. The waves
were "peaky" and had just enough "juice". The surfers were
showing high energy levels in each heat of every round. There were a
number of good performances including one by Adam Robertson of Victoria, Australia.
Adam rode his way to a score of 16.24 out of 20 possible. |
|
| |
|
More about Contest |
| |
As the competition wore on, the elimination process reduced the number of surfers
remaining in the competition. The men and women were obviously able to impress
the judges. Fifteen year old Sally Fitzgibbons won
Wednesday's top score for the women. In the end, Sally scored a 18.86 in
her first heat and a 17.76 in the second heat.
The Women's Finals were held on Saturday July 28th. Stephanie Gilmore won the Honda U.S. Open Women's Division. Stephanie is currently 19 years of age. Many of the competitors in the women's division are in their teens. “I just can’t believe how good some of these younger girls are,” Gilmore said.
“I’m used to being the younger girl coming up, but then you’ve got Sally
(Fitzgibbons) who’s 16 and Courtney (Conlogue) who’s 14. It’s really cool to
see where women’s surfing is going. I reckon it’s going to undergo a huge
transformation in the next couple of years.”
|
|
| |
Stephanie Gilmore
Semifinals outside wave
|
Stephanie Gilmore
Semifinals inside wave |
US Open crowd |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
Sunday July 29, 2007, on the last day
of the competition, the
finalists had to face off. The sun was still in the scenario but the waves
were on the smaller side. The crowd remained in full force through
the end of the competition. The day began with 16 surfers remaining in the men's competition.
By 2:45pm all but two surfers had been eliminated. C.J. Hobgood and Jeremy Flores entered the
final heat. The wave's conditions were a little less than ideal but
these contenders made it look fun. Both CJ and Jeremy gave it their best, "splitting the peak" on the last wave of the final heat. Jeremy went right and CJ went left. |
|
| |
CJ and Jeremy Finals Splitting the Peak
|
CJ Hobgood Finals Finishing Snap |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
In the end, C.J. Hobgood (Melbourne Beach, FL) had taken the 2007 Honda U.S. Open of Surfing title. He defeated Jeremy Flores (Hossegor, FRA) in the final.
The final score: (1st) – C.J. Hobgood (USA) 12.60 and (2nd) – Jeremy Flores (FRA) 11.17 .
CJ Hobgood was happy to meet the crowd and media at the shore and then
quickly went back to the designated competitor area to hug his family.
“I don’t know what’s going on; I’ve entered four WQS events in North America and
won three of them,” Hobgood said. “I guess I’ve just been getting really good
boards at home and I’ve been feeling more comfortable having my family close." |
|
| |
|
|
| |
CJ's Celebration
|
US Open crowd @ the Finals |
|
|
| |
Sources |
|
| |
1st Hand
http://www.aspworldtour.com and media feed.
ASP North America
|
|
|
The September 2007 Issue of Transworld Surf (published in advance)
Domaille Blogs: Alternative Sports
Images and Photos by RPM Photography, Philip Dominguez, and Sky
|
|
| copyright |
|
|
| |
This article is sponsored by: |
|
