Watch: Two Tens In The Teahupoo Trials
It was a languid old South Pacific for the Teahupoo Trials yesterday, competitors sometimes waiting ten minutes for a single wave to break. Yet when they did break, the waves were sheet glass, 8 foot high, ocean-level correctors - the lip restoring what the trough had drained away.
Enrique Aritu might blame the inconsistency for his zero wave count in the Semi-final against Drollet, but fact was he pulled back from a number of waves.
With Kauli Vaast already in the main event - as Tahiti's highest placed CS surfer, he replaced the injured Ferreira - Teahupoo's two remaining Alphas fought it out for the lone wildcard spot.
Though the footage goes for 45 minutes, it was effectively over after 8. Drollet first nabs a 9.60 at the 2 minute mark, then backs it up with a 10 at 4:25.
Czermak fights back with an 8.17 and then a 10 of his own at 8:20, awarded for a hands free entry into a lengthy barrel.
With scores bunched up in the attic - 19.60 to 18.17 - Czermak needed little short of perfection and attempted it twice pulling in late on swinging west bowls. Both times he ended up in the lagoon.
Taking the win, Drollet will face Toledo and Caio Ibelli in Heat 4 of Round 1. If anyone other CT surfers withdraw then Czermak will take their spot.
Comments
How's Matahi's air-to-carve exit on the 9.60! Fella is so incredibly casual... the arched bottom turn on the 10 was beautiful.
Agree, that bottom turn was otherworldly.
Very nice, so harsh for the Woz to miss waves again…….what was the forecast for the final? Just trying to reconcile waves in the footage against the event forecast
It was building SW-S/SW groundswell to 6-8ft through the afternoon with light to moderate N'ly winds.
The opposite of a knife in: he took the weight off the rail and rocker, transferring it to the tail in a subtle stall. Special mention for his spatial awareness, standing tall while knowing the lip is coming down hard.
I hope Czermak also gets a shot.
It was nuts the way he packed those two more West ones no hands.
Either of those was a 10 if he came out.
And knowing there’s a chance you’ll get blasted into the lagoon, which he did
Destroyed on the shallowest and most dangerous part of the reef and then blasted into the lagoon.
Can't believe he came up unscathed from both of those waves.
That 3rd wave with the soul arch was so sick. Also, it looked like he did a small air over the foam ball when exiting the tube.
The 4th wave was maybe sicker than the 3rd, It looked like two foam balls he surfed over on his backhand.
Could a CS surfer not enter the US Open and then enter the trials for Chopes ?
So casual, livin the moment styles
A slick 4k slowmo show below, if you like 3 hrs of perfect barrels...
What a bloody zoo - with all those craft in the line-up.
What a shame the forecast is not great for the main event, these qualifiers(Kauli & Matahi) will probably now lose 1st round to Flip in inconsistent 2-3', whereas if it was macking, they'd be unstoppable.
Just heard off a mate who is over there that Ethan got flogged today! Pulled in and didn’t make it getting sucked over the falls backwards and slammed into the reef. Out of the event and maybe even trestles. Leaving to come home today for scans. Maybe czermick will get the call up
NITV 9.30pm tonight Waterman - Duke: Ambassador of Aloha
rumor has it Czermak is still riding that foamball
The Age just now reporting Ethan has broken two vertebrae, L3 and L4 wiping out at Chopes and looks unlikely to make it to Trestles, opening another top 5 spot. Hope he's ok, he's our best title chance and been on a tear this year. Bummer.