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Monday, December 18, 2000
Pipe dreams After almost a decade in the shadow of close friend and five-time Mountain Dew Pipe Masters champion Kelly Slater at the Banzai Pipeline, California's Rob Machado has had his day in the sun.
Machado masters Pipeline
to win Mountain Dew
Pipe MastersStar-Bulletin wire services
Machado, 27, posted a brilliant win late yesterday afternoon and the only thing overshadowing his performance were the multitude of 10- to 12-foot barrels he rode inside of to win.
Australia's Michael Lowe was a force to be reckoned with en route to his final with Machado, but couldn't keep it together in the ultimate heat. Despite a brilliant start, Lowe suffered several horrific wipeouts that left him short on time and backup scores.
Yesterday's conditions have already been hailed as the greatest the Mountain Dew Pipeline Masters has seen in its 30 years. The waves poured in non-stop for eight hours straight, some thundering through to wipe the competition zone clear of competitors, and others offering a surfer's ultimate experience -- all under a blazing hot sun."I look back at '95 and all the battles I've had with Kelly and I guess it just makes you stronger," said Machado, who earned $15,000 for the victory. "I knew my time would eventually come around and today was my day.
"I would have to say this is one of the greatest days of Pipeline I've ever seen. It was just absolutely perfect all day. To be able to surf out there all day long was an extra bonus and to win a Pipe Masters with it that good makes it that much better."
Lowe got off to a raging start in the 30-minute final, scoring one of the best tube rides of the heat for an excellent 8.75 points. But his dream unraveled as the clock wound down, spending more time under the weight of tons of water than on top of it.A final perfect 10-point tube ride for Machado did nothing to help Lowe's cause. The final score line showing 26.7 out of 30 for Machado, and 19.75 for Lowe, who took home $8,000.
"I don't think any average person could survive those wipeouts," said Lowe, 23, of Wollongong, Australia.
"By the end of the heat it felt like I was spending all my time just trying to get my head up for a breath of air. It was a bit of a disappointment because I'd started out great. I just couldn't hold it together as well as Rob did, but I'll cherish a second place at Pipe. No one can ever take that away from me."
Equal third after semifinal losses yesterday were Hawaii's Bruce Irons of Kauai and Renan Rocha of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Irons had a great run through the event, earning a wild card from a pretrials event, then going to eliminate Luke Egan (Australia), 1998 Pipe Masters champion Jake Paterson (Australia), Damien Hobgood (Florida) and Hawaii's Kalani Robb before losing to Lowe in the semifinal.
Rocha also carved a solid reputation for himself, taking out Californians Shea Lopez and Shane Beschen, Hawaii's Pancho Sullivan, and Guilherme Herdy of Brazil on his way to a semifinal clash with Machado.
World champion elect Sunny Garcia of Kauai was officially awarded the 2000 Vans Triple Crown of Surfing Title, making for a record total of five Vans Triple Crown titles since 1992. Garcia took home a Ford Ranger pickup truck and $7,500 for his outstanding performance throughout the series, which saw him win the G-Shock Hawaiian Pro and Rip Curl Cup, and place 17th in the Mountain Dew Pipe Masters.