For a lot of Hawaii's amateur surfers, Memorial Day weekend marks a time not only to commemorate the past, but, also, to pave the way for their future. Top amateurs
compete at BowlsBy Brandon Lee
Special to the Star-BulletinFor the past 17 years, one of the state's largest amateur contests -- the Local Motion/Ezekiel Surf Into Summer -- has been on this holiday weekend.
Held at Ala Moana Bowls, the premier left-hand break on Oahu's south shore, the event is also considered one of the most prestigious amateur contests in Hawaii, drawing competitors from across the state.
The 2002 version, which began yesterday and runs through Monday, will see over 200 competitors in 11 divisions test their skills at shortboarding, longboarding or bodyboarding.
"This event kind of launches, or kicks off, the summer," Local Motion general manager Calvin Maeda said. "This is one of the more prestigious events because a lot of these amateurs need big titles, big events, to put into their winnings (resume).
"It's a statewide event, and every pro at one time -- whether it was Sunny (Garcia), Kalani Robb or Bruce (Irons) -- they all had this as a springboard into their pro careers."
Sixteen-year-old T.J. Barron is one such amateur who would like to use this contest to help add his name to the list of Hawaii professional surfers like Garcia and Robb -- and also his older brother Tory Barron.
T.J. Barron is competing in the Junior Men's Shortboard division (ages 15-17), which along with Men's and Open Women's Shortboard (18-24), are the most prestigious and hotly contested divisions at Surf Into Summer.
"The other (amateur) contests are not as big as this one," Barron said.
Still soaking wet but motioning over to the two crowded skateboard ramps off to the side of the judges stand, the Kahuku High School sophomore added, "Plus, this one is fun and competitive at the same time."
Battling the windblown 1- to 2-foot surf yesterday, Barron placed second in his first-round heat and advanced to the second round. Critical to his success, he managed to snag a solid 2-foot wall just before time expired. Barron executed two hard backside snaps as he made his way across the face, and continued to ride the wave to the inside for 8.1 of his 14.6 total points.
Kauai's Gavin Gillette, 16, also made it through his first-round Junior Men's Shortboard heat. Though the ocean didn't produce consistent waves during his heat, Gillette placed first as he scrambled for 16 points on his best three rides.
"You just got to work with what you got," Gillette said.
The Kapaa High School student flew over, excited by the chance to surf 15-minute heats with only five other guys at the normally congested Bowls. "A lot better guys enter this contest because they want to surf Ala Moana (almost) by themselves," he said. "It's just better publicity."