[ SURFING ]
Amy Lawson won the Longboard Women's Open title at the Surf Into Summer event yesterday at Ala Moana Bowls.
Wurlitzer comes through
for Surf Into Summer titleThe Kalaheo High School student
claims the junior men's shortboard
division championship
Robert Wurlitzer's prayer for epic waves on Memorial Day Weekend went unanswered, but his one to win a title at one of the biggest and most prestigious amateur surf events in Hawaii didn't.
The Kalaheo High School student won the hotly contested junior men's (ages 15-17) shortboard division at the 19th annual Local Motion Surf Into Summer event yesterday at Ala Moana Bowls.
"I'm really stoked and I thank God," said Wurlitzer, 17, of the biggest win of his young career. "I've been praying about this. And this is my favorite spot in the whole entire world; I surf here every summer. So I think I earned it, because I surf here all the time."
Waves at the famed lefthander on the south shore of Oahu weren't good for the three-day event, and only 1- to 4-foot-face surf rolled through between long lulls for the finals. Still, the contest that represents the start of summer for Hawaii's amateur surfers successfully crowned 13 division champions from among approximately 350 contestants from around the state.
"I had a lot of fun out there, even though the waves weren't the greatest," said Amy Lawson, 17, an Iolani School student who won the women's open longboard final. "This is the kickoff, surf jam, of the summer."
All finals lasted 15 minutes, with six surfers hitting the water in each one. The first wave in the junior men's final wasn't caught until nine minutes had already passed.
But Wurlitzer, likely because he surfs Bowls regularly, managed to sneak inside of the other competitors a minute later and nab a wave on which he executed multiple carving maneuvers, scoring a heat-high 6.40 points (out of 10 maximum). One of only three surfers in the heat to even manage two scores, he added a 1.00 ride just before the heat ended for a winning total of 7.40.
"When the heat started, after about five minutes, I was saying that I knew there wasn't going to be even 12 waves for everyone," Wurlitzer said. "I ended up winning because I got one of the better waves -- everyone else was too deep."
Finishing second through sixth among the junior men finalists were: Jensen Hassett (5.80), Reis Harney (4.40), Torrey Meister (1.80), Zachary Fonoimoana (0.90) and Dusty Payne (no scores).
The highest individual wave score (9.10) and highest two-wave total (16.20) among the finalists yesterday were both posted by boys (12-14) shortboard winner Alex Smith.
It was the 13-year-old Kauai home-school student's first time participating in Surf Into Summer. He as well as many of the other competitors will also be at Bowls again this weekend for yet another big event, the Hawaii Amateur Surfing Association state championships.
"I can't think of how this could have gone better," Smith said. "I guess I just got lucky and caught the sets. I was just trying to keep position. I've surfed here a couple times before, but not very much -- it was fun, definitely."
Finishing behind Smith, in order, were: Kekoa Cazimero (15.40), Clay Marzo (11.00), Derek Wong (8.60), Tonino Benson (8.10) and Taylor Cook (5.20).
In another of the most hotly contested divisions at the event, Punaluu's Lani Hunter (10.20) -- 15 years old and also a home-school student -- picked up her first Surf Into Summer win by taking the girls (17-under) shortboard title. Finishing second through sixth behind Hunter were: Leilani Gryde, Marissa Eveland, Coco Ho, Michelle Watkins and Alana Blanchard.
This win "means a lot," said Hunter. "(The conditions) were pretty hard, and there were a lot of enemies and you had to work hard. You can't be friends for those 15 minutes."
Other division champions yesterday included: Ezekiel Lau (menehune shortboard, ages 11-under); Jared Clapper (men's shortboard, 18-24); Hop Tong Smith (masters shortboard, 25-34); Makani McDonald (senior men's shortboard, 35-over); Yvette Bertelmann (women's shortboard, 18-over); Jonah Romero (bodyboard 17-under); Kepa Kruse (bodyboard 18-over); Venton Siliado (longboard 25-under) and Scot Wilson (longboard 26-over).
