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Playa Venao, Panama (Sunday, March 18, 2001).
Three times world champion Tom Curren scored perfect tens
on an incredible backhand barrel, to win the Billabong Pro
Panama in what must rate as one of the best tube rides ever
seen in professional surfing. Curren's flawless competitive
performance throughout the event was a display of precision
maneuvers, capped by his unbelievable last wave in the final.
Competitors,
band members, spectators and officials rode event buses
five hours from Panama City to Pedasi, hometown of Panamanian
President Mireya Moscoso and where most surfers stayed,
a short ride from the contest site. The beach break at Playa
Venao delivered consistent walled peaks with all day offshore
winds to surfers who had come from a plethora of nations
in Central America, North and South America, Europe, and
the Caribbean. The Latin flavored contingent favored surfing
around the fuller waters of the extreme tidal ranges, which
dictated when the event would run.
Against
a backdrop of grassland and forest, with sailboats anchored
in the lee of the southern headland, seven times Panamanian
National Champion and event wildcard Gary Saavedra progressed
to the quarterfinals, where arguably the hottest heat of
the event took place. On a split decision, eventual second
placed Magnum Martinez of Venezuela and Phillip Watters
of Florida progressed at the expense of Saavedra, who was
unlucky to be left needing a stronger third ride.
Some days before the event began, Curren had
shown up at the contest site with Gary, appearing fit and
relaxed. At the pre-event press conference party held at
Senor Frog's in Panama City, Tom had played electric guitar
with Donavon Frankenreiter and Sunchild, and to the great
delight of the crowd, again joined the band at their contest
site performance, this time on the drums and acoustic guitar.
