2A Rated Hutchison Handcrasted Pro

Pro Surfing Tour/Surfing South Africa
Balito, KZN North Coast South Africa
15 - 17 December 2006

Top seeds dominate in tricky conditions on the first day of the  Hutchison Handcrafted Pro

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 15 December, 2006 : - - In small, tricky conditions at Surfers Point, Ballito, surfers taking  part in the 2A rated Hutchison Handcrafted Pro, were forced to earn  their points if they wanted to advance to day two of the event.

All went according to plan for Jordy Smith (DBN) who adapted well to  the small conditions on the opening day to advance through to the  Quarter Finals in the Pro Junior Division as well as advancing  through to the round of 32 in the Men’s Division.

Smith, who is fresh off the plane from a second place at the O’Neill  World Cup of Surfing at Sunset Beach in Hawaii as well as claiming  the prestigious Van’s Triple Crown of Surfing’s Rookie of the Year  Award, is a hot favourite in both divisions of the Hutchison  Handcrafted Pro. Smith will face tough competition from a handful of surfers who  looked to be in scintillating form throughout the first day of  competition.

Durban’s Justin Saunders is one such surfer who seemed to ignore the  fact that he was not seeded for this event, by comfortably winning  both his heats today. The lightning fast goofy-foot made light work  of the tricky conditions and will look to continue in the same vein  tomorrow when he comes up against Smith as well as Durban’s Simon  Nicholson and Dylan Stone (PE).

As the tide filled in throughout the afternoon, the fickle onshore  waves levelled the playing field making patience and wave selection  crucial. Current PST ratings leader Warwick Wright (DBN), however, had little  difficulty linking his waves from the outside to the crunching  shorebreak and was rewarded with a comprehensive second round victory  over first round standout, Shane Warren (Bluff).

Earlier, Warren recorded the day’s highest scoring ride, an 8.75 out  of a possible 10 points, on his way to the highest heat total of the  day (15 out of a possible 20). Warren’s smooth approach saw him glide  into the round of 32, where he will meet up with top Junior  competitors Josh Redman (Umhloti) and Klee Strachan (Toti), who were  impressive on the first day of competition in both the Men’s Open  Division and the Pro Junior Division.

Chad du Toit was another young gun hoping to make waves in both the  Pro Junior and Open Men’s Division and comprehensively achieved this  after placing first in all three of his heats today. The pint-sized  Durbanite used his weight advantage to glide through both his Men’s  Division heats as well as dominate his Pro Junior heat.

Tomorrow’s action will kick off with the Open Men’s round of 32  taking to the water, followed the first round of competition in the  Women’s Division. Also competing tomorrow will be the quarter finalists of the Pro  Junior Division as well as the first round of the Retro Expression  Session.

The Retro Expression Session is a unique event that will see  competitors riding retro boards that will mimic the surfboard designs  of  the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Competitors in this speciality event  will have the chance to wow the crowds with “old school” manoeuvres  as well as supplying some insight into where surfboard design has  come from and where it will be going in the future.

The Hutchison Handcrafted Pro is the final stop of the 2006  Professional Surf Tour (PST) and is a Surfing South Africa (SSA)  sanctioned event. The Hutchison Handcrafted Pro is proudly supported by: Bedboys  Ballito, Furnishings by Conrad, Friendly Supermarket, Sailors Bottle  Store, Dream Nails, U Investing in Health, Secret Spot. The revamped SubZero nightclub is the official party host for the event.

Previous reports:
# 1 : 2A rated Hutchison Handcrafted Pro amps for Balito SA
# 2 : Hutchison Handcrafted Pro lands in Balito South Africa
# 3 : Coming soon
# 4 : Coming soon  

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www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za 

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Brendon Thomas

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