No Fear Energy Air Show

Moonlight Beach, Encinitas CA
8 April 2007

High Altitude and High Drama at Moonlight Beach

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 11 April, 2007 : - - With a single tide of  0.9 at 8 A.M. on Sunday morning, April 8, round seven — the final round of the No Fear Energy Airshow—  got off to a slow, somewhat dismal start when many of the pre-event favorites were knocked out of the contests, unable to get clean air off the lip of the anemic waves.

However, as morning turned into afternoon, conditions improved dramatically and the Moonlight Beach was ratcheted themselves enough to create an epic Airshow contest. Come finals time, the waves were head high and ramped up Evel Knievel-style. With 30 minutes to work with, Eric McHenry, Derek Bockleman, Peter Mussio and Josh Buran paddled out into the Moonlight Beach surf and up came the landing gear.

Eric McHenry was the first surfer cleared for takeoff, pulling two solid air reverses before the rest of field even knew what in the hell had happened. As the finals went on, Eric’s air managed to keep getting bigger and better. Derek Bockleman who was sitting further south on a different peak, then busted a huge air reverse of a head high section. He then landed in the flats and somehow managed to spin his board around to complete the move.

The crowd on the beach went nuts with enthusiasm and appreciation. Eric then appeared to get the better of Bockleman with a big, full-on straight air, however Bockleman took a left and launched a straight air that was at least 3-feet above the breaking lip. Once again, the fans on the beach bellowed their appreciation.

Derek then followed that up with a super technical “Super V”. (The board launched in the air and grabbed by both hands, then spun around under the feet, the surfer then landing and riding the board backwards in the switch stance position.