Round 1 completed at the Rip Curl Pro Search
It was an exciting day of competition here in Portugal. Round 1 of the first ever Rip Curl Women’s Pro Search was completed today in clean, yet shifty three-to-four foot (1 metre) waves at the backup venue of Belgas.
The competition took to the water immediately following the completion of the men’s event this morning at Supertube’s. The event organizers opted to hunt down the best possible conditions that the midday had to offer, and decided on leaving from onshore and testing Supertube's. In a cloud of dust, the 4 trucks necessary
for the live webcasting hit the road again and were headed to Pico da Mota, a nice little beachbreak lost amidst wilderness. There, after pluging a few cables and getting the jury their chairs, competition was ready to start.
Current ASP Women’s World No. 4, Melanie Bartels (HAW), 27, looked natural in the reeling Belgas walls. Her known style, punch and bite, was highlighted in the conditions and secured the highest-scoring wave of the day, an 8.00 out of a possible 10. Her surfing was explosive and worthy of the score as she executed sharp hits on her backhand down a roping left. Her heat total (also the highest of the day) of a 13.17 out of a possible 20 was enough to edge past opponents Samantha Cornish (AUS), 29, and Alana Blanchard (HAW), 19.
"It’s always good to find some place different to surf and to have the Rip Curl Search Pro and you don’t know where it will be, it is really good,” Bartels said. “I've been looking forward to this event all year. I am just happy to get a good start on the first day of competition."
Bartels is hoping her past experience in Portugal will serve her well throughout the course of the event, as the progressive Hawaiian eyes another solid result to boost her ASP Women’s World Tour rating.
"I have been here twice before and everywhere I have been it has been so good,” Bartels said. “Stoked to be here and experience a different break, I am just stoked to be here and be surfing."
Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), 21, reigning two-time ASP Women’s World Champion and current ASP Women’s World No. 1, was another standout in the Round 1 action at Belgas, casually dismantling the shifting peaks at Belgas on her backhand to secure a 12.00 out of a possible 20 heat total and advance through to Round 3. Having witnessed the majority of the men’s action from the past week, Gilmore is keen to apply the inspiration to a strong performance of her own in Portugal.
“We have watched the boys and it was awesome to see Mick (Fanning) do well. He has been on fire the whole European leg and it was good to watch and learn from that and use that in my own game out here."
- Add new comment
- 511 reads
