One perk of not being at the event: watching this from the comfort of home. Photo: Hurley
Every event on the World Championship Tour is brought to your computer screen via webcast which, for better or worse, doesn’t always capture the essence of the event. Sure, it shows you what’s happening in the water, which is why you tuned in in the first place. What you don’t get is the atmosphere, the crowd, the banter and plenty more that a few cameras can’t bring you. Let’s recap some of what you might have missed if you weren’t at the Hurley Pro Trestles. By the numbers that is. Day one.
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18: Steps in the Lower Trestles rock dance at low tide.
8: Steps in the Lower Trestles rock dance at high tide.
153: Fans crowding John John Florence after his Round 1 heat (I stopped counting after the fifth wave of people).
Too many: Screaming girls as Julian Wilson exited the water after his heat.
2: Heats in which the world’s two best surfers (Kelly Slater and Dane Reynolds) squared off.
7.40: Highest scored wave by either Kelly or Dane in either heat. Surprising that neither could pull out an excellent wave.
36: Text messages required to obtain media credential this morning. We missed the boat on properly acquiring them until the day of. Hey, we’ve been busy.
4: Times Julian Wilson said his goal is to be World Champion this year in a candid interview with The Inertia.
3: Times I felt my eye twitch after consuming the complimentary Sambazon energy drinks.
72: Minutes spent driving to Trestles (from Los Angeles) Monday morning.
12: Mini-ravioli served on my lunch plate.
0: Riots, crude “body art,” and/or over-turned porta-potties.
