If Vaughan Blakey’s sunburnt visage and hoarse voice are any indication, froth levels are high on the Bukit Peninsula. The 21st annual Rip Curl Cup Padang Padang officially kicked off in clean four-to-six-foot funnels on Monday, and the first round did not disappoint.
Due to the short tide window, the event did not have a live broadcast today going out to the rest of the world. That button will be pressed for finals day and will be streamed at ripcurl.com. As for when that’ll go down, SwellNet is tracking a large southwest groundswell that is predicted to hit Bali on August 27.
The event started at 12 p.m. local time when the tide dropped enough to start an Icons Heat featuring local legends and longtime standouts at the reef break. Jim Banks, who has been building surfboards since 1971, and Adi Bol Putra were the division’s early standouts. Lucky buggers, the Icons got to surf two heats throughout the day. Other surfers in this stacked expression session included Moana Jones-Wong, Coco Ho, Joel Tudor, Joel Parkinson, Tai Buddha Graham, Rizal Tandjung and Nathan Hedge.
The majority of the day was for the men’s first round. Here’s how the four heats broke down.
Of the 16 men to go left today, Mason Ho was the top (pig)dog, getting an 8.9 and an 8.17 for his trademark multi-grab tube stance. It’s a distinct style that only Mason possesses. The 35-year-old Hawaiian used his district style to surpass Noa Deane (the day’s second-highest scorer), Mega Artana and Tommy Sobry.
Joel Parkinson would not be denied on this gorgeous runner. He was absurdly deep on this 8.83 and had the channel in an uproar. He came out of the first long tube and then promptly maneuvered his way into another barrel. It makes me think that Joel is doing well post “retirement.” He chooses his contest venues wisely. Last year he won the Four Seasons Maldives annual Surfing Champions Trophy at Sultans. A few months back he ripped a twin fin at Snapper Rocks for a legends heat with Kelly Slater, Mick Fanning, Stephanie Gilmore and Mark Occhilupo. Now he’s getting tropical rinses at Padang. Well played, Parko.
Surprisingly, reigning event champion Clay Marzo is in 14th place with just a 5.43 and 2.67 to his name. Expect the big cat to pounce soon. And we still are awaiting the first-ever women’s division at Padang. It will be interesting to see if invitees Sierra Kerr and Erin Brooks (who both got the call-up as wildcards in the upcoming Fiji Pro) could go from Cloudbreak to Padang in a week. The Fiji Pro window runs from August 20-29. The teenagers’ appearance will depend if they have an early-round exit or if Cloudbreak wraps up early. Stay tuned. Here’s how the men’s top-eight scores from day 1.
