'Summer' surf keen despite small waves
| • | Complete list of results |
By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer
Waves were small but smiles were big at the Local Motion Surf Into Summer contest yesterday at the Ala Moana Bowl.
Bernie Baker • Special to The Advertiser
More than 300 competitors participated in the three-day event, solidifying its reputation as the largest amateur surfing contest in the state. Finals in 12 divisions were completed yesterday in wind-blown 1-foot waves.
Jordy Brough of the Big Island placed fifth in the "airshow" heat of the Local Motion Surf Into Summer.
"A lot of guys come from the outer islands, so there's more competition than usual," said Campbell High senior Joel Centeio. "Even though the waves are small, this contest is always good. It's hard just to make it to the finals."
Perhaps because of that, Surf Into Summer has also gained a reputation as a treasure chest for deserving competitors. Thousands of dollars' worth of prizes were awarded yesterday, including new surfboards, bodyboards and skateboards.
"You only have to pay $25 to enter, so it's worth it," said Miku Uemura, a junior at Wai'anae High.
In her case, it was well worth it. For winning the girls longboard division, Uemura received a trophy, a new skateboard, new shoes, a surfboard bag, a backpack, a T-shirt and several other smaller items. She also got a $100 "bonus" for the best individual ride during the final.
"The waves were small, so wave selection was a key," she said. "You just had to be patient."
Centeio shared a similar strategy in winning the prestigious junior men's division, which is for surfers age 18 and younger, and annually features most of Hawai'i's soon-to-be professional stars.
"There are so many good young guys coming up now," said Centeio, 18. "I was scared of the young ones. I didn't want to lose to one of those guys. I just made sure to wait for the good waves, even though there weren't that many."
Centeio, a world amateur champion, was competing in Surf Into Summer for the final time. After graduating from Campbell this week, he will begin surfing in professional contests shortly after.
He also placed second in a special "airshow" exhibition sponsored by Surfing Magazine. A $5,000 purse was supposed to be awarded to the top performers, but officials decided to postpone the actual competition due to the dismal conditions.
Instead, only an exhibition heat was staged, with Brian Pacheco winning $100 for completing the best aerial maneuver. He joked that the prize money would go toward paying off the ticket he was expecting after parking illegally in the jam-packed lot at Magic Island.
Officials from Surfing Magazine are trying to reschedule the actual airshow for sometime this summer.
Surfing Girl magazine also awarded cash prizes to the top female performers.
Shea Hodges, a freshman at St. Francis School, received $250 for completing the best maneuver during the girls surfing final.
"The waves were so junk, I was just trying to do anything," she said. "I guess it paid off for me."
Despite her radical move, Hodges placed fifth in the final. Sandy Chang won the division, and received $150 from Surfing Girl, in addition to the armloads of prizes.
Local Motion also awarded new surfboards to Chad Navarro and Ira Masaki. Both made the final in their respective divisions, and both are unsponsored competitors (many of the top amateurs are sponsored by surf companies and receive merchandise, including surfboards, for free).
Navarro placed fifth in the boys surfing division. Masaki, who is Centeio's classmate at Campbell, was the only unsponsored surfer to make the junior men's final, and placed fourth.
"This is the best I've ever done, and I got a free surfboard for it," said Masaki, 18. "I always wanted to make a final in this contest because of all the prizes, but I didn't expect this much."
Final results
Menehune surfing: 1, Kekoa Cazimero. 2, Noah Ericson. 3, Mason Ho. 4, Tonino Benson. 5, Billy Kemper. 6, Travis Sasaki.
Boys surfing: 1, Gavin Gillette. 2, Kaimi Huihui. 3, Jimmy McKinney. 4, Kaiwi Berry. 5, Chad Navarro. 6, Robert Wurlitzer.
Junior men surfing: 1, Joel Centeio. 2, Dustin Cuizon. 3, Jordy Brough. 4, Ira Masaki. 5, Kekoa Bacalso. 6, Daniel Jones.
Men surfing: 1, Billy Choi. 2, Kevin Kennedy. 3, Kalei Umoto. 4, Takahiro Kudo. 5, Ryan Page. 6, Kaolino Baker.
Senior men surfing: 1, Eddie Ogata. 2, Jason Katada. 3, Robert Howard. 4, Dexter Shimabukuro. 5, Dale Sabate. 6, Francis Palea.
Masters surfing: 1, Chet Moleta. 2, Scott Shimoda. 3, Chad Depontes. 4, David Kawada. 5, Kawehi Ponce. 6, Darren Mahoe.
Girls surfing: 1, Sandy Chang. 2, Melody Haas. 3, Leilani Gryde. 4, Chantel Navarro. 5, Shea Hodges. 6, Rachel Spear.
Menehune bodyboarding: 1, Nathan Rubio. 2, Maka Vasconcellos. 3, Chacity Bernabe. 4, Charles Tatum. 5, Evan Duffin Barnes. 6, Ashley Asing.
Men bodyboarding: 1, Ikaika Villa. 2, Roger Mamuad. 3, Jed Kutaka. 4, Jonah Kanekoa. 5, Jacob Faber. 6, Tyler Ching Johnson.
Girls longboarding: 1, Miku Uemura. 2, Kelly Maunakea. 3, Crystal Dzigas. 4, Jazzmin Cabinilla. 5, Angela Vernon. 6, Monica Burkart.
Men longboarding: 1, Ash Marzuki. 2, Kanai Scharsh. 3, Kamu Auwae. 4, Allen Mahuka. 5, Jordan Hart. 6, Doug Cayan.
Surfing Magazine Airshow: 1, Brian Pacheco. 2, Joel Centeio. 3, Kaolino Baker. 4, Kekoa Bacalso. 5 (tie), Jordy Brough and Randy Welch.
