Action Continues at HB Pier on Day 4 of SIMA Surfing America USA Championships

Check out all the Top amateur surfers from all around the U.S. OF A right here at South side of the Huntington Beach Pier. You can also check out all the live action at: http://surfingamericalive.com/live/

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Courtney Conlogue Wins US Open Womens Event

HUNTINGTON BEACH, California (Saturday, July 25, 2009) – Courtney Conlogue (Santa Ana, CA), 15, won the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) 6-Star Hurley U.S. Open today over defending event champion Malia Manuel (Wailua, HI), 15, who claimed the U.S. Open Nike 6.0 Pro Junior, in a high-scoring Final in six-to-eight foot (2 metre) surf today at South Huntington Beach Pier.

Surfers competing at the prestigious Hurley U.S. Open event are battling for the important ratings points on offer towards qualification for the ASP World Tour.

Conlogue won the hard-fought battle over the young Hawaiian with huge backside blasts on the steep lefthanders in the Final to log a 9.00 and an 8.17 in her score line, placing the defending champion in a combination situation. Each of the impressive scores earned by the Huntington Beach local were awarded with one single maneuver, allowing her to take out her first major ASP WQS victory.

“I’m pretty much speechless,” Conlogue said. “Malia (Manuel), she’s an amazing surfer and to win that heat was to die for. I want to thank Malia for putting on a good Final with me. I’m so stoked to have had that Final with her. I was just going out there and having fun and that’s what I’ve been doing this whole contest and it ended up working out. I’m going to try and carry that throughout all of my contests this year.”

The young American’s victory today solidifies her as a threat to the rest of the world’s finest competitive surfing talent and continues to establish the explosive regular-footer as a frontrunner in the women’s progressive surfing movement. After completing her educational goals, Conlogue expects to set her sights on the Women’s ASP World tour.

“I’ve got to finish school first, but definitely the ASP World Tour is coming soon enough,” Conlogue said.

Malia Manuel put on a banner performance throughout the entire Hurley U.S. Open, and claimed the U.S. Open Nike 6.0 Pro Junior en route to her runner-up ASP WQS finish. Manuel’s Final berth was no easy feat, as she defeated reigning two-time ASP Women’s World Champion Stephanie Gilmore (Tweed Heads, AUS), 21, in the women’s main event.

“I’m so over the moon even to make it to the final day,” Manuel said. “It was great out there. Courtney is an amazing athlete and she was the deserving heat winner.”

Manuel took out her U.S. Open Nike 6.0 Pro Junior title in dramatic fashion when she nabbed a last-minute wave to overtake the win over Sage Erickson (Ojai, CA), 18, who finished in second, defeating fellow finalists Cannelle Bulard (REU), who finished in third and current ASP World Tour rookie Coco Ho (Sunset Beach, HI), 18, who finished fourth.

“I’m glad I had the Pro Junior to fall back on,” Manuel said. “Surfing against Coco (Ho) was great and Sage (Erickson) almost had it in the bag and some miraculous wave came and I got to pick it up and got a score. I’m just happy to be here today and surf in both finals.”

The young regular-footer is now ready to start gaining more ASP WQS experience to eventually make a push towards qualification for the ASP Women’s World Tour.

“I think it’s time to put my foot through the door and do a couple of WQS events,” Manuel said. “I’m in no rush, I’m only 15, so I’m just going to get some experience going on and hope for the best and hopefully in a couple of years I’ll be doing what Coco (Ho) and Steph (Gilmore) are doing right now."

Men’s Hurley U.S. Open competition started the day off today and witnessed reining nine-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (Cocoa Beach, FL), 37, blast a perfect 10-point-ride with a committing backside barrel to continue his campaign as the frontrunner of Hurley U.S. Open action. The Floridian Champion followed up the score with an 8.50 to notch the highest heat total of ASP WQS 6-Star competition for the second consecutive day.

“I’m stoked,” Slater said. “There are big, huge, walled close-outs, but there are a few corners out there. The tide is coming in and it’s not as hollow as this morning, there were probably a few barrels out there. That first one I got was so big, it just barreled. I started grabbing rail as I was going down the face, and doing a slow, long bottom turn, trying to brush off some speed. I was thinking, did I dork this, because for I second I didn’t think it was going to barrel. Then it started to pitch. I was starting to think I would look really silly trying to grab rail mid-face on a wave that didn’t barrel. I was hoping I could get out of it and get a hit, but it was just too quick.”

Tomorrow will conclude Hurley U.S. Open action and will crown men’s ASP WQS and U.S. Open Nike 6.0 Pro Junior Champions by day’s end.

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All the Top Dogs are in Town Come by and Get Their Autographs!

Come on down and meet all your surf heroes at HSS @ 300 Pacific Coast Highway (corner of PCH & Main)
While you're down here check out all the latest Hurley US Open of Surfing stuff!

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The Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships is ON!

(Salinas, Ecuador) April 1, 2009 - A powerful 6-8 foot south swell slammed into la FAE beach today making for challenging conditions for surfers at the 2009 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships. Amazing performances were turned in by the world's best young surfers as they bravely fought through treacherous currents and clean up sets.

“We had some high scores today but for most of the competitors, it was really difficult,” said Contest Announcer Gary Linden. “La FAE is one of the most consistent waves in Ecuador because it is the most exposed. When it gets big, it is often too big. In most contests, you are always hoping the swell will come up but in this one we are hoping it backs down some. Tomorrow and through the weekend will be really good as the swell fades and these kids are able to show more performance surfing.”

Under 16 Boys teammates Carlos Muñoz and Jordan Hernandez found the right waves in their heats and showed the world today that Costa Rica is home to a stable of exciting junior surfers. The team's star, Carlos Muñoz, is surfing in both Under 18 and Under 16 division. He could potentially surf an exhausting 20 heats this week.

The competition has gotten much tighter as the event continues on to the later rounds. Heat three of the Boys Under 16 was stacked with the future of surfing's powerhouses as South Africans David Brand and Mikey February faced USA's Kolohe Andino and Hawaiian Ezekiel Lau. In the end Brand took the win, followed by Andino for second, and February and Lau in third and fourth, falling to the repercharge rounds.

The standout of the day for the Under 16 Boys was Hawaii's Keanu Asing. His experience in bigger waves proved to be advantageous in today's conditions. Taking off on a solid 8 foot wave, Asing put together a combination of beautiful backhand turns, connecting to the inside and finishing off with a few more solid hacks in the shorebreak.

The French team currently leads the Under 18 Girls division with all four surfers still in the main rounds. Teammates Canelle Bulard and Justine Dupont ended up in the same heat today, but were able to both advance, taking first and second over Peruvian Nadja de Col and New Zealand surfer Rosa Thompson. French surfers Johanne Defay and Marie Dejean also made it through their heats to advance on to round four.

In heat three with the swell peaking, only eight waves were surfed between the four competitors. South African Bianca Buitendag and Australian Laura Enever were able to put together two scores a piece to finish in the one and two spots. Team USA surfer Lakey Peterson caught only one wave in the entire 20 minute heat. Peterson finished third and Hawaiian Nage Melamed finished fourth falling to the repercharge rounds.

Team USA surfer and former ISA World Junior medalist Courtney Conlogue placed second in her heat and will be the only USA Under 18 Girls surfer to continue on to round four of the main event. Teammates Peterson, Lani Doherty and Kaleigh Gilchrist will compete in the repercharge rounds starting tomorrow.

It was a difficult day for surfers in the repercharge heats at the secondary contest site with the increased swell combining with an onshore wind and bottoming tide. Organizers held only two rounds before postponing the Girls Under 18 repercharge heats until tomorrow when the swell is expected to decrease slightly.

Two of the leading teams, France and Hawaii, each saw one surfer from each team exiting the competition today, Dimitri Ouvre and Kyle Galtes bid farewell to the contest. Local Ecuadorian Fabio Dapelo kept his medal hopes alive taking the win in repercharge heat two over Hawaiian Tanner Hendrickson who finished second. Kai Ojima from Japan won his heat while teammate Taiki Kurokoshi finished second later in the round. Barbados surfer Lewis St. John kept his team in the running for the Under 18 Boys division, winning his heat over Tahitian Teiki Charles, Japan's Kaishu Tanaka and Chilean Tomas Villegas.

In the Boys Under 16 repercharge heats at Podium 1, Jamaica and Ecuador had exciting wins. The two teams had surfers in the same heat back-to-back and both teams advanced to the next round. The reaction on the beach to their wins was electric as surfing is new to these nations and their surfers are having their most successful ISA juniors event to date.

Competition will resume tomorrow at 8:00am at la FAE beach in Salinas, Ecuador with round four of Under 18 Boys and Under 18 Girls, along with repercharge rounds for all three divisions.

For more information on the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championship, LIVE web, free photos and on-demand video highlights, visit www.quiksilver.com/isa.

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Courtney Conlogue: Keeping the dream alive

WSA PRIME: STEAMER LANE
The best under 18 surfers in the west competed in what was called "the best surf conditions for an amateur contest ever, hands down." Having never surfed Steamer Lane before, Courtney took 1st in the event! This was all after taking 3rd in the Billabong World Juniors event in Australia, and tying for 1st at a local NSSA event in Huntington Beach. She has definately started tho 09' season off with a bang.

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