With a second day of head and a half high waves and ideal wind, Pacasmayo was the perfect playground for the world’s best riders.
A competitive Yoav Omer (Israel) started the day with a convincing win over Octavio Cavalaro (Chile), who had a tight battle with Raoul Reiner for second place. Omer rode plenty of waves in a fairly consistent manner, but managed to find one of the better sets for a definitive heat winning 7.13 ride.
Camille Juban revelled in the early conditions when the tide was low and sets were more solid. Rarely showing a weakness in his sailing and being very careful in his wave selection, he aerialled and goitered his way into a convincing win and one of the top scores of the day at 15.63. A consistent Arnaud Frennet (Chile) also had some impressive wave rides to place second and progress through to the quarters.
Heat 3 was the match of the day, with Philip Koster (Germany) and Alex Vargas (Chile) trading places and finishing with the two of the top three scores of the Pro Men. However, the approach of the two sailors was vastly different, with Vargas showcasing some of the day’s most pure and aggressive surf style riding. Meanwhile, Koster’s consistency in his trick repertoire was unmatched by anyone and he emerged the victor by just 0.14 points after nailing two takas on one wave. The surfing flair of Vargas was memorable and place him as a major threat in the Pro Men.
In heat 4, Antoine Martin (France) had the perfect start with some solid aerials and a goiter off a set wave to score an 8.03 in the first few minutes. He backed it up immediately with another solid set to lead with a heat total of 15.30. Some plane dramas that delayed Federico Morisio’s (Italy) arrival to the day of his competition didn’t seem to phase him. Straight away, he nailed some high speed, late aerials off set waves to progress with a second place and another solid heat score of 14.30.
Russ Faurot (USA) found two good size sets in the first half of heat 5 and rode them with tight, aggressive turns to take a convincing win. An improving Nelson Perez (Puerto Rico) flaunted the benefits of consecutive trips to Peru and also secured a place in the quarter finals.
The ever-consistent Morgan Noireaux (France) took a comfortable win in heat 6 with his flawless technique, always selecting the best waves and riding them to perfection. Upcoming Chilean rider, Vicente Gonzalez again rode well in the competition setting to avoid the elimination round.
In the Pro Women, Sarah Hauser (New Caledonia) dominated the first heat, with some of the longest rides of the day. Her consistently tight snaps in critical positions in the pocket were well rewarded and she finished with a strong heat total of 15.20. Upcoming Peruvian rider, Denis Blondet (Peru) was ecstatic to make her way into second with some well linked turns on set waves.
In heat 2, Jane Seman (Australia) started strongly with a 7.27 in the first few minutes. Riding just three waves and using a similar strategy to Juban, she waited patiently for good waves at the point. This approach, combined with aggressive snaps and lip hits on long waves, paid off and secured her the win and a place in the final. Rapidly improving Argentinian rider, Dominica Osman also selected her waves well and showcased some excellent bottom turn/top turn combinations to take second.
Tomorrow shows a small drop in the swell, but a good wind forecast means that competition is likely to continue.
