QUARTERFINALISTS IGNITE AT OAKLEY NEWPORT BEACH PRO DAY FIVE

Local Amateurs Get Their Day as the 20th Annual Newport Beach Surfing Championships Got Underway

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. (Sept. 20, 2008) – The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) 2-Star Oakley Newport Beach Pro ran the Quarterfinals this morning and the final 16 competitors tore into the clean two-to-three foot barrels on offer at Newport Beach’s 56th Street. The 20th annual Newport Beach Surfing Championships also got underway.
 
The second event on the Macy’s California Trifecta Surf Series (an ASP North America Specialty Series), the Oakley Newport Beach Pro was greeted with sunny skies and clean conditions today with an all-star group aligning themselves for the big finish tomorrow.
 
Nathan Yeomans (San Clemente, CA), 27, two-time defending Oakley Newport Beach Pro Champion and 2006 Macy’s California Trifecta Surf Series Champion, continued to be a standout today, surfing powerfully on both his forehand and backhand to advance through to tomorrow’s Semifinals.
 
“The waves are pretty fun out there this morning,” Yeomans said. “It’s really wedgey and there are good peaks coming in all over the place. I just tried to get busy straight off the bat and I found a couple good lefts before I got my right and that put me into good position to take out the heat. I’m excited to be in the Semifinals tomorrow and hopefully I can keep my run going here in Newport.”
 
Micah Byrne (Huntington Beach, CA), 26, elected to stick to his backhand today, smashing the running lefthanders down the beach to amass the day’s high heat total of a 15.83 out of a possible 20 and match his Semifinals berth of last year.
 
“I’ve just been trying to be much more relaxed in heats lately as I don’t typically do too well when I’m stressed out,” Byrne said. “I made the Semis here last year and I’m hoping to go one better this season. The waves have been pretty fun so I hope they stick around for tomorrow’s finish.”
 
Travis Mellem (San Clemente, CA), 23, survived a hard-fought three-man Quarterfinal today, as Jason Harris (Huntington Beach, CA), 20, was unable to make today’s heat due to a scheduling conflict.
 

“It was really interesting out there with only three guys,” Mellem said. “You would think it is easier but you’re scrambling a little bit more because you don’t want to be the one guy who’s ousted. There weren’t really any waves at the beginning so we were all scratching for scores at the end.”
 
Darrell Goodrum (Leucadia, CA), 23, opened up the day strong, slotting himself into deep forehand barrels to net a 14.50 out of a possible 20 and advance through to the Semifinals.
 
“I noticed that the lefts coming off the jetty were pinching a bit too much so I moved down the beach and it worked out,” Goodrum said. “I was able to grab a couple of barrels and that was enough to get me through. Stoked to get through to the Semis.”
 
Yeomans, Byrne, Mellem and Goodrum will face fellow Semifinalists Brett Barley (Cape Hatteras, NC), 18, Brad Ettinger (Huntington Beach, CA), 24, Asher Nolan (Jacksonville Beach, FL), 29, and Dillon Perillo (Malibu, CA), 18, when tomorrow’s competition resumes. Perillo is also a Finalist in the ASP Grade-2 Oakley Pro Junior, which will culminate tomorrow, and stands as the only surfer eligible to come away with a dual event win.

Tomorrow will also decide who will take the lead in the Macy’s CA Trifecta Surf Series. With their performances at this event combined with those from stop one at the 6.0 Lowers Pro, Asher Nolan, Joel Centeio, Kieran Horn, Nate Yeomans, Patrick Gudauskas and Darrell Goodrum all look to climb in the ranks and take the top positions.

With only one round of the Oakley Newport Beach Pro and a day off for the Oakley Pro Junior, the Newport Beach Surfing Championships filled the rest of the day. The event saw local amateur competitors in various age groups compete for local bragging rights. Round 1 of the Open Men’s, High School, Middle School, Elementary and Legends ran, as well as the Semi-Finals for High School, Middle School, Elementary and Legends. For complete results, visit HYPERLINK "http://www.NewportBeachPro.com" www.NewportBeachPro.com.
 
Tomorrow will see the Oakley Newport Beach Pro, Oakley Pro Junior and Newport Beach Surfing Championships culminate with champions being crowned by day’s end.
 
As a part of the ASP North America tour, the 2008 Oakley Newport Beach Pro appreciates support from Oakley, Macy’s, Red Bull, Jack’s, etnies, Allyance, Chronic Tacos and the City of Newport Beach. The event also receives media support from Action Sports Group’s SURFER, SURFING and Wavewatch.com, as well as, FUEL TV, the action sports lifestyle network.

For those who can’t make it to the event, this year’s contest is available to view online with streaming video and live scoring at HYPERLINK "http://www.NewportBeachPro.com" www.NewportBeachPro.com.

For more information on the Macy’s California Trifecta Surf Series visit HYPERLINK "http://www.catrifecta.com" www.catrifecta.com.
 
Wavewatch.com Forecast for Sunday, September 21, 2008

Sunday the SSW swell mix (185-205) will hold as a new smaller pulse helps to reinforce what we saw later in the week and the mix of windswell and WNW energy that continues to push through in the background.  

There will continue to be plenty of waves in the waist-chest high range, and even a few shoulder to almost head high sets through lower tides in the morning. Look for swampier and slightly smaller surf in the afternoon.

Winds will be mostly light and variable through the morning with some pockets of onshore texture at times. Look for building onshore flow arriving by midday and 10-15 knot W winds filling in through the afternoon.

Tides for Sunday: 04:06AM 3.0'  High, 06:42AM 2.9'  Low, 01:54PM 5.3'  High, 10:26PM 0.4'  Low

RESULTS: Day 5

Oakley Newport Beach Pro – ASP WQS 2-Star Men’s
Quarterfinals – 16 surfers remaining (1st and 2nd advance)
QF 1: Darrell Goodrum (USA) 14.60, Dillon Perillo (USA) 11.50, Brandon Guilmette (USA) 11.43, Brent Reilly (USA) 9.60
QF 2: Travis Mellem (USA) 10.26, Brett Barley (USA) 8.66, Jason Miller (USA) 7.36, Jason Harris (USA) N/S
QF 3: Nathan Yeomans (USA) 15.23, Brad Ettinger (USA) 13.73, Dane Ward (USA) 7.03, Evan Valiere (HAW) 6.37
QF 4: Micah Byrne (USA) 15.83, Asher Nolan (USA) 15.33, Blake Jones (USA) 10.67, Shaun Burrell (USA) 9.50
 
TOMORROW’S MATCH-UPS

Oakley Newport Beach Pro – ASP WQS 2-Star Men’s
Semifinals – 8 surfers remaining (1st and 2nd advance)
SF 1: Darrell Goodrum (USA), Dillon Perillo (USA), Travis Mellem (USA), Brett Barley (USA)
SF 2: Nathan Yeomans (USA), Brad Ettinger (USA), Micah Byrne (USA), Asher Nolan (USA)

Oakley Pro Junior – ASP Grade-2 Pro Junior Men’s
Final: Tanner Gudauskas (USA), Dillon Perillo (USA), Michael Dunphy (USA), Trevor Saunders (USA)