06.22.01
by: Press Release

Locals Beschen, Parsons, Fletcher Atop Leader Board at Vans Off the Wall Pro

SAN CLEMENTE, CALIFORNIA-USA - Local knowledge and World Championship Tour experience was a major factor on Day 2 of the Vans Off the Wall Pro, the third stop on the 2001 Professional Surfing Tour of America (PSTA).

San Clemente natives Shane Beschen, Mike Parsons, Christian Fletcher, and John Robertson all advanced into the Men's Shortboard Round of 32 tomorrow (Sat.). Beschen, a perennial resident of the ASP's WCT Top 16, realized he was in for a fight in Heat 1 of the Round of 64 against his childhood friend Fletcher, South African WQS surfer Llewellyn Whittaker, and hot San Diego up and comer Kyle Knox.

Aerial pioneer Christian Fletcher immediately set the pace and tested the judging criteria by ramping on a clean shoulder-high left to set up two big frontside airs on his first wave. The judges responded favorably, bestowing a whopping 7.75 on what essentially was a two-move ride. Later in the heat, Fletcher garnered a straight 8.0 for a single but higher aerial that got the local crowd hooting.

Beschen meanwhile started slow, slipping badly on his second wave. But local knowledge helped him gain access to two good set waves and Beschen the WCT vet showcased his crisp backside repertoire. "This is great practice," said Beschen. "I haven't been doing that good [on the WCT] so it was good for me to go out there and mix it up with everybody. The guys are ripping here. You'd think it would be way less competition than the 'CT, but really, everybody surfs so good hereŠ I was worried if I was going to make it out there. I had to concentrate and put it together.

"Even the guys who aren't from here know that the left is off the pier," said Shane about the wave set-up. "If there's a bunch of guys by the pier you're better off hanging wide, maybe one will swing to you rather than hassling and being fourth in line. Those two waves Christian had looked like they'd be walled, but they held up and allowed him to do those airs. Plus, frontside is easier because you can see it better whereas backside you're racing it more."

On the strength of his three airs, Fletcher took the heat with a 20.25, while Whittaker and Knox fell victim to wave selection. "I've surfed here since I was a little kid, and I know where to sit," said Fletcher. "I like the little lefts, if you get the littler ones they have a longer wall to them, so you can get up and race down the line. Shane's surfed here forever too. That's what the other guys [in the heat] were saying, the lack of wave knowledge was hard on them."

Immediately following Fletcher's heat was another classic duel pitting Bud Pro Tour veterans Dino Andino and Mike Parsons, 1999 PSTA series champion Jeff Hurley, and young Nate Yeomans of San Clemente. Andino worked the short rights into the pier to advantage thanks in part to his signature roundhouse cutback, with he and Parsons advancing to the Round of 32.

At about 9:30 a.m. a thick fog moved in to threaten the summer-like atmosphere at the pier. But by noon, the sun came back, the surf began to build, and the wind subsided. Indeed, the PSTA has enjoyed some good timing and better than average conditions for much of its run. "We've been fortunate since our first event to have competitive conditions," said PSTA contest director Jeff Grell. "We've had two-foot junk and 15-foot giant surf and everything in between. And that's what makes this tour great, the competitors are up against all manner of conditions, from epic to not so epic. The venues we choose are known for surf, and the hope is it will be better than average. So far that¹s worked pretty well."

As the south swell grew in size, the typical lined up waves at the pier provided short bursts of spectacular moves. Beyond-vert re-entries, floaters and the occasional aerial were the chosen moves to finish off the close-outs. One surfer relishing the quick conditions was Max Hoshino, 20, who plans to surf his way into medical school. An honors student, Max is as adept at college SATs as he is smacking lips, and plans to try his hand on the WQS tour while waiting to begin med school at the University of California, San Diego.

"Competing is something I want to do now because I won't have the chance to do it later," explained Max, a native of Ocean City, Maryland. "There's plenty of time to do the medical school and work, but I want to have some fun before I go onto other things." What if Hoshino nails the WQS and has to choose between surfing superstar and doctor? "I can defer up to three years without having to reapply to medical school. I'll be going to France to do the WQSs over there. I'll definitely do them next year, then make a decision."

Some others advancing into the Men's Shortboard Round of 32 include Kakoa Bacalso, Frank Walsh, Shawn Sutton, David Pinto, Tim Reyes, 2000 PSTA season champ Jeremy Sommerville, and Benji Severson.

The Longboard Round of 32 featured some of the crème of pro longboarders, including 1999 World Champion Colin McPhillips, Huntington Beach's Josh Baxter, Geoff Moysa, Brendan White, and Josh Mohr. Also advancing to the Quarterfinals is Stephen Slater, brother of six-time world champion Kelly Slater and accomplished longboarder in his own right. This was Slater's first contest since breaking his back at Burleigh Heads in Australia earlier in the year.

"I got slammed on the bottom flat on my back. Because of that I wasn't able to do the world tour because I would have been late and I didn't know how my back would react. I'm here to keep in shape for contests, mentally and physically." Slater said the early afternoon conditions at the Pier--low tide with a bit of bump--were challenging for a longboard. "I could have rode my little twin fin and it would have fit, but there's so many bumps and closeouts. For a longboard you need more area, longer waves. But I tried to make the most of it."

Day 3 of the Vans Off the Wall Pro continues tomorrow with the Men' s Shortboard Round of 32, the Longboard Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Final, and the Women's Shortboard Round of 32.

Vans Off the Wall Pro, Day 2 Results
Men's Shortboard Round of 96

Heat 12
1. Josh Sleigh 16.85
2. Haley Yerhgans 14.50
3. Eric Taylor 12.50
4. David Aluli 9.30

Heat 13
1. Max Hoshino 14.15
2. Carl Holm 13.25
3. Sean Moody 7.20

Heat 14
1. Peter Mussio 11.15
2. Kakoa Bacalso 10.80
3. Nathan Carroll 10.40

Men's Shortboard Round of 64

Heat 1
1. Christian Fletcher 20.25
2. Shane Beschen 17.70
3. Llewellyn Whittaker 12.70
4. Kyle Knox 12.45

Heat 2
1. Dino Andino 15.40
2. Mike Parsons 13.10
3. Jeff Hurley 11.00
4. Nathan Yeomans 7.30

Heat 3
1. Mike Todd 13.90
2. Joe Stouffer 13.60
3. Chris Falk 13.00
4. Sean Hayes 10.70

Heat 4
1. David Giddings 13.50
2. Jeremy Sherwin 12.55
3. Kaden Alesandro 9.50
4. Tom Steenbock 8.65

Heat 5
1. Dean Randazzo 18.00
2. John Robertson 12.00
3. Daniel Jones 10.25
4. Gavin Gillette 5.75

Heat 6
1. Tim Reyes 18.15
2. Bron Heussenstamm 15.50
3. Adam Virs 11.75
4. Gustavo Reataguy 11.65

Heat 7
1. Greg Long 14.10
2. Walter Cerny 11.75
3. Scott Finn 10.90
4. Scott Posner 10.30

Heat 8
1. Benji Severson 18.25
2. Darryl Goodrum 12.75
3. Matt Coleman 12.15
4. Travis Mellem 8.10

Heat 9
1. Ryan Simmons 14.75
2. Zach Keenan 13.05
3. Aaron Naluai 11.75
4. Ted Navarro 11.10

Heat 10
1. Jason Senn 16.90
2. Peter Berkey 13.35
3. Geoff Moysa 10.10
4. Garth Englehorn 8.20

Heat 11
1. Michael Hoisington 14.25
2. Ian McPhillips 13.35
3. Sean Walker 10.40
4. Andy Fomenko 9.10

Heat 12
1. Haley Yerhgans 16.00
2. Matt King 14.60
3. Chris Ward 13.60
4. Josh Sleigh 9.25

Heat 13
1. Shawn Sutton 14.55
2. Max Hoshino 13.55
3. Carl Holm 11.10
4. Kyle McCarthy 7.80

Heat 14
1. Kakoa Bacalso 16.90
2. Jeremy Sommerville 15.90
3. Peter Mussio 10.40
4. Jason Hinds 9.80

Heat 15
1. David Pinto 14.85
2. Roger Eils 9.25

Heat 16
1. Frank Walsh 12.50
2. Jeremy Ryan 10.25
3. Ryan Turner 9.80
4. Andrew Gahnan 8.90
Longboard Round of 32

Heat 1
1. Colin McPhillips 17.00
2. Lindin Brocolli 14.65
3. Cody Sumkins 12.60
4. Alika Grady 6.25

Heat 2
1. Geoff Moysa 14.60
2. Steve Newton 13.15
3. Brian McDevmitt 9.85
4. Eddie Aciento 8.35

Heat 3
1. Mike Gee 14.25
2. Stephen Slater 12.25
3. Grant Gold 7.15
4. Brett Heimstra 7.05

Heat 4
1. Brendan White 13.85
2. Ryan Mada 13.75
3. Dustin Franks 10.75
4. Chris Schmid 4.25

Heat 5
1. Josh Baxter 16.40
2. Jed Morouse 12.75
3. Brendan Clark 9.95
4. Rocky Booth 8.40

Heat 6
1. Michael Detemple 12.50
2. Alex Altamirano 12.00
3. Eric Melhberg 11.50
4. Adriana Alovera 10.10

Heat 7
1. Travis Northy 17.10
2. Sean Haggar 13.65
3. Josh Froley 12.00
4. Bruce James 6.85

Heat 8
1. Taylor Jensen 16.00
2. Josh Mohr 14.25
3. Christian Fletcher 13.00
4. Bob Clarke 11.25

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