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FROM BOYS TO MEN
The 2006 NSSA Nationals delivers an action packed final day.
By:
Mike Cianciulli
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July 3, 2006
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If you could bundle up all the emotion involved with the 2006 NSSA Nationals, you'd have enough drama for a TV mini-series.
Upsets, surprises, elation, and disappointments all coincided with five days of fun in the sun at Lower Trestles (with the exception of a three hour fog delay). As expected, the Hawaiian competitors showed up as a tight-knit ohana ready to take on their mainland counterparts from California and the East Coast. In fact, there were more than a few finals comprised solely of da bruddas.
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Previous
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Casey Brown got out to an early lead by repeatedly slamming huge backside blasts on one of the bigger righthanders and soon sat comfortably in the lead with a 9.0. Meanwhile, Marzo remained relatively quiet while guys like Granger Larson and Kekoa Cazimero were creeping up on Brown with a few decent scores. Dusty Payne -- whose radical surfing had been turning heads throughout the week - came through with some of the most aggressive maneuvers in the heat but his smaller wave choices during the final translated to scores in the average to good range. The goofy-footed Cazimero posted a high seven after some serious backhand booms in the pocket and held the second position until one of the better rights approached the point. Dusty Payne was in position to do some serious damage, when Brown faked left - causing Payne to pull back - and took off. Since the left was virtually out of reach, the judges ruled a questionable interference on Brown, which sent his camp on the beach into an uproar. As time ticked down, Gudauskas, Marzo and Larson weren't left with many more sets and the dark horse Cazimero had slipped into the leader spot and held on until the final horn. He was met on the water's edge by his islander crew and carried up the beach wrapped in the Hawaiian flag. "I can't even believe what's going on right now, it's insane," the 17-year-old Cazimero exclaimed shortly afterwards still donning the Hawaii flag. "All the boys were just going nuts; the vibe out there was pretty heavy. Everyone was killing it." Soon the reality of being Open Mens Champion began to sink in. "I don't know what to do with myself right now. It's something I'll never forget," Cazimero smiled. "I don't know what to do with myself right now. It's something I'll never forget"
said an ecstatic Kekoa Cazimero after being crowned 2006 NSSA Nationals Open Mens Champion.
"I'm so glad, I can't believe it. It's like a dream," said Smith, whose older brother Alex placed second in Open Juniors. "It's definitely my biggest win even though I actually only caught two waves." Perhaps the biggest nail biter came in Open Boys. During the closing seconds of the final, Conner Coffin scratched into a reeling lefthander. His knifing backside slices propelled him past Ezekiel Lau and Kolohe Andino to clinch his first National title. The Open Juniors final was no cake walk either. Fortunately for the mainland, there was Malibu's Dillon Perillo, a standout member of the USA Surf Team. He actually snagged the best wave of the heat during the very first exchange, in which he surfed an overhead right nearly perfect by throwing in countless power gouges and full rail roundhouse cutbacks. Then Granger Larson fired back on a smaller wave but with a more radical approach. The scores dropped and Perillo's committed turns earned a 9.0 with Larson being dealt a 7.75. John John Florence couldn't quite find his rhythm and fellow Hawaiian Alex Smith actually gave Perillo a run for the top spot with his solid surfing. Deep into the five minute warning, Perillo secured another well ridden righthander and his title became apparent. As soon as the final horn sounded, the Cali crew met Perillo on the sand and hoisted him up the beach on their shoulders. There was a flurry of photos snapped, hugs and kisses given, and interview questions asked. After the whirlwind of the victory quieted down, a shocked Perillo simply asked his mom, "What do I do now?" The crowd gathered around him exclaimed in unison, "Celebrate!" NSSA NATIONALS 2006 FINAL RESULTS OPEN MENS FINAL 1. KEKOA CAZIMERO 13.50 2. DUSTY PAYNE 13.00 3. CASEY BROWN 12.63 4. GRANGER LARSEN 11.50 5. CLAY MARZO 7.88 6. TANNER GADAUSKAS 6.38 OPEN WOMENS FINALS 1. CARISSA MOORE 15.00 2. MALIA MANUEL 12.00 3. SAGE ERICKSON 10.75 4. COCO HO 10.50 5. COURTNEY CONLOGUE 9.26 6. LANI HUNTER 7.25 OPEN BOYS FINAL 1. CONNER COFFIN 14.75 2. EZEKIAL LAU 12.00 3. KOLOHE ANDINO 9.75 4. DAVID BLAND 9.25 5. LUKE DAVIS 6.75 6. KEANU ASING 5.50 OPEN MINI GROM 1. KOA SMITH 13.25 2. LAHIKOILA MINAMISHIN 12.00 3. TAYLOR CLARK 9.00 4. KALANI DAVID 8.75 5. LUKE HITCHCOCK 8.25 6. KAOLI KAHOKULA 6.00 OPEN JUNIORS 1. DILLON PERILLO 13.50 2. ALEX SMITH 11.00 3. THOMAS CLARK 11.00 4. DEGE O'CONNELL 10.00 5. GRANGER LARSON 7.75 6. JON JOHN FLORENCE 7.00 OPEN LONGBOARD 1. CHRISTIAN WACH 17.75 2. JUSTIN QUINTAL 17.50 3. TROY MOTHERSHEAD 12.50 4. CHRISTIAN CLARK 10.25 5. KEVIN OSBORNE 9.00 6. CHASE STAVRON 8.00 AIRSHOW 1. BLAKE JONES EXPLORER WOMENS 1. PAIGE ALMS 12.75 2. CARISSA MOORE 12.25 3. LANI HUNTER 6.75 4. ALANA BLANCHARD 5.25 5. BETHANY HAMILTON 5.00 6. SAGE ERICKSON 4.50 EXPLORER MENS 1. DUSTY PAYNE 15.50 2. CHAS CHIDESTER 15.00 3. NATHAN REX 14.00 4. KAI BARGER 12.75 5. TORREY MEISTER 12.50 6. CASEY BROWN 12.25 EXPLORER GIRLS 1. CARISSA MOORE 14.25 2. COCO HO 12.75 3. MALIA MANUEL 12.25 4. ASHLEY HUNTER 9.75 5. ERIKA STEINER 8.00 6. KAILEE KREBS 6.00 EXPLORER JUNIOR 1. GRANGER LARSON 15.00 2. DUSTY PAYNE 14.75 3. ERIC GEISELMAN 13.75 4. TONINO BENSON 8.50 5. BLAKE JONES 5.00 6. KEKOA CAZIMERO 5.00 EXPLORER BOYS 1. KOLOHE ANDINO 14.50 2. KIRON JABOUR 12.75 3. EVAN GEISELMAN 12.75 4. DANE ZAUN 12.25 5. EZEKIAL LAU 11.75 6. KOKORO TOMATSURI 7.50 EXPLORER MENEHUENE 1. KOLOHE ANDINO 14.25 2. EVAN GEISELMAN 12.75 3. EZEKIAL LAU 10.25 4. DAVID BRAND 9.75 5. LUKE DAVIS 8.25 6. CONNER COFFIN 8.00 EXPLORER MASTERS 1. MICAH PITTS 16.50 2. ANDY NAKAGAWA 11.50 3. CHRISTIAN BUDROE 11.25 4. YUFU PENROSE 11.25 5. JON MOELLENDICK 9.50 6. ENICH HARRIS 7.25 EXPLORER LONGBOARD 1. TROY MOTHERSHEAD 15.25 2. CHRISTIAN CLARK 15.25 3. KEVIN OSBORNE 14.75 4. TONY SILVAGNI 14.75 5. SCOTT BRANDENBURG 10.25 6. JUSTIN QUINTAL 9.25 EXPLORER SENIORS 1. MIKE LAMM 12.50 2. MIKE GILLARD 11.25 3. CRAIG MACIA 10.25 4. TERRY GILLARD 9.50 5. BRIAN SURRATT 7.50 6. RANDY CUTSHALL 6.25 EXPLORER SUPER-SENIORS 1. MIKE LAMM 14.75 2. TIM SENNEFF 10.50 3. DAVID WINSLOW 9.25 4. RANDY FOX 9.25 5. DALE BAKER 8.00 6. BILL MACLEOD 6.50 These photos and more from the NSSA Nationals can be viewed or purchased at Wavetrak.dotphoto.com MORE SURF NEWS SURFLINE HOME PAGE |
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