THE ASP PRIME Quiksilver Pro in Ribeira D’Ilhas, Portugal eventually witnessed a marathon day of surfing yesterday. The competition had to wait for the low tide for the waves to pump and was rewarded with excellent 4-5ft right-handers peeling off the reef point-break.
This is a high scoring ASP event and is a chance for some of the lesser-known younger surfers to creep up on their peers on the tour who may not be competing at the event.
The best heat of the day saw Hizunome Bettero (BRA) 25; push out Australia’s Julian Wilson, 22, by scoring a near perfect 9.5 out of 10.00 on his first wave full of awesome backhanders. Wilson was the standout surfer of the earlier session scoring the highest combined total of the day, but could not back this up in the later heat.
Elsewhere Jeremy Flores (FRA) 23, controlled his heat, scoring consistently in the smaller waves as the sun set. Rookie Gabriel Medina (BRA) 17; aced his match-up and looks like one to watch for the future with his mix of speed and innovative cutbacks. And Ritchie Christie (NZL) just snuck a win against Aritz Aranburu with some epic forehand manoeuvres, although both men eventually went through to Round 3 on points scored.
Round 3 is taking place today and you can watch a live feed of the action here.
Good waves everyone…
Weather Overview
I’m afraid there is going to be no break to this blustery, cloudy, showery weather as the Irish summer continues to disappoint. However this is bringing with it a decent amount of swell as two low-pressure systems – one to the north and one to the south – dominate the Atlantic. Again it will be our friends in Bundoran that will benefit from this most. Expect swell levels to be dropping as the weekend progresses.
The north – Although the wind is offshore the swell isn’t quite wrapping around to The North. Just about longboardable. Just.
Co Donegal/Sligo – Pumping today as The Peak is a nice 4 to 5 foot and offshore and Rossnowlagh has about 3ft. This will decrease dramatically tomorrow as the swell dissipates and the wind swings on shore.
Co Clare – Two-three foot but crumbly and onshore today. Winds will be heavy tomorrow blowing everything out. But there should be a small surfable wave Sunday.
Dingle Peninsula – Swell running all weekend but the peninsula lacks beaches that are sheltered from a west wind.
Cork and the south – That small southerly low should be giving Cork its very own swell machine for the weekend. However strong cross-shore winds are going to be a problem through most of today and Saturday.
Disclaimer – These weather reports are intended as a general overview of swell running in that area. These are predictions and actual wave size may vary. Do not enter the water alone or without adequate equipment and do not enter surf that is too large for your abilities. We cannot be held responsible for any decisions you make based on this information. For daily weather information follow @dinglesurf on Twitter.com.
