Knox Wins Surfbout VII at Lower Trestles

SAN CLEMENTE —  Taylor Knox of Carlsbad caught a wave with time running out and put together a combination of vertical turns and round-house cutbacks and narrowly won Surfbout VII at Lower Trestles.

Knox scored 8 out of 10 on the wave to edge runner-up John Shimooka of Hawaii. Shimooka caught the next wave after Knox’s big ride and worked it all the way to the beach to edge 1993 world champion Derek Ho of Hawaii for second place.

Huntington Beach’s Jeff Deffenbaugh finished fourth and maintained the top spot on the Bud Surf Tour with two events--in San Francisco and Hawaii--remaining.

With low tide diminishing what remained of an inconsistent head-high southwest swell, the finalists struggled to catch high-scoring waves.

Knox, 23, earned $4,000 for his first victory on the 1994 Bud Surf Tour.

“I’ve always wanted to make it to the finals here at Lowers because this is the best stop on the tour,” Knox said. “I knew that last wave put me in the hunt and to win this contest is especially satisfying.”

With cleaner conditions and more waves in the morning semifinals, Ho and Knox finished one and two, defeating Kaipo Jacquias of Hawaii and Santa Barbara’s Chris Brown. Ryan Simmons of Seal Beach, ranked 41st before the Surfbout, had his best contest of the year and reached the second semifinal. He and Todd Miller of Costa Mesa were eliminated by Shimooka and Deffenbaugh.

Kevin Connelly of Pacific Beach combined an impressive display of traditional and modern riding to win the longboard division. Connelly, 19, linked nose rides and switched-foot, drop-knee cutbacks with carving off-the-lips. San Clemente’s Josh Baxter finished second.

Harry Antipala of La Jolla won the bodyboard title.