Oilers surf team stays busy

RICK FIGNETTI

It’s been awhile since we checked in with the Huntington Beach High

School Surf team -- head coach Andy Verdone, assistant coach Barry

Deffenbaugh and all the members of the 2003-04 Oilers squad.

They’ve been super busy, starting off with a trip to South Africa

where they scored some insane waves at the end of summer. Verdone,

D-baugh and team members Brian “Rhino” Paullins, Chase Newsom, Chris

Waring, Ian Ekberg, Matt Taylor, Tommy Elms and Todd Williams had the

trip of their lives.

They went for about a month, started out in Capetown, where the

water was freezing, temps in the upper 40s but with fun surf. They

then got Elands Bay, epic at 6 to 8 feet, offshore and barreling.

Headed to Victoria Bay next. It’s a beautiful spot, with a rock

point, little cottages on the beach. They surfed perfect 2- to 4-foot

surf there.

The high light of the trip was hitting J-Bay next, that perfect

right-hand point. The different teams over the years have surfed it

before, but not like the big time 8 to 15 feet this year. They stayed

at Super Tubes right on the point and charged it every day.

The school’s photographer, Mike Melia, documented the action, and

some videos were taken too, which are in production for a movie. The

kids were ripping, but Verdone said it was D-baugh who stole the show

on the big day riding his 7-foot-4 gun, getting barreled, slashing

and floating some mean sections. Verdone said it rivaled some of the

surfing he’s seen there by Taj Burrow, Taylor Knox, Derek Hind and

legend Miki Dora over the years.

Well they’re back in town now and have opened up the season 5-0

with wins against Marina, Wilson, Fountain Valley, Miliken and

Edison.

Coach Verdone said the Sunset League is pretty balanced and tough

this year, and the last event with Edison was tied going into the

last heat, but his longboarders pulled it off, with a strong showing

by sophomore Eric Ramsey, who got a back-side barrel and freshman,

doing double duty, in shortboard and longboard, Logan Strook and Kyle

Harvel helping the cause.

Seniors to watch this year are “the Rhino” Paullins, Newsom,

Anthony Duarte and Dominec Defeo, who’ve been ripping out there

lately. Juniors are Korey Lapoint, Waring, and Taylor; sophomores are

Ekberg, South African transplant Dita Saraiva and Drew Snyder, who’ve

all been stepping it up.

They have some hot bodyboarders, too: Darek Demun, Bob Neis and

Junior National Champ Chris Welpman. The gals have been turning on,

too, with Erin Roberts leading the way, and Steph Chiang, Catherine

Lauer, Alexandra Easten and freshman Kayla Troxell all surfing good.

Today the Oilers will take on Miliken as the second half of the

season starts at Golden West Street at 6:30 a.m. Good luck.

The United States Surfing Federation held its third event, a

three-dayer at Pleasure Point, Santa Cruz last weekend. It was a

little stormy up there, in the 3- to 6-foot surf for the finals on

Sunday.

The Huntington boys took the top three places in seniors, with

“Flisty” Mike Flister tearing apart a couple rights off the point for

the win, James Webb, slashing to second, and Jeff Combs rounding it

out in third.

Grandmasters saw the Figster score some big sets and bust the

moves for the win, and Surf City’s Jay Boldt finished fourth, and

third in longboards.

In the Wahini women’s, Huntington’s Terumi Nakajima was third.

Some rain, wind, and hail couldn’t stop the show from going on.

Big Red Productions presents “Making the Call,” it’s about big

waves of the Pacific, like, that outer reef, the Cortez Bank, Todos

Santos and more. Tonight at 7 to 9 p.m. at Pierside. Check it.

That’s it for now, see ya.

* RICK FIGNETTI is an eight-time West Coast champion, has

announced the U.S. Open of Surfing the last nine years and has been

the KROQ-FM surfologist for the last 17 years, doing morning surf

reports. He owns a surf shop on Main Street. You can reach him at

(714) 536-1058.