Talkin’ turkey and waves

RICK FIGNETTI

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Be thankful for your health, loved ones,

family and friends and be thankful for what was the best surf I can

remember for this time of year in a while -- and the Figster is

getting up there.

One down, two to go, in the Hawaiian Triple Crown Surfing Series

as the first jewel on the North Shore has been completed.

The $125,000 Hawaiian Pro has concluded at Haliewa Beach in some

windy 3- to 5-foot surf. Australian dark horse Troy Brooks beat the

odds, coming out of the big contingency of surfers to score the win

and pocket $15,000.

The 24-year-old Aussie now has a chance to show more of his stuff,

as he gets a seed into the trials of the World Championship Tour

event up next at Sunset. If Brooks can place in the top six of the

trials, he’ll get a wildcard slot into the main event with the top 44

surfers in the world.

Second at the Hawaiian Pro was Brazilian Armando Daltro, who was

ripping, too, and won $8,000. Third was Australian Jake Paterson, who

had a good run, and fourth was another Brazilian, Neco Padaratz, who

won the overall title on the World Qualifying Series with his

placing, which will assure him a spot on the C.T. again next season.

Making it to the semis and finishing equal fifth was Oxnard’s

Timmy Curran and Aussie Trent Munro.

Kawaiian Andy Irons and six-time world champ Kelly Slater, the two

surfers who are neck and neck, battling for the world title crown,

placed equal seventh. Slater is No. 1 in the standings and Irons is

No. 2.

“Slates,” with his semifinal appearance, has pushed himself over

the $1-million mark for career purse winnings, a first ever by a pro

surfer.

Slater also said he’d like to win the Triple Crown award this

year, which is the highest points total for the three Hawaiian

events, but he is looking at the overall picture and the big goal of

another, possible seventh, world title.

Equal ninth was Andy’s brother, Bruce Irons, Aussies “Parko” Joel

Parkenson and Richard Lovett, and Brazil’s Victor Ribas.

The waiting period for the $250,000 Rip Curl Cup at Sunset has

started and goes till Dec. 7 and the Pipe event is Dec. 8 through

Dec. 20.

The women ran their event at Haliewa too, the six-star “Roxy Pro,”

with Peruvian Sophia Mulanovich getting the biggest win of her life,

picking up $6,000, and edging local Hawaiian ripper Melanie Bartels

in the final.

Bartels clinched the World Qualifying Series overall points race

and qualifies for the C.T. now, while Brazilian Tita Tavares was

third and Australian Samantha Cornish placed fourth to round out the

action-packed final.

Huntington Beach surfer Gavin McKiernan, the Boys & Girls Club

Delaware Street director, is putting on the Pizza Pig-out Dec. 5 at

the club and also just helped coach their junior basketball program

to first place in Orange County, not too mention they were voted top

club in the nation this year.

Didn’t I see local surf star Danny Nichols driving Miss Surf City.

in the Christmas Parade last Sunday night down Main Street,

incognito? It sure looked like him.

That’s it for now, see you turkeys in the lineup.

* 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.