Kelly Slater takes it all so easily at Middles

Stand by everyone. Soon I should have the most awesome photos processed for this blog. We shot 1000 on the day of round 5 and all the competion that day. I was lucky enough to have two extra hands on the equipment and they did an awesome job. More than I could have hoped for.

Slater is not human. He pulled off two barrel rides folloewd by an ally-oop/360 to cement his trip to the finals.

In the finals, Bede Durbidge didn't stand a chance as Slater continued to choose every wave that scored him the highest point totals of the comp including a 10.

Andy Irons

Heartfelt condolences to the family of Andy Irons. Andy, age 32, reportedly was battling Dengue Fever, a viral disease. He had dropped out of the Rip Curl Pro competition in Puerto Rico and was enroute back to his home in Hawaii when he passed away during a layover. The 3 time Asp World Champion will be incredibly missed. Andy had collected 40 elite tour victories and 4 Triple Crown first places in his career.
Heartfelt sympathies go out to his family.

Rip Curl Pro 2010 Puerto Rico

I'm at Middles in PR near Isabela. The event has been called for the day. Some better waves are expected later this week. That didn't keep the locals and a few in the comp from rippin on Tuesday morning. Clean glassy overhead were going off at 7am.

Womens World Title

Stephanie Gilmore has just won the World title this morning in Puerto Rico at 8:05 am. She nearly was eliminated with just 3 minutes left but scored a 6.31 on a nice ride to clinch the heat over the Aussie Melanie Bartels. This is Stephanie's 4th in a row. Not bad!

Slater wins first heat in Puerto Rico

Staying busy and getting some sweet rides including a barrel for a score of 7.53 Kelly was in fine form today. Following this up with a ripping ride for a 8.67 he cemented his place and will move to round 3. Jordy Smith who is also in the hunt, currently 2nd in the world, won his heat also. Jordy moves now to round 3 also. Game on!

Rip Curl Pro 2010 Puerto Rico

Still waiting on info and the agenda. I made a contact in PR at SurfPR. 8 days until a possible start of the comp. I am getting anxious as hell. A friend is flying down to meet me on Nov. 4 and has many connections since he is Puerto Rican. How cool is this! I'm staying at the Rincon Inn in .............You got it, Rincon.

Rip Curl Pro 2010 Puerto Rico

I'm told the 2010 event will be held at Middles with Wilderness as a back up location on the North Shore of PR. That is near the town called Isabela. The northwest beaches of PR are known for their awesome waves and surf.

Near Rincon on the western side of the island, there are countless breaks. All have good waves during the winter months.