Billbong PRO 2009

If you don't know yet, Parko is the winner of the 2009 Billbabong PRO Jeffreys Bay. The waves were a little inconsistent today and and only a few sets like what we had on 14 July. (Yesterday) Now busy sifting through photos to get a couple of good ones for slideshows on wavescape and to upload to here. Alas, I am so tired I am falling asleep! Don't let anybody tell you surf photography is easy or glamarous. It's not, until you land that frontpage shot that is...

Wow! What a day of awesome surfing, good weather, bad weather and HUGE waves!

A couple of upsets like Holmsie that removed Taj from the race and ten point rides going down as if it is the norm.

Tomorrow we only have two heats left of round three and then it is the quarter final, semi and finals so a winner should be crowned somewhere around lunch time.

Don't miss it. I'll upload some photo highlights as soon as I processed them.

I uploaded a couple of shots that I liked and also a sequence of quite an interesting way to kick out.

 Here's the official press release from ASP.

Round 1 and the opening two heats of Round 2 of the Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay were completed today in clean three-to-five foot (1.5 metre) waves at the legendary South African pointbreak, with the world’s best surfers reveling in the opening day of competition.

After starting with 35 minute heats the swell picked up a little and heat times were reduced to 30 minutes per heats. There was a moment of sunshine in the morning, but it suddenly changed and I am so thankful for the windbreaker, beanie and drymac that I carried along. It seems that I managed to take photos of every heat except the first, and right now I am first going to take a bath, have dinner, catch up with the wife and then have a look at photos.

We finished today with the first two heats of round two in the sack as well, won by CJ Hobgood and the second heat by Kai Otten. Tomorrow the call will be made at 07:00 and Occy and Curren will have their clash of the Icons showdown at 7:15 sharp. These guys are all time surfing legends, so don't miss it! You can come around before work. Dinner awaits...