Welcome to the Oz-Surf Pack to Hawaiians Fred Patacchia, Raymond Reichle, Jennifer Newhouse, Californian’s Chris Waring, Tommy Steury, Brandon Rambo, Erica Hoseinni, Brian Guter, Jamey Beeson, and Right Coasters Matt Keenan, Cheyne Pinkney and Dane Jeffreys.The NSSA Hawaii Event #6 went off at Banyans on the Big Island of Hawaii. Big Island, Big Rocks! Banyans breaks over a reef just deep enough that your fins do not become part of the reef. You ride the wave for the maximum amount of points. You smack the lip five times, and then you do a huge turn off the section to finish your wave. Oops! Now you are on dry reef. This is where skill comes in to play. The kids from the Big Island just laughed and thought it was funny when guys were beaching themselves on to dry reef. Fortunately, most had enough skill to dodge the reef and paddle back out to the line up in one piece. However, for Raymond Reichle and Hoku Webb, skill is the one thing they left at home. Raymond and Hoku offered a set of fins each to the reef god. NSSA Southwest Conference Explorer Season #7 was held February 16-17 at Ponto Beach in Carlsbad. A passing front made for stormy 2-4 foot waves with some occasional rippable clean faces. The event was three star rated with more than 300 competitors participating. This contest was the 7th of the 10-event Explorer Season schedule. Ratings leader Brett Simpson who took third and fourth respectively in the final. Chris Waring placed fourth in the final. NSSA super grom Cory Arrambide earned a near perfect 9.5 score in the Menehuene final and cruised to his 17th victory of the season. Cory now needs three more to tie and four to break the 20-win record set by Michael Taras. Carlsbad’s Jason Franco took fourth in the final, with Jason leading the division by more than 300 points. Outstanding team results; MENS - 2- Justin Wiegand, 3- Brett Simpson, 4- Jason Franco, 6- Matt Yates. JUNIORS - 4- Brett Simpson,, 5- Justin Wiegand. BOYS - 3- Bert Farley, 4- Chris Waring. MENEHUENE-1- Cory Arrambide, 2- Brent Reilly, 3- Dane Zaun, 4- Tommy Steury. WOMENS - 5- Karlene Wiegand, 6- Erica Hosseini. Junior Pro Final For Anthony Petruso, Sebastian Inlet, Florida (Sunday, March 3, 2002). Californian Anthony Petruso finished 2^nd in the Billabong Boost Mobile Junior Pro, Anthony launched a late charge and just failed to take the win from Che Stang.Volcom Stone’s Butterfish Surf Series, The final event of Butterfish Surf Series at Tar Pits in Carpinteria on Mar 3rd, 2002. The surf was small, very small but clean and everyone was amped with ton of prizes and valuable VQS* points on the line. Over 70 competitors competed under sunny skies on one of the best beach days of the month. Cory Arrambide pulled off a double taking 3rd place in the groms and then 2^nd in the Juniors.2002 Gold Coast Champions, The 12 year old from Ventura pulled off an awesome achievement in the NSSA Gold Coast winning nine straight and going undefeated in the Menehuene division. Cory also has won six events in the Southwest Open Boys division and three in the Southwest Explorer Menehuenes. His 18 victories put him second in the all-time contest wins list. Three is the magic number for Cory to surpass the 20-win record held by Michael Taras. Quiksilver Pro (Mar 5-17), Snapper Rocks, QLD, Australia. Two-time ASP world junior champion Joel Parkinson (Aus) today defeated world #3 Cory Lopez (USA) in the final of the Quiksilver Pro. The hometown victory puts him on top of the World Championship Tour (WCT) ratings, and secured US$30,000 prizemoney. Surf remained 3-5 ft (1-1.5 m), with ideal southeast winds throughout the day helping to create fantastic conditions. Snapper Rocks showcased the dramatic climax, with competition commencing this morning in the quarterfinals. The 35-minute decider showcased superb surfing from both, but it was the natural-footer's near-perfect 9.5 ride that separated them. After emerging from a deep tube right off the take-off, he continued to carve the clean wave face through the inside section, offering the supportive crowd exactly what they wanted. "Feeling great," began Parkinson, over the roar of applause and cheers. "I can't (believe it went so well). I got that one when Cory had priority, but he was out too far, and I just snuck into it. I've over the moon. "I was fairly confident the whole way 'cause it was at Snapper," he continued, of his local surf break. "Everybody is so good at Snapper, and Cory, I saw what he did in the semi. It was always open, but I'm just stoked I got it. "All the boys, I can't wait to party with them," he added, to further cheers. "It's great, and the money's good (laughs). It's a great start to the year. I just hope the roll keeps going. A few more wins through the year would be awesome."

Finishing fifth in the Quiksilver Pro tour rookie Maz Quinn (NZ). For 25-year-old Quinn, the result was especially sweet, being only his first WCT event. "It's a dream start for me," said Quinn. "Quarterfinals in my first 'CT ever... It's a huge confidence boost going into all the other events." Mick Fanning (Aus) took out the best aerial award, and Luke Egan (Aus) shared the most entertaining prize. 

Oz-Surf co-sponsers "Fanning The Fire"

Oz-Surf together with Rip Curl, Reef, and Dragon sponsored the release of the new video "Fanning the Fire" The premier which took place on April 4th at La Paloma Theater at Encinitas in California included giveaways from Rip Curl, Reef, Dragon, and Oz-Surf.

NSSA Hawaii Event #9, The final event of the 2001/02 season for NSSA Hawaii. Raymond Reichle was on fire taking first in the Open Mens and second in the Explorer Juniors. At Pine Trees, Kauai. Nice sunny weather or so they thought. It seems Mother Nature had other plans-wind and rain. I guess I was going to be cold for another week. Pine Trees was not the greatest. Strong current, a lot of close outs, and really cold. But this did not stop the Open Mens and Explorer Juniors from blowing up. Some of the guys stayed warm and made Pine Trees look almost good. Raymond Reichle was on fire. After heats, Hoku would stand next to him to stay warm. Raymond, straight off a quarterfinal finish at the Gotcha Pipeline Pro and four stitches later, made both the Open and Explorer finals. Finishing first in the Open Mens and second in the Explorer Juniors, Raymond was in seek and destroy mode. He hunted his waves out and destroyed them with the taste of a National title in him. I vision Raymond taking some titles this year at Lowers. My advise is watch out for Raymond and stay out of his way! If the weather cannot stop them, no one can. NSSA Hawaii is coming to the Nationals for some TITLES. It was cold but all of the aloha kept everyone warm. RESULTS - OPEN MENS 1- Raymond Reichle, EXPLORER JUNIORS - 2- Raymond Reichle. O-SMAS AIRSHOW 2- Hoku Webb , 4- Raymond Reichle

Rip Curl Pro (Mar 26-7 April) Parkinson Continues Roll Defeating World Champ Hobgood Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia (Thursday, March 28th) The 30th Anniversary Rip Curl Pro commenced today, after being placed on hold this morning, with the first eight heats of round one completed. Current ratings leader Joel Parkinson (Aus) continued his momentum with a convincing win over reigning world champion CJ Hobgood (USA) and local wildcard entrant Troy Brooks. Surf remained in the 3-5 ft (1.5m) range, with conditions expected to be similar over the coming days. Parkinson, who only celebrated his 21st birthday last week, hasn't put a foot wrong lately. After dominating the first World Championship Tournament (WCT) of the season two weeks ago on Australia's Gold Coast, he returned to the competitive arena today faced with an extremely high hurdle. Hobgood and Brooks both secured good rides, but it was the always casual Queenslander who dominated proceedings with his flowing forehand style. "It's good to be back at Bells," he added. "I've never been much of a wetsuit surfer, but I love coming down here. I'd love to see one of us win it again... not that I have, but Mick (Fanning) has, so hopefully he shares it around with us (laughs)." World #5 Jake Paterson overcame a pressurized attack from tour newcomer and fellow Australian Kieren Perrow, in their heat with Brazilian Victor Ribas. Perrow opened his account with the highest single wave score of the day, an 8.75, but this wasn't enough to hold off his more experienced opponent. Paterson required a 6.66 on his final ride, and found a lucky charm of a wave for 7.5 from the judges. "I had the inside for that wave, but I missed it, so I was so bummed with myself," explained Paterson, of Perrow's first ride. "I was confident in the way I was surfing, and then I got an 8.0, and just built on it.

Oz-Surf in the Islands... Fred Pattachia, Roy Powers, and Mikala Jones head up a solid pack. We are also stoked to welcome Raymond Reichle to the team, Raymond from Sunset Beach has just turned 16, he had a strong showing at the Hot Buttered Junior Pro in Oz and is won the NSSA Explorer division in Hawaii.

Volcom Stones’s Totally Crustaceous Tour Oz-Surf co-sponsors Volcom 2002 VQS* Championships. Is it still April fools? It was not 8 feet, it was barely 2 feet! The final crusty blow out of the season was held on March 30th & 31st, 2002 at 54th St. in Newport Beach. One Hundred and Thirty invited contestants in four separate divisions battled it out in marginal surf for cold hard cash!!!. Congrtas to Cory Arrambide finished 2^nd in the groms and took home $400.Anthony Petruso and Michael Hossington are lucky to be alive, after a horrific accident at Margaret River. Anthony suffered an injury to his leg and what looked like a broken nose, but both surfers and others are fine with no serious injuries.Congrats on Check outs, to Raymond Reichle - Sunset Beach, Brett Simpson - Huntington Beach, and Jason Franco -Carlsbad SBL, on their checkout’s in Surfing Mag and Transworld Surf

Hawaiian Regionals at Turtle Bay March 29, 2002 If you ever dreamed of a picture postcard career in amateur surfing, Hawaii's NSSA season is a great place to start. The 2002 NSSA Hawaii Regional kicked off with pristine conditions at Turtle Bay. And Spring break brought hundreds of top young surfers from all over the Hawaiian Islands as well as good swell and great winds. The event kicked off in the 1-3' range but rose to 4-6 feet by the finals. While not quite a real point break set up, the waves were long and left plenty of opportunity for multiple maneuvers and even barrels here and there, providing a great venue to test all-round surfing skill. Watching this year's Regionals was like watching the who's who of the what's what of Hawaii's progressive surfing scene today. From Menehune on up, the level of talent was frightening. There was no wavering for Raymond Reichle, he will be a dangerous threats for a title at Nationals. Raymond, was always a contender coming through the Boys and Open Juniors divisions but now that he's older he too has added verve and power. Reich mixes it up and combines these traits with a smooth style. If you're tired of seeing the Hawaiian kids dominate at Nationals don't show up. Some of the Hawaii Regionals' heats may as well have been ASP rated. The Hawaiians are surfing far beyond their years and as a precursor to Nationals, this year's Regionals was an ominous omen. Dig in boys and girls, the Hawaiians are looking better than ever ! and Raymond Reiche is on fire. NSSA Hawaii Regional Results - Open Men 1. Raymond Reichle, Explorer Juniors 3. Raymond Reichle Explorer Seniors 4. Raymond Reichle

Mick Fanning wins EXPN's Action Sports Best Male Surfer for 2001 The EXPN Action Sports and Music Awards were held this past weekend at the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles, California. Athletes from Surf, Skateboard, Snowboard, Ski, BMX and Motocross were represented. Tony Hawk, Andy MacDonold, Jim Rippy, Kevin Jones, Mick Fanning, Andy and Bruce Irons, Carey Hart, Matt Hoffman, Dave Mirra, Tara Dakidas, were just a few of the athlete in attendance. In the EXPN's Action Sports Best Male Surfer category were current WCT World Champion CJ Hobgood, WCT and WQS stand out Andy Irons, giant slayer Bruce Irons and 2001 WQS Champion, new WCT member and Mick Fanning. Although the competition was strong, Mick Fanning came out on top again and was awarded EXPN's Best Male Surfer of 2001. Congratulations to Paul "ANTMAN" Paterson who collected The "BIGGEST PADDLE IN WAVE AWARD" at the Nissan/XXL Big Wave Awards. Paul collected a $10,000 check for his 25 foot paddle in bomb in this year's Eddie held at Waimea Bay!
T&C GROM CONTEST AND AIR INVITATIONAL Oz-Surf co-sponsors with T&C The 6th Annual T&C SURF GROM CONTEST, will feature "Future Surfing Legends" and develop young Talent. This is an event that will help the youth gain confidence and develop surfing skills to better prepare them for the next level. This years Air invitational offers a total cash prize purse of $4000, a few of the invited surfers include defending champion Sean Moody, along with Dustin Cuizon, Fred Patacchia, Jason Shibata, Kekoa Bacalso and Charlie Carroll a former T&C grom now making a charge at the WQS FOSTER'S CUP SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. (April 27) CJ Hobgood wins against twin brother Damien, and Laguna Beach's Mike Todd. Mike kept it close for much of the heat with some strong scores in the beginning of the 30-minute final until an extended lull brought any additional significant scoring to a standstill. It could have gone Mike Todd's way had it not been for the lull and a final high score to go ahead of the ASP World Champ. "I grew up surfing the N.S.S.A. against C.J. and those guys and they were always competitive, they always did well, they had their heads together, and C.J. has obviously really shown that. I came to Lowers to do well, it seems I've always had a jinx out here, but I lucked into some good waves and I can't complain, I'm just one place away from what I wanted. In the Women's division, Melanie Bartels from Oahu's Westside won ahead of the 14- year-old sensation Erica Hosseini of Newport Beach, the youngest competitor ever to reach an ASP-sanctioned final. The Women's final also was plagued with a long lull mid-way through the heat, so Bartels' high opening score proved to be the difference. Fourteen-year-old Women's finalist Erica Hosseini of Newport Beach made history as the youngest athlete, male or female, to reach the finals of an ASP event. "I was stunned when they announced I was second when I got out of the water before the heat was over," said the Newport Beach local surfing in her first professional contest. "But then I saw a couple of the competitors stand up and thought, 'there goes my placing. But it didn't happen. I was stoked just to make it out of my first heat, then I made it to the final and just went out and had fun because I didn't really have anything to lose." NSSA Southwest Conference Crowns 2002 Open Champions Huntington Beach, CA the NSSA Southwest Conference concluded the 2001/02 Open Season on April 27-28 at 9th Street in Huntington Beach. JUNIORS - Chris Waring got off to a strong start winning the five star season opener at Salt Creek, the race came down to the wire at the season finale at H.B. 9th Street. Chris did not advance out of his semi final heat which gave Alex Grey enough points to clinch his second consecutive Southwest Conference title. BOYS CHAMPION-CORY ARRAMBIDE. Cory clinched his second 2001/02-conference title at this event but that turned out to be secondary to his monumental achievement of winning 21 events. His victory at the Salt Creek Open #9 tied the 20-win record set by Michael Taras in 1998. In taking his 21st event, Cory ripped H.B. 9th Street to shreds to take a unanimous and convincing victory. His victory record this season includes a nine event undefeated season in the Menehuene division of the Gold Coast conference. In the Open Season, he finished off the year with a super impressive eight victories. Gunning for the all time record, Cory began coming down to the Southwest Explorer events and won four of those. He will be competing in the final Explorer event at Salt Creek in an effort to extend his record count to 22. Cory is 12 years old and lives right across the street from Rincon. No wonder he is so good! MINI GROM CHAMPION-DANE ZAUN. It was a great year for the L.A. South Bay as Dane Zaun joined Alex as the second South Bayer to win an Open title. This year Dane has been surfing three divisions-the Open Mini Groms, the Open Boys and the Explorer Menehuenes. Although he is 10 years old, he is not afraid to step up into the older divisions and it shows. Dane dominated the last five Opens taking the wins in every Mini Grom final. He also won events #1, #2 and #4 for eight total victories this year. Dane also was ripping it up in the older 12 and over Boys division where he made six finals. Not to shabby! Would you believe an aerialist at 11 years old? Yep! Dane was the youngest grom to bust an air in his heat at the El Porto Explorer. He was rewarded with a wild card slot in the OSMAS event #4 at Creek, which he said was almost as good as winning the Mini Grom title! SOUTHWEST 2002 MOST IMPROVED AWARD-BRETT SIMPSON. Brett is 17 years old and although he officially resides in Garden Grove, he transferred into the 17-time National Champion Huntington Beach High School. Brett is a late bloomer to the NSSA ranks and only started competing consistently two years ago. He showed promise in the 2000/01 season with a #5 rating in the Open Juniors. His skills improved so much over last summer; he came into the 2001/02 season like gangbusters and won four events including the season finale at H.B. 9th Street. He finished up the 2001/02 season ranked third in the Open and is currently number one in the Explorer Juniors. SOUTHWEST 2002 SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD-CORY ARRAMBIDE. An important quality in the selection of the Sportsmanship award is dedication to the sport. This season, Cory competed in all of the Opens and the Gold Coast Menehuene and Boys divisions. Because Cory is such a talented grom, it seemed like his record shattering 21 victories came easy. However most people did not know that Cory was suffering from severe migraines throughout a great part of the season, even at some of the contests. You would never know it by the way he surfed and smiled. We are happy to report that Cory is fine and his migraines were found to be allergy related. Oz-Surf signs right coasters Matt Keenan, Dane Jeffreys and Cheyne Pinkney We are stoked to sign New Jersey's Matt Keenan and Florida's Cheyne Pinkney to the elite Oz-Surf Team. Matt joins the WQS squad with Fred Patacchia, Roy Powers, Mike Todd, Anthony Petruso, Mikala Jones, Danny Nichols, Dane Reynolds, and Kyle Knox.

Matt has been on a roll making seven finals last year throughout the WQS and on the East Coast. His greatest performance of the year happened in front of his home crowd as he came up just short in a wave starved final in the Heritage/ Rip Curl Pro in Sea Isle City, NJ. Matt has been a figure head on the right coast for years, Cheyne and Dane are standouts from Jacksonville Beach with heaps of potential for the futurewith both riders finishing in the top five in the Southeast/North Open Juniors and Explorer Juniors. We congratulate Cheyne on making the USA Team for South Africa. The riders join Virginia Beach legend Wes Laine and Florida’s Danny Melhado with the addition of more riders to come the Oz-Surf Pack is growing on the East Coast......

NSSA 2002 WESTERN CHAMPIONSHIPS Huntington Beach, CA —H.B. local Brett Simpson makes Surf City proud taking both the Open Mens and OSMAS airshow titles. The top young surfers from the west coast assembled in Huntington Beach to compete at the sixth annual NSSA Western Championships. Over 400 NSSA surfers competed for prestigious Western titles as well as contending for slots to the 2002 National Championships in June at Lower Trestles. The "world renowned" sand bars on the south side of the H.B. pier were in fine shape as a combo of southwest and northwest swells generated fun, contestable surf in the 3-5 foot range throughout the entire three-day marathon event. SIMPSON FINALLY NAILS FIRST NSSA CHAMPIONSHIP-It was only a matter of time before 17-year-old Brett Simpson would claim his first NSSA championship crown. Brett, the #3 seed in the Open Mens division, was one of the favorites coming into the event, not only on account of his high ranking, but because of that all so valuable home turf knowledge, especially in the notoriously fickle H.B. conditions. The Huntington Beach High School junior surfs the pier every morning during surf class so he knows every aspect of the pier line-up. Throughout the event, Brett mainly stuck to those right hand peelers next to the pier and it paid off. Three solid rides scoring 7.0, 6.5 and 6.0-clinched Brett his first championship title. Dane Reynolds opened up the heat with a 9.5 score, three blistering backside snaps on a left, but he couldn't capitalize on it. ARRAMBIDE TAKES DOUBLE VICTORIES-Who said you have to be an H.B. local to rip at the pier? 12-year-old Cory Arrambide of Ventura owned the infamous south side sand bars. Cory's performance at the Westerns established clearly that he is one of the hottest up and coming kids in America. In his opening heat in the Open Boys, Cory lit up on a wave scoring the only perfect 10 of the event. Even ASP WCT judge Tony Sutton who was on the Westerns judging panel, was amazed at Cory's level! HOMETOWN LOCAL TOMMY STEURY PUTS ON A MOST INSPIRATIONAL PERFORMANCE-It was just two short weeks ago that 12-year-old Tommy Steury was hospitalized with a pretty serious case of appendicitis. He even had to miss the last two crucial double rated Open and Explorer events of the regular season. But kids have a way of bouncing back and Tommy was gung ho to get back in water and put on that NSSA contest jersey. You would never know that he was out of commission for a couple weeks by the way he ripped his home turf at the pier. He double finaled and took 3rd in the Open Boys and 4th in the Explorer Menehuenes. Way to go Tommy!

AWESOME PERFORMANCES-MULTIPLE FINALISTS AT THE 2002 WESTERN CHAMPIONSHIPS- The east coasters might have pulled off more back to backs but the west coast triumphed in the multiple finalists category. Twenty-three west coast competitors compared to the east coast's twenty earned multiple final berths including two triple final performers. DANE REYNOLDS TRIPLE FINALIST-2nd Open Mens; 2nd OSMAS airshow; 5th Explorer Juniors , Brett Simpson-1st Open Mens; 1st OSMAS airshow, Cory Arrambide-1st Open Boys; 1st Explorer Menehuene, Dane Zaun-1st Open Mini Groms; 6th Open Boys, Justin Wiegand 1st Explorer Juniors; 2nd Explorer Mens, Jason Franco 5th Open Mens; 3rd Explorer Mens, Tommy Steury 3rd Open Boys; 4th Explorer Menehuene, Chris Slayter 4th Open Boys; 2nd Explorer Menehuene, Andrew Doheny 2nd Open Mini Groms; 3rd Explorer Menehuene, Erica Hosseini 5th Open Womens; 2nd Explorer Womens.

WEST COASTERS BUST BIG AT OSMAS-In undeniably, the best OSMAS event of the year performance wise, Brett Simpson busted out a perfectly executed frontside grab in the OSMAS final to claim his second title of the event. The good 3-5 foot waves provided fantastic airshow conditions for the top 24 youth aerialists on the west coast. Brett may have won the final, but Dane Reynold's air in the quarterfinals stole the show. Dane launched a huge frontside grab on a set wave. With enormous amplitude, he went into a 180 rotation while holding the grab all the way through. He scored an almost perfect 29 out of 30, and will join Simpson in representing the NSSA West at the 2002 National OSMAS Championships at Salt Creek on June 22-23. RESULTS OF THE SIXTH ANNUAL NSSA WESTERN CHAMPIONSHIPS

OPEN MENS 1. Brett Simpson, 2. Dane Reynolds, 5. Jason Franco. OPEN JUNIORS 4. Chris Waring. OPEN BOYS 1. Cory Arrambide, 2. Brent Reilly, 3. Tommy Steury, 4. Chris Slayter, 6. Dane Zaun. OPEN MINI GROMS 1.Dane Zaun, 2. Andrew Doheny. OPEN WOMENS 5. Erica Hosseini. NSSA O-SMAS 1. Brett Simpson, 2. Dane Reynolds. EXPLORER MENS 2. Justin Wiegand, 3. Jason Franco. EXPLORER JUNIORS 1. Justin Wiegand, 5. Dane Reynolds. EXPLORER MENEHUENE 1. Cory Arrambide, 2. Chris Slayter, 3. Andrew Doheny, 4. Tommy Steury. EXPLORER WOMENS 2. Erica Hosseini. Summary

On behalf of Joe James , Team Manager, supported by Don Del Carmen in Hawaii , Wes Laine on the East Coast, and Myself. There are so many MVP’s we think the whole team should be awarded MVT "Most Valuble Team" You have done us proud and you deserve all the credit for what has been a remarkable year. From us to you….Congradulations.

In International News. The year kicked off in style with Joel Parkinson’s win in the WCT rated Quiksilver Pro on the Gold Coast. Mick Fanning then took out the Mark Richards Newcastle City Pro (4 Star WQS), before Joel claimed the title at the Salomon Margaret River Masters (6 Star WQS). Add to that Luke Egans incredable performance at Teahupoo in 18’ surf to clinch 2^nd place.

There was a strong representation of Oz-Surf riders from the USA who travelled to Australia and competed in the MR at Newcastle. These included Roy Powers, Fred Patacchia, Mike Todd, Danny Nichols, Jared Lang, and Willie Safreed. They all competed exceptionally well and Roy only just missed a spot in the final on the last wave by Timmy Reyes. They then headed over to West Oz to Margaret River to compete in the Masters.

On the local scense at the first PSTA event last weekend at Imperial Beach, Dane Reynolds made it to the quarter finals, and Danny Nichols made it to the Semi’s. Both riders suffered from a lack of waves to progress, but showed the ability with their waves to match with any of their peirs.

We have had so many standout performances throughout the year it is impossible to list them all, Erica Hoseinni the youngest person ever to qualify for a WQS final, Karlene Wiegands leading the College womens. Cory Arrambide’s NSSA record of 21 wins and in the NSSA SW Groms division Cory Arrambide, and Chris Slayter dominated the year. Brent Reilly and Andrew Doheny continued to improve all year and surfed at a whole new level at Westerns. Likewise Jason Franco, Brett Simpson and Dane Reynolds surfed consistently all year as we have come to expect, but at Westerns Justin "Pin Head" Wiegands took his surfing to another level and surfed off the planet.

Out the water, it worth acknowledging the leadership qualities displayed by Danny Nichols, Jason Franco, and Charlie Carroll as senior members in the development of the junior talent.

Surf results aside, we are lucky that Anthony Petruso walked away from an horrific accident in West Oz. Shane Powell survived a near death experience in 18’ surf at Teahupoo after getting creamed on the inside section. He was hit by a second wave just as he was about to surface, and if it had not been for the courage of Vetea David in risking his own life and racing in to grab Shane on a jet ski just seconds before the third wave hit him, he might not be here today. Also Matt Keenan who survived a nasty experience with the coral in Indo and escaped with a dislocated shoulder. And finally Jo Jo Roper in developing his skateboard skills with new maneuvers "the pile driver" which involves going headfirst into the sidewalk. His heads fine which is more that can be said for the concrete.

And finally I would like to acknowledge the time and effort by Hoku Webb in compiling the Hawaiian notes. As we head into Nationals, the team is primed. The strong showing at NSSA SW regionals will only be complimented as the team is strengthen by the members from the East Coast and the Hawaiians as they prepared to invade the mainland like Vikings on the rampage.