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THIS PRESS RELEASE IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY SSM FREESPORTS, EHMAN PRODUCTIONS & AMERICAN WINDSURFER MAGAZINE
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WORLD CHAMP DUNKERBECK IN RISING SWELL
Ho'okipa Beach Park, Maui, HAWAII (Sunday, November 7, 1999) --- A dramatic increase in swell size to six feet turned up the heat at the 16th annual Swatch Aloha Classic today, with rounds two and three of the men’s competition taking to the waves. All eyes were focused on Dutch sailor Bjorn Dunkerbeck (E-11) who is here on Maui looking to secure his 12th successive Overall World Championship and set out in man-on-man heat four of the third round.
Up against the top 1998 Swatch Aloha Classic Hawaiian finisher Dave Kalama (US-212), the heat promised to be a sizzling showdown but the final outcome took hours to reveal. Rain squalls put the brakes on the wind during their first attempt, calling for an abandonment before it reached a conclusion. The pair later returned to the lineup for a battle royal.
Dunkerbeck and Kalama did not disappoint the element-enduring crowd on the beach who didn’t care what the outcome was but just wanted to watch the local favorite and the world champ tear the rising swell apart.
Dave Kalama with son Austin at Ho'okipa
The two traded waves for the duration of the 15 minute heat, Dunkerbeck laying his sail low with every bottom turn before cranking off the top with meticulous precision, then cutting back into the critical part of the wave after every major maneuver. His selection of larger equipment did not seem to hamper his campaign.
"We all want to ride as small equipment as possible – sails and boards – but when there isn’t much wind, you’ve got to use the bigger equipment," said Dunkerbeck.
"But the waves are great today. Much better than anything we’ve seen the last few days."
Kalama was a close match for Dunkerbeck, his local knowledge of the wave providing him with excellent wave selection and positioning. Pushing for every ounce of speed, Kalama’s performance featured gravity-defying floaters across the pitching lip of the wave, as well as highly difficult close-out re-entries on the bigger waves.
Today’s format for competition, given the variable wind conditions, was based strictly on wave riding with jumps excluded from the equation. Both Kalama and Dunkerbeck definitely worked the wave faces for every available drop of speed and power, but a multi-world champ is a tough man to beat and it was Dunkerbeck who advanced to the fourth round.
Other’s to impress en-route to the quarter finals today were Nik Baker, Britain, (K-66), Scott Fenton, New Zealand, (KZ-11), Matt Pritchard, USA, (US-10), Robby Naish (US-1111), and Josh Angulo, Hawaii, (US-11).
Competition was halted prior to the completion of the third round, with the last two man-on-man heats set to run when competition resumes tomorrow at 10:30 am, wind and waves permitting.
One round of women’s competition was held today and the ladies excelled in the growing swell which was the most challenging yet of the tournament. Unperturbed by the powerful, overhead waves, the women put it all on the line and advanced according to their performances. Standout performances featured critical top-to-bottom turns, tight positioning on the waves and plenty of speed which was rewarded with a second round berth.
Advancing to round two were Cecily Kitts, USA, (US-36), Jenny Ellefson, USA, (US-129), Tsugumi Takagi, Japan, (J-101), defending champion Jocelyn Hrkach, Canada, (KC-80), Kelly Moore, Hawaii, (US-6), Renata Fuzetti, Brazil, (BRA-157), Nina Heiberg, Norway, (N-10), and Jennifer Henderson, USA, (US-7).
The swell is expected to continue to rise over the next couple of days, making for big and exciting conditions for the remainder of both men’s and women’s competition.
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