Hello, Mr. Shark. |
So with that as a backdrop, K said this morning that she wanted to go over to Ocean Beach if the surf was up. We checked and it was on.
As it happened, we arrived just in time to see Heat 2 of Round 4 with our man Slater, now 39, going up against Miguel Pupo, 19(!) and Gabriel Medina, 17(!). Kelly smoked ‘em in less-than-perfect. The kids were great though. In fact, they outscored everybody else in all the heats. Everyone, except for the man himself, of course. Tough luck for them. Now they’ve got to make it through Round 5 while Slater waits for his next victim in the Quarterfinals, both of which should be in the next few days.
And, now on to the good stuff.
Here are some pix courtesy of Kpix. K caught a sequence of this amazing trick which he couldn't quite hang onto in the end.
The big news today is that by winning Heat 2, Slater got his 11th World Title. Really. For sure this time. It’s amazing to think that he piled onto his "oldest guy to win a World Title" record AND he won his first at age 20. I’m far from a surfing expert, but this is sport is HARD on the body and he’s been at the top of his game for a long time.
And then right after the heat closed, something amazing happened, albeit unofficial. The kids were coming onto the beach on the left. Kelly wasn’t visible until we caught him screaming along a wave with a barrel forming (one of the few of the day as it turned out) to the right. He entered the barrel and it seemed impossible that he would make out the other side. In fact, there was an audible groan by some who considered him closed out on. Then all of a sudden he came rocketing out the other side and the crowd erupted. People were jumping around and strangers were celebrating together. After that split-second of shock, people (this includes me) started rushing over to where he would come in, chanting his name, and wading in the surf, oblivious of getting wet on a cold but sunny day. Joyful mayhem!
Here Slater comes out of the water engaging with the fans. Everybody was loving it, including him.
![]() |
Whadyathink folks? |
![]() |
How did K get so close? |
Later still, he’s signing autographs until every single person has something signed. I always thought the guy was cool but I was blown away today. Congratulations, Kelly Slater! Respect.
![]() |
Who's next? |