Waves were ridden right the way into the beach at
Bells yesterday as competitors tried to milk out every last drop of
scoring potential, persevering through the flatter part of the wave in
anticipation of the steeper end-section. This end-section was breaking
directly onto the sand — or in some cases the reef — and no one showed
more commitment to the cause than Courtney Conlogue in her Round 3 heat
against Tyler Wright and Coco Ho. With just seconds to go before the
buzzer and in need of a 5.97, Conlogue tried to fit in one last hit —
and succeeded, riding out of it cleanly and straight into a slab of
exposed rock. Tyler Wright looked on in concern, and the overweight
security guard waiting at the water’s edge almost launched himself into
the sea to rescue her. But moments later she lifted herself to her feet,
emerging miraculously unscathed and with arms aloft, only to find she’d
missed out on the score by 0.2. Still, a top effort, and one that put
us in mind of Nikki Van Dijk’s tumble into the reef at last year’s event.
