2003 ASP/WCT QUIKSILVER PRO FRANCE: DAY TWO

Only Slater can surf like this after staying dry for three weeks. PHOTO: ASPWORLDTOUR.COM/TOSTEE

3. Taj Burrow, who knows well how close he is to top rating (less than 50 points from Kelly), brought the crowd to their knees with two merciless forehand wrath-whips in the common space of maybe one, for 9.33 and a win. "I rather like where I'm sitting right now," he disclosed later, with a sly, unshaven grin. It's just that simple.

4. Following that heat directly, ratings leader, Andy Irons went out and had a bad one, including three falls and two "over-it"-style flickouts. Another local wildcard, Fred Robin, made up the slack with precise backhand whacking and a breakthrough win. Once on sand, the question for the champ was, "So, are you spewing?" He answered casually next to his girl, "Spewing? Not even. No one loses in round one; I'm laughing." He laughed all the way to the rack to try another board.

5. Finally, we had the 'BIG' heat, the one with the most captivating surfer on the planet right now: Kelly Slater. And not only for his apparently rejuvenated freakish talent, but for his reborn wicked heat-eating mind. But for any young guns watching, he did show some weakness in this one, with a lot of falling and missing sections. That left him nearly done by his other draw--a fire-in-the-eyes, Neco Padaratz. But also fortunately, like Irons, he didn't seem too put off; smiling and getting on with the boys far on into the day.

Chances are, just like these handsome sandbanks, Kelly's waiting to improve with the tide.-- Hagan Kelley

Quiksilver Pro France Round One Heats (1st>Rnd 3; 2nd, 3rd>Rnd 2)
H7: Taj Burrow (Aus) 17.66; Jonathan Gonzalez (Spn) 12.5; Pat O'Connell (Aus) 11.84
H8: Frederick Robin (Fra) 14.33; Jake Paterson (Aus) 13.17; Andy Irons (Haw) 10.67
H9: Patrick Beven (Fra) 17.16; Kalani Robb (Haw) 16.7; 12. Joel Parkinson (Aus) 12.2
H10: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.1; Neco Padaratz (Brz) 14.76; Tiago Pires (Port) 11.5
H11: Guilherme Herdy (Brz) 14.77; Taylor Knox (USA) 14.0; Fabio Gouveia (Brz) 13.3
H12: Shane Powell (Aus) 16.73; Damien Hobgood (USA) 15.67; Beau Emerton (Aus) 11.77
H13: Armando Daltro (Brz) 13.5; Danilo Costa (Brz) 10.7; Mark Occhilupo (Aus) 9.67
H14: Shea Lopez (USA) 15.53; Phil MacDonald (Aus) 12.67; Darren O'Rafferty (Aus) 12.27
H15: Daniel Wills (Aus) 14.53; Flavio Padaratz (Brz) 13.77; Lee Winkler (Aus) 10.33
H16: Chris Davidson (Aus) 15.0; Luke Hitchings (Aus) 13.2; Richard Lovett (Aus) 11.9

 

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