Nike 6.0 Lowers Pro Scores Perfect Trestles For The Final

The final day of competition at the Nike 6.0 Lowers Pro was supposed to be knee-high, onshore and rainy. Instead it was head-high, glassy and pumping. On the final day both Adriano De Souza and Tim Boal were still in the running, and if I must say, the conditions suited both of them perfectly. Adriano's surfing continues to mature, continues to improve. "He's so compact, so tight. Then he gets to the top and just explodes," pointed out Red Bull Rising guru Andy King. Adriano very easily could have gone the distance, but unfortunately ran into last year's champ and eventual finalist Ben Bourgeois in the quarterfinals. Less than a point seperated the two in the end, but it was Benny that got the edge. Tim did one better and made the semifinals, but couldn't find the waves he needed to get past Hawaii's Freddy Patacchia. Then again, nobody could find the waves to get past Freddy. From Day 1 to the end, Freddy owned it. "It must have been 10 years ago that I won NSSAs here," he joked after the final. "It's like coming back home again." With a little more money in their pocket and points in the ratings the boys are shipping off to Tahiti for the Billabong Pro, which gets underway this week...but more on that to come.

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