To say yesterday’s Save Trestles hearing was anything but a success wouldn’t be doing it justice. As I sat there with an open mind (ok, I lie), listening to both sides plead their case in front of a thousand plus people, I couldn’t help but think this rally shouldn’t even be happening in the first place. The overwhelming majority of people are obviously opposed to building the toll road through and along the San Mateo Creek and if these politicians were really “for the people” they wouldn’t even think twice about this decision. But I’ll keep politics out of this one…

What became very apparent by listening to the speakers who oppose the 241 toll-road is that there’s a lot more at stake here than a worldclass surf break. From protecting one of the last, pristine coastal parks in the country, to saving a species of mouse, to the Panhe People losing more sacred land, the number of common sense reasons why we don’t need this road are and should be pretty obvious.

The developers, union workers, big corporations, and lobbied politicians on the other hand had their own selfish reasons for supporting the 241 Toll Road. From saving time in traffic, to creating jobs, to making money off new cable TV subscribers(hint: Cox Communications), they didn’t seem to care they’d be destroying one of mother natures few remaining gifts in return for the all-mighty dollar or saving a couple minutes in the car everday. And if I understand correctly, the road won’t positively affect people traveling in that direction. These issues were still heard, despite being met with plenty of ‘booos’, thumbs down, and dollar bills waving in the air that signified their being paid to be here, which as one speaker noted, “ethically voids out any argument they have.”

Surfrider did a wonderful job of showing appreciation to the supporters - free t-shirts, a concert, face painting, and food coupons that they were handing out by the dozen. I could have eaten $100 worth of free fair-food, had I wanted. To bad they didn’t have a beer garden or I just might have.

A couple of standout moments from the event were…

Jim Moriarty’s quote: “you can never save the oceans, but you can always be saving them”

The guy holding up the sign that read: “live better, get barreled” opposed to “live better, build roads”. For some reason getting barreled does sound like a better life to me than laying concrete.

92 year old Eloise who got up on the podium and shouted NO!

The young boy, who couldn’t have been more than 10, pleading the case for both himself and his whole generation.

The lady from San Bernadino who drove 100 miles to save the campground, saying her family is too poor to afford a normal vacation with hotels so their summer vacation every year is camping at San Mateo, something they’ve been doing their who lives.

All the other people who graciously gave up their time to support more than one noble cause.

Saving Trestles is a fight that’s not over yet and may never be. But as more and more people get involved and act on this issue, one can’t help but be very confident that the people will be heard and the right thing will done. I’d say we outnumbered the other side by 10x, and if that’s not power in numbers I don’t know what is.

The long awaited next round in the battle to protect Trestles and surrounding areas will finally take place today. It’s been an interesting last few months leading up today’s public hearing being held by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, but the hearing definitely will take place today in Del Mar, Ca. Anyone in the Southern California area is encouraged to attend and let their voices be heard, however that may be.

For info on car pools, speakers, and the hearing agenda head on over to Save Trestles.

SAVE TRESTLES: MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22

WHO: Surfrider Foundation activists, surfers, hikers and everyone who opposes the extension of the 241 Toll Road.

WHAT: It’s time to defend Trestles! On September 22, the Secretary of Commerce will hold a public hearing for the appeal of the 241 Toll Road. This is the time to show the Federal Government that we do not want a toll road running through a State Park and ruining the camping, environment, Mother Ocean, and surfing experiences at San Onofre State Beach.

The hearing is expected to go all day, and the Surfrider Foundation is hosting interactive stations and activities outside the hearing such as face painting for kids, Frisbee, hacky sack, sign making and letter writing. There are letter “drop boxes” at the hearing and Surfrider plans to fill the boxes with letters opposing the toll road.

*Photo and interview opportunities will be available at the hearing*

WHEN: Monday, September 22
10:30 AM – 8:30 PM

WHERE: O’Brien Hall at the Del Mar Fairgrounds
2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd.
Del Mar, CA 92014

INFO: Please note that there are several hearing procedures in place for the hearing. To read a full list, go to http://www.surfrider.org/savetrestles/files/Hearing_FAQs.pdf (PDF). Hand-held signs cannot be larger than 13×22 inches, and to ensure that all signs are appropriately sized, the Surfrider Foundation will be setting up sign-making stations and passing out pre-made signs.

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: STEFANIE SEKICH SURFRIDER FOUNDATION – SSEKICH@SURFRIDER.ORG

For the 5th time in 7 events on the WCT this year, Kelly Slater ended up on top with another near flawless performance at Trestles this week. Slater narrowly edged out Taj Burrow in the final heat today on his way to winning the 2008 Boost Mobile Pro.

Taj came out absolutely firing at the beginning of the 40 min. extended final and quickly put the 8x world champion in a combo situation. It was looking pretty glim for the champ, however as Kelly has done so many times throughout his illustrious career, he stayed cool and came back to clinch the victory in the closing minutes.

“I was literally out there just trying to save face, I thought Taj had me – he was on fire,” Slater said. “I was just trying to get out of combo and put on a good show for everybody. I got a 9.7 on a smaller wave that had a clean face and let me get a lot of speed and some big carves and that let me get back in.”

Taj in fact did have Kelly, and really probably should have had Kelly. With under two minutes left in the final, Taj was still holding a sizable lead as Kelly was looking for a score of 8.93 to combine with the 9.7. Taj held priority as time ticked away but decided to let Kelly take-off on a wave he didn’t feel would give-up the score Kelly was looking for. He was wrong and Kelly proceeded to shred his way to a 9.27, and in doing so sealed his 3rd Boost Mobile Pro victory, as well as a hefty $75,000 worth of prize money which Bob Hurley sweetened with an extra $45,000 today.

“Taj had priority and he let that wave go because it was the first wave and he probably thought it was going to be bumpy but it let me do a lot on it.” Slater said. A very disappointed Taj saw it another way. “I felt like I won,” Burrow said. “I don’t think that wave had the scoring potential. I just had a feeling that they were going to give it to him. He had a lot of energy about him. He’s Kelly and he finished it. He got to the end and I knew it was going to be a good score. I don’t know what else I could have done. I picked the best waves and surfed them really well so it’s frustrating. He was really hungry and ended up clinching it.”

Taj surfed absolutely out of his mind throughout the event at Trestles, Kelly is just on a run right now like none we have ever seen before and this come from behind win was as spectacular as any. Not to mention his full-on barrel this morning at Trestles, a wave that isn’t really known to give up barrels, ever.

Congratulations Kelly Slater, the 2008 Boost Mobile Pro Champion! On a side note, Kelly was also given the keys to the city of San Clemente tonight at a special beach event hosted by Hurley and Boost Mobile, which saw surfer/musician Timmy Curran perform a free concert as well as a special screening of Bustin’ Down the Door.

Boost Mobile Pro pres. by Hurley Final Results:
Kelly Slater (USA) 18.97 def. Taj Burrow (AUS) 18.63

Boost Mobile Pro pres. by Hurley Semifinal Results:
Heat 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.67 def. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 15.10
Heat 2: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.33 def. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 16.50

Boost Mobile Pro pres. by Hurley Quarterfinal Results:
Heat 1: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 16.90 def. Dane Reynolds (USA) 14.10
Heat 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 17.16 def. Bobby Martinez (USA) 15.16
Heat 3: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 17.57 def. Mick Fanning (AUS) 15.67
Heat 4: Taj Burrow (AUS) 18.50 def. Heitor Alves (BRA) 6.34
Today’s Boost Mobile Pro pres. by Hurley Round 4 Results:
Heat 7: Taj Burrow (AUS) 18.07 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.00
Heat 8: Heitor Alves (BRA) 11.14 def. Jay Thompson (AUS) 11.0

A combined 9 ASP World Championships and 74 years of age hit the water at Trestles today in a 3rd round heat that saw Kelly Slater take out Sunny Garcia at the Boost Mobile Pro today. Although the heat was the first time Slater and Garcia were paired up during a WCT event at Trestles, seeing the two living legends in the water together today brought back a lot of memories for the two surfers who have dominated the sport for years, as well as the thousands of fans who have followed their storied careers for decades.

Both surfers spoke very highly of each other before and after the heat that saw Kelly eliminate Sunny by a score of 17.00 to 14.67. Sunny lived up to his promise that he wouldn’t roll over for Slater and would put everything he had into the heat, but even with his impressive performance, it wasn’t enough to unseat the 8x world champ from an event he is very comfortable at. “What can you say? He’s surfing great,” said Garcia upon coming out of the water. “It didn’t help that they informed him yesterday that he(Slater) has a 91% win rate in heats this year.”

As the heat was coming down to it’s closing moments the two legends looked calm and seemed to be enjoying the moment, even appearing to be talking story and shaking hands as the final seconds ticked off the clock. It was a truly nostalgic moment not just for the two world champs, but also for those whose surfing they have influenced for years and years.

The 2008 Boost Mobile Pro presented by Hurley is well underway and to this point has been full of spectacular surfing in the 3-5 ft. summer swell at Trestles. The last two days have seen the completion of Rounds 1,2, and the first four heats of Round 3. The current swell is expected to hold tight and build throughout the week. The competition at Lowers is likely to ensue Wednesday morning.

3-x world champion Andy Irons continues his less than stellar year with a surprising Rd. 2 loss to Yadin Nicol. Andy came into the event at Trestles ranked 7th in the current ASP standings but will obviously be taking a slide with this early exit. Andy has had runs of classic A.I. surfing this year but has yet been able to put it together for a whole event.

Joel Parkinson, Dane Reynolds, and Bede Durbidge are among those already making their way into the 4th round. Round 3 still holds several interesting match-up as current 8x, as well as eventual 9x world champion, Kelly Slater meets up with former world champ Sunny Garcia in the 8th heat. Sunny has been battling his way through the WQS this year in hopes of making it back onto the WCT full-time in 2009. Sunny vowed to make Slater’s year on tour a living hell next year if succeeds in his goal to get back on the Dream Tour. Although the words were given somewhat in jest, it doesn’t take much to get Kelly motivated to go for the kill.

UPCOMING ROUND 3 HEATS for 9/10/08:
Heat 5: Bobby Martinez (USA), Ben Bourgeois (USA)
Heat 6: Kai Otton (AUS), Luke Munro (AUS)
Heat 7: Roy Powers (HAW), Kieren Perrow (AUS)
Heat 8: Kelly Slater (USA), Sunny Garcia (HAW)
Heat 9: Mick Fanning (AUS), Yadin Nicol (AUS)
Heat 10: Tim Reyes (USA), Taylor Knox (USA)
Heat 11: Adriano de Souza (BRA), Rodrigo Dornelles (BRA)
Heat 12: Jeremy Flores (FRA), Royden Bryson (ZAF)
Heat 13: Taj Burrow (AUS), Brett Simpson (USA)
Heat 14: Chris Ward (USA), Jordy Smith (ZAF)
Heat 15: CJ Hobgood (USA), Heitor Alves (BRA)
Heat 16: Bruce Irons (HAW), Jay Thompson (AUS)

After nearly a month long break following the Rip Curl Pro Search in Bali, the ASP World Tour is set to continue with the 2008 Boost Mobile Pro. The holding period for the event, which is held at Lower Trestles in San Clemente, California, opens next Sunday, Sept. 7

As the lone annual visit to North America made by the Dream Tour is set to kick-off, it’s no surprise that all eyes are on eight-time world champion Kelly Slater.

Following his surprising 3rd round Bali loss to rookie and then world no. 39 Tiago Pires(PRT), Kelly is fired up about getting his march to no. 9 resumed at a break he is very familiar with. Coming into the event as the defending champion, as well as participating in the final heat in each of the last four years at Trestles has Kelly eager to get back on track. “Trestles is probably the closest thing I have to a home break on tour,” Slater said. “It is the only mainland U.S. event and it’s been probably the most consistent event year to year for me. I’ve loved Trestles since I was very young.”

A win at Trestles, or even a top 5 finish, makes Slater an essential lock to seal the overall championship on the upcoming European leg of the tour. With none of the top 10 outside of Taj Burrow making it past the 4th round in Bali, Slater is very conscious of what’s at stake at Lowers. “Bali was a gift to me in the end,” Slater said. “A good result at Trestles could really set my momentum back up. A mess-up could really rattle and shake things up for me. I didn’t think I’d be looking at this the way it is now though, so it’s all fine from here on out.”

Will Trestles be the start of an extended 9th world-championship celebration for Mr. Slater? It’s looking that way, but if Tiago Pires and Bruce Irons taught us one thing in Bali, it’s that anything is possible on the WCT

Clips of Kelly Slater’s 2007 Trestles victory…

When all is said and done in regards to the curious decision to postpone the July 25 federal hearing on the proposed 241-toll road extension, a.k.a. Trestles toll road, we may be looking back on that decision as a blessing in disguise.

The latest stop in this seemingly never-ending battle was set to take place just about a month ago at the Bren Center on the campus of UC Irvine. When the fear that those in opposition of the proposed toll road would show up in the form of 10,000 plus, the meeting was abruptly postponed until further notice. Those who had planned to make their voices heard once again were thus left without any answers and no clear time line for the scheduling of a new hearing. A massive ‘make your voices heard’ effort was set-up by our friends at Surfrider Foundation, as well as many other diligent groups and individuals, and the U.S. Secretary of Commerce obliged. The public hearing has now been rescheduled for September 22, 2008 in O’Brien Hall at the Del Mar Fairgrounds from 10:30 am until 8:30 pm. It was in Wyland Hall at the Del Mar Fairgrounds back in February where the proposed road took one of it’s biggest losses to date when the California Coastal Commission voted 8-2 against the project.

The aforementioned blessing in disguise? In the weeks leading up to this next stop on the journey to defeat the Trestles toll road project the ASP world tour will be making it’s annual stop at Trestles with the 2008 Boost Mobile Pro. The holding period for the event is scheduled for September 7-13. The opportunity this will provide to once again rally the surf community around this cause will be immeasurable. With many of the surf industry leaders, thousands of fans who will be attendance, and even more watching online via webcast getting set to fix their eyes upon the revered break, the Boost Mobile Pro is set-up to be the ideal rallying point for the Sept. 22 hearing before Secretary Carlos Gutierrez.

As much as the surf contest itself, there will undoubtedly be a focus on the celebration of Trestles and the necessity to preserve the area. This will be Trestles time to shine and you can be sure the upcoming hearing at O’Brien Hall will be filled to capacity, and then some, by one hell of an energized and passionate group of those who fiercely oppose the proposed Trestles toll road. 5ones will be sure to keep you updated upon any further notices.

If you wish to speak at the hearing, you must mail your request* via USPS or commercial carrier (no email) to:

Thomas Street, Attorney Advisor
NOAA Office of General Counsel for Ocean Services
1305 East-West Highway, Room 6111
Silver Spring, MD 20910

*Written requests must be received by September 12th and include the individual’s full name, address, and declare that they are speaking as an individual, not an organization.

*If you wish to express let your voice be heard via signs, there is a size limit to the signs allowed in the hall, which is 13 inches x 24 inches.

For those who were planning on making their voices heard in Irvine next week, the public hearing regarding the proposed extension of the 241 Toll road has been postponed until further notice. Almost a month ago the Secretary of Commerce announced that a public hearing regarding the proposed extension was to take place July 25 at the Bren Center, located on the campus of UC Irvine. Due to the fear that the turnout from supporters of San Onofre State Beach and Trestles would overwhelm the facilities at UCI, they have decided to call off the hearing.

Sounds pretty wacky, to cancel a public hearing because there will be too much….public? With an expected crowd of over 10,000, many of which are extremely passionate about winning this battle, the security and accommodation concerns are obvious. However, given that there is such a high level of interest from the public, there needs to be an alternate plan put in place quickly so that those who choose to speak out, whether through words or action, can have their voices be heard.

If you would like to help ensure that this happens, send an email to Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez demanding that they reschedule the hearing so that he can hear what it is the people want on this issue. The best way to do so is at gcos.comments@noaa.gov. We still have work to do on this one!

Although the fight to keep the highly controversial 241 Toll Road extension has been going for years and has at times seemed endless, those who oppose the project don’t appear to be backing off any time soon.

Last week the Secretary of Commerce announced that a public hearing regarding the proposed extension is to take place July 25 at the Bren Center on the campus of UC Irvine. This comes on the heels of what was a major victory for Trestles, San Onofre State Park, and all those who oppose the development of the proposed toll road when the California Coastal Commission voted 8-2 against the project. This hearing marks the next battle between the Transportation Corridor Authority and opponents over the continuation of the road, which would essentially lead to the closure of the popular campgrounds at San Onofre State Park as well as putting surrounding breaks, including Trestles, at great risk.

For those who have yet to see it, there was a beautiful section done covering the Trestles battle in the most recent Teton Gravity Research film - Out There. It illustrated the importance of keeping this stretch of coast as is and covered why this is such a vital battle for us to become involved in. Over 3,000 strong showed at Wyland Hall at the Del Mar Fairgrounds to let there voices be heard. This time around there are hopes for an even larger showing. “We are looking forward to the Department of Commerce hearing,” says Mark Rauscher, Assistant Environmental Director for the Surfrider Foundation. “The Department of Commerce has already heard from the experts, now it is time for them to hear directly from the public how the TCA’s proposed alignment for the Foothill-South Toll Road is fundamentally flawed.”

The Surfrider Foundation has been at the forefront of this battle from the beginning. They, along with other groups opposing the Toll Road extension, will be running busses to transport supporters to and from the hearing.

This is truly a battle of epic proportions. It may very well set a precedent for years to come and for that reason is so important to become involved in. If you would like to check out more information you can check out savetrestles.org or surfrider.org.

The conditions and performances held on the final day of competition for the 6.0 Lowers Pro proved to be almost perfect, highlighting an overall successful debut onto the WQS scene for Nike 6.0. ASP Top 45 member Ben Bourgeois took out a loaded group of finalists on his way to victory in surf that could be classified as ‘almost’ perfect Trestles. Fred Patacchia, Joel Centeio, and Pat Gudauskas all came to battle it out with Bourgeois in the final but none were able to overcome the consistency and power displayed by the Carlsbad, Ca. resident. After the event, Bourgeois let it be known how excited he was to be taking home this huge win - “I’m stoked, it’s always good to get a win, and all those guys in the final are good friends of mine. My last win was in England, and Lowers is always a great event.”

Formerly known as the Body Glove Surfbout, the 6.0 Lowers Pro will move from a 4 star event as it was this year to a 6 star event in 2009. This is huge, in that the results have a significant meaning to competitors trying to qualify for the WCT. There is currently only one other 6 star event in North America. Adding another and holding it at the famed break of Trestles is a big step in helping to bring back relevance to the ASP North American leg of the WQS. Nike 6.0 is undoubtedly thrilled to be a part of that.

Congratulations to Ben Bourgeois- The 2008 winner of the 6.0 Lowers Pro!

nike 6.0wqstrestles