Blake Thornton wins O’Neill Cold Water Classic
More like this...
24-year-old from Maroubra, Sydney surfs perfect final at Kalk Bay, Cape Town.
Blake Thornton battled against epic conditions and local Royden Bryson to claim victory and a replica shark jaw trophy at the O'Neill Cold Water Classic South Africa.
"I am so excited to win this," said Blake. "Royden fell on his wave at the end. I think maybe the cold was getting to us. I am sorry for him, but so glad I won."
After heavy storms that had postponed the event the day before, conditions came together perfectly on the left-hand reefbreak of Kalk Bay with offshore winds and a six-foot swell.
The shock of the day was the early departure of WQS Tour star and event ambassador, Jordy Smith who was knocked out by Glenn Hall in the round of 16.
But the wave of the day came from Blake Thornton who pulled into an awesome barrel to score a 9.6 - the highest wave score of the competition.
"I was cold all day," said Blake. "I think it was the adrenaline that kept me going. I cannot wait for a hot shower and a few beers. But that's part of the whole series - battling the elements."
But it's not going to get any warmer. The next stop on the Cold Water Classic Series is Vancouver Island, Canada in October.
Subscribe to HUCK for six issues
Only £20 (UK) / £43 (EU) / £58 (Rest of the World).
Blake Thornton wins O’Neill Cold Water Classic (text) by HUCK HQ is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Add Your Comment...
Please note: Your comment may be held in moderation for approval by an administrator to prevent spamming. This usually doesn't take long, please be patient.