Josh Kerr quitting the WCT, "it's holding me back"

You all remember that insane rail grab flip thingy that Josh Kerr pulled off in the final at the Gold coast Quiksilver pro against Mick Fanning. I remember watching that final thinking damn Mick is in form, and when he had Kerr combo'd was like there is no way in hell anything Kerr does is going to pull this out of the bag for him, and I was right. But then he pulled that move, probably the sickest most innovative move I have seen done on the tour, and I was like who cares if fanning wins that was SICK!!!!

Final highlights of the Gold Coast Quiksilver pro watch for that flip!!

From then on I watched Kerr a whole bunch more, thinking man if this guy can keep linking the base moves like snaps, floaters etc and throw in moves like that, no-one on the tour will have a hope. I saw the future of pro surfing at that moment and it looked like fun, much in the way people must have felt watching Kelly bust the fins out back in the early 90's. So how sad it is when you hear that Kerr has decided to pack the tour in and focus on the free surfing, I love to watch the tour online, and am always stoked when I see a surfer not play it safe, but I guess this move away from the tour will mean that we can expect to see some crazy new surfing from Kerr over the next few years.

The tour however will be under going a huge changing of the guard in 08' with the departure of Occy, without a doubt one of the sports most loved and iconic surfers, but the arrival of Dane Reynolds, who we all saw blow up the pack in trestles this year. A new world champion, and an ever hungrier pack chasing the crown, 08' is looking to be one hell of a battle, lets just hope that all the events get their webcasts up to scratch, and ol' huey kicks in with some epic surf!

Below is the story I read about Kerr leaving the tour

Free-spirited Gold Coast rookie Josh Kerr is to quit surfing's world tour next year, believing it's holding him back.

A former world aerial surfing champion, Kerr was expected to make a big impact in his first season on the World Championship Tour, especially after debuting with a memorable fifth place on his home break of Snapper Rocks.

But he's ranked 35th in the standings heading into the season finale at Pipeline in Hawaii this week and says it'll be his last event even if he climbs into the top 26 to re-qualify for the 2008 season.

Kerr is sick of having to temper his progressive aerial style in an effort to maximise points from the judges and wants to go back to the scene which helped land his million dollar sponsorship deal with surfing clothing company Rusty.

"I'm not going to do the tour next year anyway, even if I re-qualify," Kerr told FoxSports News.

"It's not my thing right now. I'm only 23 and I want to go and do some free surfing and make some videos and do some photo shoots.

"I feel like I'm training right now to surf safer and that's just not who I am.

"I want to be able to do what I want and be able to go out there in a heat and execute the same thing."

In the season-opening round on the Gold Coast, Kerr reached the quarter-finals before bowing out to now world champion Mick Fanning in what proved the highest scoring heat of the year (19.53 to 19.10) as both surfers blazed to near-perfect scores.

Kerr says he's now over the tour grind, but won't rule out a Mark Occhilupo-like comeback down the track.

"I feel like I'm not ready and not focussed enough on the tour to give it a good shot just yet," said Kerr.

"I'm going to take a few years off.

"If I win a world title I want to do it the way I want to surf it."

Occhilupo, who won his 1999 world title after a sabbatical from the sport, has backed Kerr to return better from a break.

"A break might be a good thing, I took one and there's no reason why other guys should not," said Occy.

World No.4 Joel Parkinson believes Kerr is making the right choice by stepping away from the competition scene.

"Kerry is not someone you can tie down, he just needs to let loose," said Parkinson.

"Whatever lets him do that is the right thing I reckon."

However world No.2 Taj Burrow disagrees, saying next year's world tour is going to take progressive surfing to the next level with highly-touted youngsters such as American Dane Reynolds and South African Jordy Smith set to join the tour.

"Next year on tour is going to be out of control, there will be some wild surfing going down," said Burrow.

"(But) I know the itch he feels. I would love to just take on the free surfing and just hunt down the best waves in the world and just have fun."

Lay-days were called for the final events of both the men's and women's tours in Hawaii because of small surf.

There is only one more day of action needed to complete the women's Billabong Pro Maui, with Australia's Stephanie Gilmore and former champion Sofia Mulanovich facing off for the world title.

Gilmore and Peruvian Mulanovich are both into the third round, with the 19-year-old rookie Aussie needing to progress further than her rival to claim the world title.

The men's Billabong Pipeline Masters is yet to begin.

Laird saves Lickle from huge 80ft wipeout naked

WAILUKU, Maui — Ever in search of the 100-foot wave, extreme surfing star Laird Hamilton came to the aid of a fellow surfer off Maui.

Brett Lickle, who was rescued by Hamilton, his dramatic rescue "the most intense thing I've been through."

Lickle said Hamilton stripped naked so he could tie his surf trunks into a tourniquet after Lickle suffered a huge gash on his leg in a wipeout on what he said was an 80-foot ocean wave.
Lickle, 47, (pictured below)

was recovering Wednesday at home in Haiku.
In the incident Monday at a tow-in surf spot called Outer Spreks, Lickle says he was cut by the fin of a board on the Honda AquaTrax watercraft he and Hamilton had used to get to the spot where the waves were breaking. He says he was trying to stay ahead of the monster wave, but it crashed down on him.

Hamilton is among extreme surfers who have pioneered in the riding of superwaves that ordinary surfers don't tackle. He and fellow big-waver Dave Kalama premiered a short film, "All Aboard the Crazy Train," on tow-in surfing in 2005, warning that it wasn't a sport for the inexperienced. Hamilton also was among surfers performing in feature-length films highlighting the sport, "Step Into Liquid" and "Riding Giants."

The outer reef off Spreckelsville is a big challenge for big-wave surfers.

"If ever you're going to find a 100-footer, it's there," said Lickle.
He and Hamilton had surfed the area in the morning and then returned in the afternoon when the accident occurred. He said only one other tow-in team was on the waves at the time.

Lickle said he was trying to outrun the looming water wall in the watercraft when it caught him. Hamilton was in tow.

"I'm in big trouble," he said he told himself.

After the wave crashed down on them, he reunited with Hamilton about three quarters of a mile offshore.



One fear, Lickle said, was the blood from his wound would attract tiger sharks that hover around the Maui shoreline.

He said that after tying the tourniquet, Hamilton swam "like a bat out of hell" for about a half mile to recover the watercraft.

Surfers said ocean conditions on Monday created waves of historic size.

"There were the biggest waves that any of us have seen," said Buzzy Kerbox, another Maui big-wave surfer who saw the Outer Spreks waves but chose to take on another surf spot.

What a great surf game show, super hot models riding surfboards!

Just found this vid on Youtube and knew I needed to share this with my fellow surfers!

My euro lingo isn't so good, but I think it is in Italy, this smoking hot girl has to see how long she can keep her balance on a mechanical surfboard, I am still a sucker for a girl in daisy duke riding a bull after shooting back a tequila or 2, but this is also pretty damn hot!

*note keep an eye out for the catty look the other smoking hot contestant is giving her, after it is obvious she has got the hang of hanging ten on that mean red surfboard looking thingy! Surf & hot girls what else do we need?

A great big wave charger is lost at Ghost trees!

Peter Davi, a renouned big wave rider died Tuesday at heavy break known as Ghost Trees, a Monterey County spot known for its fast-moving 20-foot monsters.
Peter Davi of Monterey lost his board and was attempting to swim to shore, but never made it, according to onlookers. Friends of the 45-year-old Davi lost sight of him and later found him floating in the water unconscious.
Monterey County Sheriff's Sgt. Dennis English said a department search and rescue team responded to a report of a surfer in distress, but Davi was dead by the time the team got to Pebble Beach.

"It's just extremely high surf. Waves are crashing against the rocks, kind of dangerous," he said. "It's primo conditions for surfers."
According to the Mavericks big wave surfing contest Web site, Davi was one of the early pack of brave surfers to test themselves at Mavericks after word got around about its massive waves.

Jeff Clark, surfed Mavericks alone for 15 years before sharing his secret with close friends — including Davi. Clark described Davi as a "rambunctious big wave rider" together he and Davi had shared a bunch of surf trips and campaigned the huge surf at Mavericks each winter.

(Homer Henard and Adam Replogle, both from Santa Cruz, Calif., look on as CPR is performed on Peter Davi, who drowned while surfing in Pebble Beach, Calif., Tuesday. Monterey County Herald photo by Vern Fisher via AP)

"He was one of the early guys that I was able to convince to come up and surf Mavericks with me. He was like blown away at how big a wave it was," Clark said.

Davi's death came just days before the waiting period was set to open for the big wave surf contest at Mavericks off the shore of Half Moon Bay, where equally large swells rolled in Tuesday.
The epic surf also attracted onlookers who had to be chased off cliffside property in exclusive Pebble Beach, English said. California Highway Patrol officers were called in to ticket motorists who flooded the scenic 17-mile Drive.
A high surf advisory was in place for the coastal Bay Area Tuesday, issued by the National 

Weather Service. And we all know how those repor

ts will get any surfer frothing, whether you are paddling out or just watching.
In Santa Cruz, lifeguards had to evacuate at least four surfers from the Mitchell's Cove surf spot after high tide rolled in.
Further north, the U.S. Coast Guard and the San Mateo Sheriff's Department searched for a fishing vessel with two people aboard off Pillar Point.

Clark spoke about the dangers of taking to the waves on a day when advisories were in effect and rough swells were the norm along the coast.

"The ocean is a place that really has no conscience. It's something you have to be prepared for. You live your life to the fullest, do the best you can and keep going," he said.

(A surfer looks over the covered body of Peter Davi at Stillwater Cove in Pebble Beach, 

Calif., Tuesday. Monterey County Herald photo by Vern Fisher via AP)