Zag waved goodbye to David van Zyl in the North Beach parking lot last Monday, hoping we’d see him again. Pipeline is a deadly wave and Davey was leaving the following day to go tame that beast for the first time at the Volcom Pipeline Pro – due to kick-off this coming Sunday, 26 January.
Davey van Zyl gets in some Backdoor practice at New Pier earlier this month.
It’s going to be the first of many webcasts in 2014 worth burning the midnight oil for. Not only for the chance to see how the polite New Pier charger will handle Pipe on his first attempt, but also for the fact that Kelly will be surfing too, as well as John John Florence.
Dale Staples is also in the heat draw, and he charged his way to the quarter finals in last year’s Volcom Pipe Pro. Ducky is yet to lose to JJF in a competitive match-up, so we’re looking forward to seeing if he can make it 4 for 4 at John John’s playground.
Rounding off the list of Saffas in the heat draw is Kommetjie’s Mikey February, who’ll be frothing at the thought of getting to surf Pipe with just three other guys out.
Dale was on a roll at last year’s Volcom Pipe Pro
Kelly and JJF are at the summit of the pile of surfers that the three amigos will need to out-surf in order to secure victory. The entry list also includes Damien Hobgood, who has just been relegated from the Dream Tour he spent the last 13 years competing on. He might just have some fire in his belly and that will be a delight to watch.
Speaking of delightful viewing, Mason Ho always entertains when he drops a new web clip. He is also the son (and nephew) of a former Pipe Master, so the art of charging the Banzai is in his genes. He should put on a good show.
Mason Ho knows the ins and outs of Pipeline.
Pancho Sullivan – remember him? For many of our readers that will seem like a rhetorical question, but some of the younger dudes might be saying, “who?”. It feels like a long time ago, though it was in fact 2007 when he was challenging Kelly for the win in the final at Trestles. It will be interesting to see how he goes.
Ezekial Lau was in with a shout for the Triple Crown this year. He will be looking to swat the SA trio aside on his way to victory. Pat Gudauskas will also be competing, as will 102 other international chargers that we have not yet mentioned.
It’s a case of Davey, Dale and M-Feb against the world, pretty much, from a Saffa perspective.
