What better way to amp up for a heat than a little Black Sabbath on Guitar Hero? What better way to rejuvenate after an exhausting paddle battle than an extra large shaved ice and fresh BBQ fish tacos? What beats a post heat massage?
The Rusty Groms got to enjoy the V.I.P. treatment. Jake Halstead, Keto Burns, Tayler Brothers, Mikey Ciarmella, Corey Howell, and Ian Garcia climbed the ranks of the NSSA to earn a spot in the coveted Nationals competition for a chance to duke it out with the next crop of (soon to be) World Title contenders...
The NSSA Nationals are under way at the coveted Trestles Beach in Southern California and the most talented surfers from across the country are in town to compete for the championship...
Amongst the elite crowd of up and coming surfers are Rusty's very own Corey Howell, Mikey Ciarmella, Ian Garcia, and Tayler Brothers. Although, the surf was a bit inconsistent, the sets provided for clean rippable walls and the groms went off! Ian Garcia was a stand out, taking first place in his heat!
Although the morning's glassy conditions were eventually chopped up by a southerly afternoon breeze, hundreds of surfers competed in 23 divisions for a chance to surf in the NSSA National Championships in June in California.
"I was a little worried about waves on my way here," said NSSA Executive Director Janice Aragon, who drove a truck and trailer full of scaffolding and equipment from California last week. "So I couldn't believe Friday was the day this swell arrived. And once the wind died this morning, it was so clean. You don't see Sebastian Inlet like this very often."
Those glassy conditions gave contestants from Florida to Maine the opportunity to showcase their skills over four days.
Click here for the full photo gallery of the event!
Explorer Boys 1. Cam Richards
2. Pat Schmidt
3. Corey Howell
4. Noah Schweizer
5. Sam Duggan
6. Knox Harris
Explorer Juniors 1. Balaram Stack
2. Evan Thompson
3. Frank Roper
4. Fisher Heverly
5. Tayler Brothers
6. Peter Polanski
Explorer Men 1. Nick Rupp
2. Balaram Stack
3. Tayler Brothers
4. Frank Roper
5. Cole Richards
6. Kedren Ferrero
It was almost a picture-perfect day as thousands flocked to the beach to enjoy the finals of the 45th annual Ron Jon Easter Surf Festival on Sunday at the Cocoa Beach Pier. However, one crucial ingredient was missing -- waves.
After delaying the the Pro and Jr pro finals from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., it became apparent the conditions would not improve enough to be worthy of running the Ron Jon Surf Shop $5,000 Men's Pro/Am .
"The waves were just not good enough to contest these finals and judge them fairly," said tournament co-organizer Dick Catri. "So we decided to split the prize money between 6 surfers," 2 of which were Rusty team riders Corey Howell and Tayler Brothers who both made the Pro and Jr Pro finals.
Jake Halstead
Tayler Brothers
