On Dawn Patrol for Day 4 of the Rip Curl Pro and Rip Curl Women's Pro Bells Beach waiting period, Carissa Moore (HAW) joins the WSL desk, the Top 17 get social and Championship Tour Commissioner Kieren Perrow discusses the decision to call off the competition for the day.
Amid blustery conditions, he told WSL host Todd Kline, "We've got some swell, and the good sign is that swell is already building and showing on the buoys. So we'll come back tomorrow and reassess. We're pretty confident that the next two days the swell's going to build, the conditions are going to be great, we'll have westerly winds and we'll be running heats Sunday and Monday."
Perrow also pulled the curtain back on how each day's call is made.
"We're fortunate to have a great team here. our surfing director is Adam Robertson, former runner-up here at Bells Beach and has a lot of local knowledge. Then we have Jessi Miley-Dyer, women's commissioner, myself, along with Richie Porta, our head judge.
"We have a conversation about what it's looking like right at the time, we look into the detailed forecast that Surfline provides us and have a conversation about what we're expecting for the day, what we're looking at for the rest of the window, and manage those expectations and make a decision.
And yet, added Perrow, "It's not exact science, either. Sometimes you make the call and it goes the wrong way."
Soak up the Surfline forecast for Bells:
SUNDAY 5th: SW groundswell possibly builds further.
Swell/Surf: Surf in the 4-5' range on the face (chest-head high). Lully, but fairly fun on the sets.
Wind/Weather: Light W/WNW in the morning, trending to light to moderate onshore SW/SSW in the afternoon and evening 8-13kts.
MONDAY 6th: SW groundswell potentially continues.
Swell/Surf: Continued surf in the 4-6' range on the face (chest-head high+). On the lully side, but decent size when the sets show.
Wind/Weather: Light W in the morning, trending WSW/SW in the afternoon. Stay tuned.
TUESDAY 7th: SW groundswell potentially continues. Possible increase in S/SW windswell.
Swell/Surf: The groundswell should continue to set up surf in the 4-6'+ range on the face. Local SW windswell may increase through the day with surf that is roughly similar to what we saw Thursday afternoon (couple feet+ overhead). Stay tuned.
Wind/Weather: Potential for building and breezy SSW wind. Stay tuned.*
Tune in Sunday at 7:00 local time Sunday for the next call and more surfing action. Take the waves on the go with the new WSL app.
Still need more?:
Wave to Wave Heat Recaps: Rip Curl Pro,
Rip Curl Women's Pro
Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach: Heat Analyzer
Rip Curl Women's Pro Bells Beach: Heat Analyzer
Full Results: Rip Curl Pro, Rip Curl Women's Pro