With seemingly endless swell bombarding the North Shore and the world's best surfers posted up for the season, the digital edition of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing has gotten off to an incredible start. From John John Florence to Stephanie Gilmore carving Sunset, there's a lot of epic footage to feast on.
The window for new clips is open through January 19, and there's still plenty of time left to stack clips, but in the early days of this year's digital Triple Crown, here's a look at some of our favorite entries so far:
John John Drops The Mic
By now it's the Haleiwa bomb seen around the world. The first turn alone has even the best surfers scratching their heads. Then backing it up with a long barrel and icing the cake, the combination of it all has caused a lot of "best waves ever ridden at Haleiwa" chatter. The only real question that remains is how on Earth it didn't score a perfect 30? (It comes in at 29.4.)
Then there's his back-up wave. Less size, more polish as John continues his Hawaiian winter season tear. Having claimed the Pipe Masters and reclaimed the Jeep Leader's Jersey, his freesurfing at pumping at Haleiwa again has raised surfing's bar. Having won the (analog) Vans Triple Crown three times already, it is going to take someone, or something, really special to stop him from claiming the inaugural digital version. Check out the entry here.
Steph Gilmore's Impeccable Rail Work
It's not big, scary Haleiwa, but negotiating the bowl is always tricky. In this clip we find the seven-time World Champ ripping a six-footer all the way through to the end. The timing, style and polish are one thing, but Steph's first turn is just raw power. She's always had an affinity for Hawaiian surf, and at a spot like Haleiwa she's able to really put her rail into it. Scores for this wave have yet to drop. And then there's her fluid mastery of Sunset Point in another entry (see below), which probably should be taught in every surf school around the planet.
Nathan Florence's Backdoor Bomb
Nathan Florence has been one of the busiest Vans Triple Crown entrants, logging multiple waves at all three venues. This frothy, boiling Backdoor Pipe pit was however easily his best so far scoring a 24.5 and putting him in touch with his elder brother.
Bronte Macaulay's Two-Turn Combo
With the women getting their first start in the Vans Triple Crown in a decade, Bronte Macaulay has wasted no time in staking her claim. The Western Australian grew up in waves of size and power similar to Oahu, and in addition to this two-turn combo at Haleiwa, she's awaiting scores for solid efforts at Sunset too.
Koa Rothman Does His Thing At Pipe
Growing up at the Pipeline, Koa Rothman packs barrels there better than just about everyone. Free to roam the lineup and pick and choose his waves without worrying about how much time is left in the heat or who has priority, Rothman's true talent shines through in this clip. He's posted a 25.7 score for the effort, now he's going to have to go out and find himself a proper backup.
To see all the latest and greatest entries go to VansTripleCrownOfSurfing.com.
Early Entries For The Digital Vans Triple Crown Are In And They're Amazing
Ben Mondy
With seemingly endless swell bombarding the North Shore and the world's best surfers posted up for the season, the digital edition of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing has gotten off to an incredible start. From John John Florence to Stephanie Gilmore carving Sunset, there's a lot of epic footage to feast on.
The window for new clips is open through January 19, and there's still plenty of time left to stack clips, but in the early days of this year's digital Triple Crown, here's a look at some of our favorite entries so far:
John John Drops The Mic
By now it's the Haleiwa bomb seen around the world. The first turn alone has even the best surfers scratching their heads. Then backing it up with a long barrel and icing the cake, the combination of it all has caused a lot of "best waves ever ridden at Haleiwa" chatter. The only real question that remains is how on Earth it didn't score a perfect 30? (It comes in at 29.4.)
Then there's his back-up wave. Less size, more polish as John continues his Hawaiian winter season tear. Having claimed the Pipe Masters and reclaimed the Jeep Leader's Jersey, his freesurfing at pumping at Haleiwa again has raised surfing's bar. Having won the (analog) Vans Triple Crown three times already, it is going to take someone, or something, really special to stop him from claiming the inaugural digital version. Check out the entry here.
Steph Gilmore's Impeccable Rail Work
It's not big, scary Haleiwa, but negotiating the bowl is always tricky. In this clip we find the seven-time World Champ ripping a six-footer all the way through to the end. The timing, style and polish are one thing, but Steph's first turn is just raw power. She's always had an affinity for Hawaiian surf, and at a spot like Haleiwa she's able to really put her rail into it. Scores for this wave have yet to drop. And then there's her fluid mastery of Sunset Point in another entry (see below), which probably should be taught in every surf school around the planet.
Nathan Florence's Backdoor Bomb
Nathan Florence has been one of the busiest Vans Triple Crown entrants, logging multiple waves at all three venues. This frothy, boiling Backdoor Pipe pit was however easily his best so far scoring a 24.5 and putting him in touch with his elder brother.
Bronte Macaulay's Two-Turn Combo
With the women getting their first start in the Vans Triple Crown in a decade, Bronte Macaulay has wasted no time in staking her claim. The Western Australian grew up in waves of size and power similar to Oahu, and in addition to this two-turn combo at Haleiwa, she's awaiting scores for solid efforts at Sunset too.
Koa Rothman Does His Thing At Pipe
Growing up at the Pipeline, Koa Rothman packs barrels there better than just about everyone. Free to roam the lineup and pick and choose his waves without worrying about how much time is left in the heat or who has priority, Rothman's true talent shines through in this clip. He's posted a 25.7 score for the effort, now he's going to have to go out and find himself a proper backup.
To see all the latest and greatest entries go to VansTripleCrownOfSurfing.com.
Koa Rothman
The early season on the North Shore has arrived as the first swells have started to make waves on the infamous Banzai Reef.
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Albee Layer, Koa Rothman and Kai Lenny took home the top scoring waves today at Pe'ahi.
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