New England Lobsters Hold Off The Shrimps At Scion Core Cup By Jon Coen
TURF: 2nd
Annual Scion Core Cup Presented By Island Surf & Sport; 2nd Beach, Newport,
RI; October 25th, 2009
ENERGY: The
Core Cup was “on call” — sort of. The contest waits for the best weekend
swell of the fall, but Event Director Skip Winter chose to forgo the
ever-changing double nor’easter mid-month and wait for a standard south swell.
With high performance head-high to a foot overhead lefts coming off the rocks (no
easy feat considering the hyper tide changes at these latitudes) and offshore
winds blowing all day, it certainly worked out. The beautiful Sunday also
topped out at 62 degrees, allowing droves of Newport folk to watch a surf
contest instead of spending their weekend leaf peeping. Not quite girls in
bikinis, but cute New England lasses in sweaters aren’t bad by any stretch.
FIRST TIME AT FIGHT CLUB: Rip Curl and O’Neill. Only in New England is rubber
so important that two major wetsuit sponsors support one contest.
SLIDE: There’s
plenty of schralping going on in the Northeast that doesn’t require a lift
ticket. With wetsuit advancements, the talent, industry, and general awareness
of surfing in this region of the country has grown exponentially in the past
few years. The Core Cup also lets those little pockets of surfers who rarely
mingle get together to settle things for one day. This contest is like a
trawling net, picking up the new talent of New England shrimps. But in the end,
the old lobsters proved they still have what it takes.
Early rounds saw that new
crop come out strong — guys like Mass murderer (and October 2009 ESM Who Da Guy) Dan Hassett, New Hampster
Casey Lockwood, and last year’s Core Cup winner Sam Boardman. Lockwood nailed
“Most Radical Move” with an on-rail blast to fin release, but the young bucks
were halted in the semis as the men navigated to the final.
Three of the four finalists
were over 30 — Adam Lauro and Dillon Murphy of Cape Cod, 34 and 31 years
old respectively, and 39-year-old Brian Sargent — and sounded more like a
Boston bowling team roster than a surf contest final. They faced lone young gun
Ryan Webb, a fresh 18-year-old up-and-comer out of Nantucket. Lauro took first
in each of his heats; in the semifinal, the barefoot freak advanced on a pair
of backside floaters and no less than five hits. In the final, he managed a
four-hit left and a little air for the highest wave score (24.2 out of 30) and
a Rip Curl wetsuit. He added on a long point-laden right for the highest heat
total (45.6 out of 60) and a custom Shawn “Vec” Vecchione surfboard.
THE PAIN: The
Northeast is known for its academic institutions. As well as being an
accomplice to Rhode Island godfather Sid Abruzzi, John McGuirl is working
toward his Masters in Education with an emphasis on Asian history at the
University of Rhode Island. A very talented surfer, McGuirl has chosen rigorous
academics instead of pursuing a competitive career. At times, John’s debating U.S.
post-war occupational policy in the East instead of chasing swell, and consequently,
he missed the finals in his hometown by a mere slot.
THE MAN: Cape
Cod landscaper and 2009 Scion Core Cup champion Adam Lauro — he can
decimate a lip or rid your yard of invasive species. It’s been a rough few
weeks in the Lauro household, though. His girlfriend, Mercy Reed, a former ESM Who Da Girl (Vol.15, #116), was
involved in a dangerous car crash earlier this month. Though her jaw is still
wired shut, Reed should be back in the lineup this spring. But with limited
insurance and one income, things are a little tight economically. Lauro’s
$1,400 win gives them some room to breathe.
YOU DO NOT TALK ABOUT FIGHT CLUB: “I went to bed the night before just thinking, ‘Oh
boy, what’s it going to give us tomorrow?’ The stress level of an on-call event
is just through the roof.” –Link Marketing head honcho/ Core Cup Event
Director Skip Winter
“We all have our crews, but
everyone stays within those little ecosystems. There were so many surfers
without stickers in this contest, and guys ripping in my heat that I’d never
heard of. And I consider myself to be pretty aware of the surf scenes in New
England.” –Most Radical Move winner/ New Hampshire loc’dog Casey Lockwood, stoked
on the Core Cup turnout
“The locals were really
cool. Newport is a big city and I thought everyone would be really bummed that
we took over their beach on a rare warm, sunny afternoon in October. But they
came down and were into it.” –Reigning champ of New England, Adam Lauro
FINAL RESULTS OF THE 2ND ANNUAL SCION CORE CUP
PRESENTED BY ISLAND SURF & SPORT
1. Adam Lauro, $1400
2. Dillon Murphy, $1150
3. Brian Sargent, $900
4. Ryan Webb, $500
5. John McGuirl, $400
6. Dan Hassett, $300
7. Sam Boardman, $250
8. Casey Lockwood, $200
MOST RADICAL MOVE Casey
Lockwood, O'Neill wetsuit
HIGHEST WAVE SCORE Adam
Lauro, 24.2 out of 30, Rip Curl wetsuit
HIGHEST HEAT SCORE Adam
Lauro, 45.6 out of 60, Shawn “Vec” Vecchione custom surfboard
Sweetwater Leaves It Up To The Grom At Oakley Surf Shop Challenge Mid-Atlantic Regional Qualifier; “Uncle” Andrew Gesler Drives Heritage Win Home In Northeast
By Matt Pruett and Nick McGregor;
Photos by Matt Lusk
