Semi Finalists descided at the Australian Surf Festival

Day four of the Australian Surf Festival resumed at Emerald Beach again today where semi-finalists were decided in all of the elder Surfmasters divisions. Former World Champion Tour surfer and 1998 Pipeline Master Jake Paterson (Yallingup, WA) picked up where he left off yesterday in the Over-35 Men, locking in a two-wave combination, which consisted of a 9.50 and a 9.40 (out of a possible ten points). The two-wave total is the highest of the event so far. As a result, Paterson has qualified for tomorrow’s semi-finals. Christian Cook’s (Queenscliff, NSW) impressive run through the Over-35 Men continued today when he threw down multiple technical backhand turns to be rewarded with a 17.95 heat total (out of a possible 20 points). The Northern Beaches surfer will now meet Jake Paterson, Trevor Gleave (Palm Beach, Qld) and Marcus Davidson (Shelly Beach, NSW) in tomorrow’s semi-finals. Other Over-35 Men round two winners included Mark Richardson (Palm Beach, Qld) and Dave Reardon-Smith (Bli Bli, Qld). Richardson also backed up his Over-35 win with a win in his Over-40 Mens round two heat. In the all Queensland affair, Richardson managed to post an impressive heat score totalling 16.85 (out of a possible 20 points) to move past Mick Hassett (Miami, Qld) and Chris Brooks (Currumbin, Qld). NSW Over-45 Mens title holder Paul Wayland (Newport, NSW) was able to take a convincing win in his round two heat posting a 16.75 heat total. The solid two-wave total left his fellow competitors chasing a combination of scores to take the lead. Consequently, Wayland booked his spot into tomorrow’s semi-finals. Other Over-45 Mens round two winners included John Schmidenberg (Emerald Beach, NSW), Glenn Pringle (Cronulla, NSW) and Mark Tickle (Newport, NSW). The FCS Performer Of The Day Awards were handed to Ged Cook (Warners Bay, NSW) for posting an impressive 16.00 heat score in his Over-50 Mens heat as well as Paul Wayland for his aforementioned performance in the Over-45 Men. Both surfers received an FCS legrope and tailpad for their efforts. The Australian Surfmasters Titles will wrap up tomorrow with the semi-finals and finals of the Over-35 Men, Over-40 Men, Over-45 Men, Over-50 Men and the Over-55 Men. The Australian Surf Festival at Coffs Harbour is set to attract more than 500 surfers from around the country, over the 18-day event period. A hotline – 0458 247 212 – is operating for the festival which will feature a recorded message updated at 6:45am each morning with the confirmed daily schedule and contest venue. Coffs Harbour is home to a number of great beach break options that work in a variety of wind and swell conditions. The main base for the event will be Park Beach which is located north east of the Coffs Harbour CBD. The event is fully mobile in the Coffs Harbour region with numerous beach break options which include Park Beach, Macauley’s Beach, Diggers Beach, Jetty Beach, Gallows, Arrawarra Beach, Mulloway Beach, Woolgoolga Beach, Emerald Beach and Sapphire Beach. Live results and daily news will be updated at www.australiansurffestival.com]]>