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Partly Cloudy Stack weighs in on Quiksilver Pro N.Y. experience
Just hours after the Quiksilver Pro N.Y. finals ended last Friday — and Australia’s Owen Wright won in a stunning upset over 10-time ASP champion Kelly Slater — local pro surfer Balaram Stack reflected on his experience competing in the event during an autograph signing at Quiksilver’s new retail space in Oceanside.
With “bring it back next year” shouted by the crowd during the award ceremony on National Boulevard, it was clear that residents are already hoping that the ASP World Tour makes a return to Long Beach next year.
Stack spoke during the grand opening of the Quiksilver store, owned by Unsound surf shop’s Mike Nelson and Dave Juan. Both are Long Beach residents who sponsored the Quiksilver Pro N.Y. Trials, a competition that determined the event’s second wildcard — Asher Nolan — who went up against 34 of the world’s best surfers on the tour.
Stack, who qualified as the first wildcard contestant for the competition in July, was eliminated during the second round, after competing against top seeds and formidable competitors such as Slater and Mick Fanning. Still, Stack said that he was pleased with his overall experience, especially since it was his first major contest. “It was cool just being out there with Kelly and Mick, and all those guys,” Stack said. “It was definitely an experience.”
From the minute that the ASP World Tour’s first stop in New York was announced earlier this year — with its unprecedented $1 million prize purse — there was concern as to whether Long Beach would produce waves worthy of such a competition.
And yet the waves didn’t disappoint — the swells brought in by Hurricane Katia progressively improved over four consecutive days.
“It was great, I mean you couldn’t really have any better circumstances to get this good of waves and this good of weather,” Stack said. “Yeah, they got pretty lucky. People saw how good the waves could get.”
Stack added that the event benefited both the surf community and local businesses, as thousands of spectators descended on Long Beach during the competition.
“All the businesses I’m sure are loving it, getting tons of business,” he said.
And while many residents debate whether the tour will return to Long Beach, Stack, who is sponsored by Quiksilver, said that he was confident that it would.
“I think they’re planning on having the [contest here the] next two years,” he said, “they already have it planned out, so hopefully it goes as well as this one.”
Check out the Herald's video interview with Stack, produced by Roger Gengo:
