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In firing surf at Supertubes in J-Bay, Dale Staples won the 2017 edition of the JBU Supertrial by powering through some of the biggest and deepest barrels of the day. Staples was was on form from the start, picking up all the best waves on his route to the final.
The invited surfers hit the perfect lineup, with consistent six-foot waves pouring through. Former Championship Tour surfer Greg Emslie was a surprise elimination from round one, after leading for most of the heat. Greg caught a particularly long wave, and after his final turn and kicking out, found himself facing a huge set in front of the reef.
Former event champion, Dylan Lightfoot and defending champion Steven Sawyer did not disappoint, both winning their first round heats. Dale Staples shone during the first semifinal and with the swell still rising, Staples found some deep barrels, including a 10-point barrel ride to emerge with a near-perfect heat score of 19.93 out of a possible 20.
Staples continued his form all the way through to the final, which turned into a barrel frenzy as Supertubes, dubbed one of the best waves in the world. Staples jumped into the lead early on in the final with one incredible double tube ride, followed by a second high scoring ride, and his lead was unassailable from then on.
Michael February has been having an excellent season but couldn’t find the good ones out there and finished in 4th place. Matt McGillivray had been looking good all event, but he couldn’t match Staples incredible tube riding. Former event champion, a fit and determined Dylan Lightfoot, found some of the biggest waves of the final, but was unable to string together enough combination moves to get close to Staples, who won the final with a comfortable lead.
JBU Supertrial Final Results:
1st Dale Staples
2nd Dylan Lightfoot.
3rd Matt McGillivray
4th Mikey February
Photos by Alan van Gysen.
