GFH Rider, Nat Young, Dominates NSSA Championships at Trestles
Courtesy of the Santa Cruz Sentinel - Santa Cruz supergrom Nat Young spent more time in the water during the past week than most of us will log all summer.
And unlike most of us, he actually has something to show for it. Something big.
Young surfed his way to the finals of three separate divisions at the 2008 National Scholastic Surfing Association National Championships at Lower Trestles in Southern California this week. He topped off the incredible run by winning the coveted Open Men's division, generally considered the most competitive division of Nationals, and the grand finale of the week-long competition.
According to the NSSA website, Young is the first-ever surfer from Northern California to win the Open Men's event at Nationals [Eastsider Omar Etcheverry won an NSSA Explorer Nationals title at age 13 back in the day]. He joins an elite group of former-winners, including eight-time world champion Kelly Slater, three-time world champ Andy Irons, and his personal hero, fellow-goofyfooter Bobby Martinez.
Young, the top seed from the Northwest Conference, also made the finals of the Explorer Junior and Explorer Men events. But it was the Open Men's final that was the real nail-biter.
Young scored a 9.5 on his first wave of the final after linking an endless string of slashing carves off the lip on a long Trestles wall that rolled through in the opening minutes. He would later back it up with another long ride for an 8.0. His combined 17.5 heat score put Young in first place, ahead of Hawaiian Granger Larsen by just half a point, as the final horn sounded.
"A good wave came to me, so I went for it," Young said. "Go big or go home!"
Tanner Henrickson, also from Hawaii, finished third [14.25] and SoCal's Kolohe "Brother" Andino took fourth [13.00].
While he'll have to wait until the awards banquet -- tonight at the Laguna Cliffs Marriott in Laguna Beach -- to receive his trophy and for the result to be official, Young was acknowledged by everyone on the beach as the winner. "He made NorCal proud," said longtime Santa Cruz pro and event commentator Peter Mel. "Congratulations to Nat on a really, really good event."
Just a few hours after being carried off the beach on the shoulders of friends, amid a sea of spectators and media cameras, Young sat down talk to his hometown paper about his historic accomplishment and what's on tap for one of the hottest young surfers in the world today...
Q: I called earlier and your mom told me you were still out surfing after the contest. Aren't you tired?
A: Nope. Well, maybe a little. I didn't catch as many waves. But I surfed way more during the contest earlier this week. I'm not too tired.
Q: How does it feel to be in the same group as NSSA Nationals winners like Slater, Andy Irons and Bobby Martinez?
A: It's crazy! To make it that far and win such a big title ... Everybody in the contest was super good so it was that much more exciting. To be in the same sentence as Bobby is unbelievable. I really like the way he surfs backside. He grew up on righthand pointbreaks just like I did.
Q: Were you nervous out there?
A: I wasn't too nervous. I've never made a Nationals final before, so just to make it that far was an accomplishment. To win was just crazy I really wanted to win, but even if didn't I couldn't have been too bummed because I made three finals. To win is just icing on the cake.
Q: Have you ever competed in three separate divisions at one surf contest before?
A: Yeah, I do it almost every NSSA. I usually do at least two. This was pretty standard.
Q: Is this your first time at NSSA Nationals?
A: No, I've done it three other times. This was my first Nationals final though.
Q: How were the waves overall at Trestles this week?
A: The first few days were small and windy and choppy. Yesterday and today was some of the best it gets. It was glassy all morning with perfect rights and lefts. The afternoon was a little choppy, but if you picked the right one you got a really long ride. Lowers is super fun because you get a good right and a left, so you get to practice both ways.
Q: Who were some of the best surfers you went up against at this year's Nationals?
A: Granger [Larsen] pretty much got 8s and 9s every heat. He was the top dog the whole event. Granger won in two divisions this year. [The final] was the only time I've ever beat him. Kolohe [Andino] was surfing really good too. Kolohe and I are really good friends. They both surfed super well the whole event.
Q: Who did you think was going to win?
A: Early on I wasn't surfing that good. I was kinda sloppy. I would do two good turns and then fall. But I started putting waves together and getting bigger scores later on, and gaining confidence. Then in the final I got that 9.5, and I had a good feeling.
Q: What's up next for you?
A: Well the Nike Pro Junior [Nike Pier Pressure] starts tomorrow in Huntington Beach. I surf in that on Monday. And a couple days later I'm going up to Oregon for a Nike trip with all the other team riders. It's not really for surfing. We get to do all different sports like wakeboard, skateboard and motocross. We also get to design shoes.
Q: Wow, will we be seeing any "Air Nats" at Foot Locker soon?
A: Well, they break us up into teams and the team that designs the best shoe, they'll actually make the shoe, so maybe.
