Dane Reynolds and Mick Fanning jump into Round 3 at Quiksilver Pro France
American surfer Dane Reynolds and Mick Fanning from Australia made it through into the third round at the Quiksilver Pro France, the seventh of ten stops on the 2012 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour, after clinching victory
in their respective Round 1 heats that went down at La Graviere in Hossegor, France, on Friday, September 28.
Reynolds got the better of Australia’s Joel Parkinson and Bede Durbidge in the fifth heat to secure his place in the third round, sending both his rival into the relegation round in the process, forcing them to surf yet another heat before joining him later
in the competition.
The sixth heat saw Fanning claiming a convincing victory over Brazil’s Wiggolly Dantas and South Africa’s Travis Logie to clinch the Round 3 spot, relegating both his rivals in the second round.
With the best in the business gathered at La Graviere, the stage was all set for a series of thrilling competition. The clean three-to-five foot waves breaking at the primary event site were not going to make it easy to get big scores, but the men on the
board were more than capable of getting the most of whatever was on offer.
Squaring-off with Parkinson and Durbidge in the fifth heat, Reynolds had his work cut out. However, he managed to hold his nerves and navigate his way through the demanding conditions to find a 4.33 and 6.33-point ride, thus finishing with a winning heat-total
of 10.66 points.
Parkinson had been in great touch during the event at Lower Trestles, but seemed to have a bit of trouble searching for that form during his opening heat at La Graviere, finishing with a heat-total of 9.90 points after scoring a 5.33 and 4.57 off his best-two
waves.
Durbidge finished third with a heat-total of 5.40 points, which included a 4.17 and 1.23-point ride.
The next heat saw Fanning, former two-time ASP world Champion and current ASP World Championship Tour No.1, defeated Dantas and Logie after putting on a great show, getting his hands on a 7.83 and 6.67-point ride for a heat-total of 14.50 points.
“In these kind of conditions, one wave can change the heat and you just hope you’re on that one,” Fanning said. “When they come through, there are great, little barrels to be had. France always has very strong wildcards so you want to avoid them at all costs.
Winning in Round 1 is a start.”
Dantas finished in second place with a heat-total of 12.10 points, which included a 7.17 and 4.93-point ride, while Logie finished with a two-wave total of 8.56 points, which included a 3.23 and 5.33-point wave.
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