And so it begins.  I predict 2002 will go down as the first year that a new generation of skimboarders rose up and truly challenged the establishment.  For the first time in a decade someone with a last name other than Bryan won the Victoria World Championships.  And that’s just the most visible evidence.  Throughout the competition there were young riders ripping left and right.  Brandon Sears skimmed phenomenally throughout the competition also beating Bill in the quarterfinals (although just barely) and ultimately winding up with a well deserved fourth place.  Don’t get me wrong, Bill still clearly dominates the water which was very evident in his semi-final heat and some thought in the finals as well.  Him and George are still clearly on top.  They just have a little more competition up ahead.  These kids are only going to get better.  It will be a fun show to watch.

A solid south swell pounded Laguna for the week prior to the competition.  Riders from all over the world free skimmed some great conditions as the swell peaked late in the week.  The swell slowly tapered off throughout the weekend resulting in solid skimmable waves, but nothing too extraordinary.  As usual, the tide greatly affected the conditions.  The competition was fierce right from the start with stacked heats all the way through the prelims.  Many notables were discarded in every round.  While shooting a quarterfinal heat with Brad Evers, Paulo Prietto, Mike Stanaland and George Bryan I remember thinking that it was one of the best skimmed heats I had ever seen.  Everyone was absolutely killing it.  And that was just the quarters.  The semis and finals were equally intense.  The pros were done by noon on Sunday and all that was left to do was to wait for the final results at the end of the day.  Few suspected that Bill’s winning streak would be broken, but the scorecards don’t lie and a shocked Mike Stanaland gracefully fulfilled a childhood dream.  I couldn’t be happier for him.

Final Results:

1. Mike Stanaland
2. Bill Bryan
3. George Bryan
4. Brandon Sears
5. Grady Archbold
6. Jus Martel
7. Brad Evers
8. Paulo Prietto
9. Erik Christensen
10. Kyle Olson

Best Barrel:  Tyler Stanaland*
Best Maneuver:  Jesse Westgaard
Best Wipeout:  Hiroko Ishida

The Martin Prietto Memorial Sportsmanship Award was awarded to Conley Ware.

* The first time this has been won by an amateur competitor.

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