Day four of the 2006 Lost Energy Drink ISA World Surfing Games was greeted with conditions that waveriders dream about with warm water, sunny skies and head-high to overhead waves for the Open Repercharge Rounds 2 and 3, Bodyboard Men Repercharge 2 and Bodyboard Women divisions. Consistent barrels fired throughout the competition day resulting in a battle between all contenders to paddle for position, pull in deeper and execute combinations to win over their opponents.

Heat six of the Repercharge Round Two in the Men’s division saw Manuel Selman, 2005 Latin Pro Tour Junior Champion leader of Chile and Angelo Losano of Mexico taking consecutive barrels until the last moments of the heat when Selman defeated his opponent with a combined score of 13.84 over a Losano’s second place 13.77.

Following this charged heat, Maximiliano Siri of Argentina capitalized on one of the best sets of the day, taking first with a 12.17 knocking out Sebastian Alarcon of Peru.

After catching only three waves, Jordy Smith of South Africa took first over Sebastian Santos from Ecuador, the 2002 Junior World Champ with a combined score of 14.17. Smith posted an 8.17 on his third wave when he disappeared into a left-handed barrel and broke through the whitewash to cheers from the beach.

“I misjudged time and lucky enough the waves are consistent today,” said Smith of his delay. “It was nothing serious. I just needed 2 good waves and I got a 6.6 on one and then a big barrel to earn that last 8.17,” he said.

In Heat 4, Round 3 of the Open Repercharge, Great Britain surfer Mark Harris led the pack with his first wave. Harris was then charged with an interference call when he dropped in on New Zealand competitor A.J. Matthews, knocking him to fourth position with a 5.83 and leaving Mathews with a 13.40.

Huntington Beach’s Pipeline-like conditions greatly benefited the bodyboard competitors today as the barrels became more and more hallow throughout the morning. The last few moments of Heat 4 of the Men’s Qualifying Round 2 showcased a near collision with Tahiti and Australia both speeding down the line narrowly missing each other. Australia and Mexico moved through to the next round.

In Heat 7 of Qualifying Round 2, it was a neck-to-neck match between all of the competitors, but it was Amaury Lavemhe of France who commanded the lead from Spain’s Alvaro Padron in the last few moments of the heat. Lavemhe earned the day’s highest combined score of 17.17 with a single wave score of a 9.23 after a huge air reverse spin that launched him several feet in the air into a five foot barrel.

“These are the best conditions I have seen since I arrived. I was happy to get a good set and two strong waves with a big ARS. Some boarders get a lot of waves but don’t get a good score,” Lavemhe said of his heat.

South African bodyboarder Wesley Fischer earned the highest single wave score of a 9.93 in Heat 1 of the Bodyboard Men’s Repercharge 2 when he dropped six feet into a wave and pulled into a long left-handed tube. As his country cheered from the shore, an interference was called when Fischer failed to pull out of Great Britain opponent Damien Prisk’s wave. Fischer still managed to win his heat with a combined score of 13.35.

Other notable competitors included Japan’s Hayato Enokido who dominated his heat with his stylized riding and posting 11.73 for first.

Women’s Body boarding also displayed huge barrel rolls, aerials and spins. In Heat 1 Qualifying Round 2, Brazilian competitor Neymara Carvalho led the heat with a score of a 5.83 when she dropped into a wave and snapped off the top into an inverted air spin. Venezuelan bodyboarder Ruth Parra followed Carvalho’s performance with a hook snap, which put her not far behind first position. In the last 30 seconds of the heat, Heloise. Bourroux grabbed another wave for the first place position with a 13.84. Moe Watanabe of the Japan team did not disappoint as well, leading Heat 2 with a 11.93.

Check out the action at: www.isasurf.org or www.surfingamerica.org/isa.