The 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships faced challenging conditions and a shortened day

Piha, New Zealand - Friday, January 22 - The 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships faced some challenging conditions in its second day.  A strong and steady onshore wind, combined with an increasing swell, created a washing machine sea that was relentless and unforgiving.   It was all about being in the right place at the right time today; and there were lots of missed opportunities amidst the endlessly shifting peaks.  The conditions were so adverse that only one division ran during the shortened day.  The Under 18 Boys took to the water late in the morning.  And two of the Americans, Conner Coffin and Andrew Doheny, were sent to the repercharge while the other two, Evan Geiselman and Evan Thompson, won their heats and continued their advancement through the qualifying rounds.

In an anxiety-filled moment during the last heat of the day, Evan Thompson paddled furiously in toward the beach prior to the heat's finish.  The USA crew on the sand figured he had broken his board and ran to the waters edge with a spare.  But that wasn't the case... Thompson yelled to his team mates that he saw a shark in the water.  But Thompson's panic was short lived as he then turned quickly, paddled back out, to got the score he needed to win the heat.

"We had a tough go today in a couple of the heats," said Ian Cairns, Head Coach of the PacSun USA Surf Team. "But all teams have the same conditions to deal with. We just have to work a bit harder to get the job done."