¹As the old saying goes; something funny happened to me on the way to....the airport.
The airport ?
Well in the case of Lucas Owston, that's exactly how it went.
Week two of the Sundiego Board Shops Am Slam Summer Series started without Owston's name on the draw sheet.
"My family and I were going to Mexico, so I did not sign up for the event," Owston recalled. " While on the way to the airport, the person we hired to watch our dogs couldn’t anymore. So, I decided to show up as an alternate."
It turned out to be a great thing for the 17-year-old ripper from Oceanside.
Owston hung out on the beach for a few hours waiting to see if there happen to be a no-show in the Pro-Am division. As luck would have it, there turned out to be an opening and Owston slipped right in.
Since the no-show surfer was a lower seed, Owston was faced with the unenviable task of jumping into a heat with three pro surfers two of which have been doing it for quite some time Wesley Santos and David Do Carmo. The third, Izzy Elizondo, would end up winning the 15 and over division the very next day. Needless to say, this was not an easy spot.
Owston caught just two waves in the heat, but they were an 8.67 and a 6.83 for a heat total of 15.50 good enough to give him first place in the heat and advance on to round two. Santos was the other of the three to make it through as a two-headed to the next round.
Owstons success did not stop there.
He sailed through round two with a 15.30 heat total on scoring waves of 7.50 and 7.80 and once in the quarters, he dropped another 15, this one a 15.50, with scores of 8.20 and 7.30.
"I had great rhythm and had good heat strategy, " Owston said. "That allowed me to be on the best waves. "
That rhythm continued into the semifinals where he dropped scores of 7.20 and 7.23 for an easy win with a 14.43 heat total matching him up in the final four with Alex Lima , Jacob Szekely and Alcides Nieto.
In a wild and busy final, the four contestants surfed 42 scoring waves, and all four finished with heat totals of better than 12.00. In the end though, it was Owston's 7.33 and 6.90 that did the trick posting a 14.23 score giving him the title and $2,000 first prize.
Alex Lima's 13.00 score was 1.23 points behind Owston.
This event kicked off the portion of the career for Owston which will see him transition from the a successful junior amateur career to the pro events. He has spent the last number of years in the junior Team USA program and has won national titles for both USA surfing and NSSA.
"I am going to be doing the QS events and Jr Pros," he said. " I also love filming parts and getting creative with editing."
Owston, who is a member of Oneill brand, just picked up the endorsement of Lost Surfboards.
"The lost boards are the best I’ve ever ridden. They have opened my surfing to another level and have allowed me to skyrocket my progression."
15 and Over
Winner Izzy Elizondo
2. Shane McNulty
3. Kisan Hart
4. Tim Fandey
5. Graham Allen
6. Kai Thomas
Izzy Elizondo had his best WSL finish in the Live Like Zander Junior Pro this past season, a 9th place result.
In this one, he put his stamp on the final quickly with a couple air reverses and did battle with Shane McNulty as the two put up the best numbers, finishing within one point of each other at the end.
14 and under
Winner Ty Lee Shaver
2. Oliver Rowe
3. Kai Thomas
4. Luke Godinez
5. Isaiah Wheyland
6. Parker Murphy
Ty Shaver won his first ever San Diego Am Slam championship as he outdueled five other competitors in the final.
Shaver advanced with a second-place finish in his round one heat, and then won his quarterfinal matchup putting him directly into the finals.
Runner up Oliver Rowe was attempting to win his second straight title as he took the division the month earlier in the season opener.
11-under
Winner Owen Rowe
2. Moses Hennings
3. Yosuke Iha
4. Vaun Harrison
5. Mason Moschopoulos
6. Jett Abate
Encinitas surfer Owen Rowe made it back-to-back titles in the San Diego event after winning the opener at Pacific Beach last month.
The final saw a seesaw battle between him and Moses Hennings, both contributing to high scores making this a very close final.
The two matched up in the same heat in both the quarterfinals and semi-finals. Both times Hennings came out with a slight advantage, but once in the final it was Rowe that turned the tables and get the win.
Womens Shortboard
Winner Mara Morales
2. Ellie Brown
3. Victoria Duprat
4. Yuzuki Iha
5. Samaira Lizzy
6. Astrid Egan
Mara Morales, the Edison High School graduate who will be attending Notre Dame on a scholarship, easily made her way into the finals with a quarterfinal win, Once there, she tamed the waves and out finished the field for the title.
Morales bettered her third-place finish in the opening event of the season.
Womens Longboard
Winner Star D'Elia
2. Annabelle Tihanyi
3. Lena Santoro
4. Mara Morales
5. Lini Christenson
6. Corinne Santoro
Star D'Elia won her second straight Am Slam event, as she once again took the win in the Longboard Division.
The next event happens at the San Clemente Pier on August 5th and 6th.