Nelscott Reef Tow In Classic changes contest status to green

Behemoth, LLC changed the contest status to Green as a large swell is forecast for the coming weekend.  The 2008 Nelscott Reef Tow In Classic will be held Sunday November, 30th.

This marks the second time this year that the status has changed – the first was a change to yellow in October, as an early swell marked watching.  That swell ended up having too much wind from the wrong direction.  After watching the forecast closely over the past few days, John Forse decided to make the call this morning.

“There are two storms on tap - the first looks to be plagued with bad wind, but the second looks to be a long duration swell with offshore winds”, said John Forse, event organizer.

The current forecast has the first swell arriving on Friday November 28 with a swell size of 14 feet at 14 seconds.  The wind looks pretty bad, but then cleans up on Saturday and Sunday. The forecast for Sunday is for 15-foot swell at 18 seconds and winds are out of the east.  This should make for some epic conditions on the Oregon Coast.

The contest has a 3-month holding period, October 1 through December 31st, during which a 48-hour notice is given for contest green light.  Since this is a Holiday week, and a consistent forecast for good conditions for Sunday, Forse decided to make the call early. Forse wanted to give competitors, media, sponsors, and spectators as much time as possible to get up to Oregon.

The swell and weather conditions look to excellent for the first Nelscott Reef paddle in contest.  There will be a one-hour heat before the finals, where surfers will be competing for the biggest wave of the heat.

The following teams are confirmed and looking forward to coming to Lincoln City Oregon for the fourth annual event.

2008 Confirmed Tow In Contest List:
Zach Wormhoudt (N.Cal) Jake Wormhoudt (N.Cal)
Shane Desmond (N.Cal) Tyler Fox (N.Cal)
Garrett McNamara (HAW) Kealii Mamala (HAW)
Brad Gerlach (S.Cal) Mike Parsons (S.Cal)
Adam Replogle (N.Cal) Alistair Craft (N.Cal)
Yuri Soledade (Brazil) Everaldo Pato Texeira (Brazil)
Greg Long (S.Cal) Grant ‘Twiggy’ Baker (S.Africa)
Raph Bruhwiler (CAN) Keith Malloy (S.Cal)
Jeremy Rasmussen (Oregon) Tom Miller (Oregon)
Mike Parnell (Oregon) Matt Esnard (Oregon)
Alec Cooke (Ace Cool) (HAW) Ron Barron (HAW)
Al Mennie (Ireland) Andrew Cotton (Ireland)
Jeff Kafka (N.Cal) Shaun Rhodes (N.Cal)
Jeff Schmucker (AUS) Jughead Allport (AUS)
Tim West (N.Cal) Ion Banner (N.Cal)
Chad Jackson (C.Cal) and Jamie Mitchell (AUS)

2008 Paddle In Contest List:
Greg Long (S.Cal)
Steve Harnack (Oregon)
Mike Parsons (S.Cal)
Al Mennie (Ireland)
Andre Phillip (Oregon)
Shane Desmond (N.Cal)
Kealii Mamala (HAW)
Gary Linden (S.Cal)
Zach Wormhoudt (N.Cal)

Founded by Lincoln City resident and Nelscott Pioneer, John Forse, the Nelscott Reef Tow In Classic has always been a grass roots organization.  Without the support of the local community and our sponsors, the event would have folded after the first year.  The Nelscott Reef Tow In Classic is now the longest consistently running tow in contest in the world.  Local sponsors, like the Chinook Winds Casino, have been a major supporter of the event from its conception, and we are proud to have their continued support.  Other local sponsors that have, and continue to play a vital role in the event include the Nelscott Reef Surf Shop, Westshore Motel, Oregon Sports Authority, Russo Surfboards, Tanger Outlets, Station 3 Embroidery, and the Anchor Inn. New Oregon sponsors this year are Blowsion, DaKine, and Bob Lamphere’s Beaverton Honda.  Out of State support comes from K38 Rescue, Fringe Clothing, and Banquet.

The three-month holding period began October 1 and continues through December 31, 2008. A 48-hour notice will be given when the event is called.  Nelscottreef.com has all the latest information on event status.  The Nelscott Reef Tow In Classic is the only tow in contest on the North American continent and Oregon’s only professional surf event.

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