Contributed by Go211 Pro Team member Holly Beck , ON LOCATION in Brazil:
Despite the fact that we were told there was a 90% chance the contest would start today, it was postponed once more. The contest site is a bit like Haleiwa on the North Shore of Oahu. It’s a predominant right that breaks far outside and then runs into a hollow section with a defined channel so that you can paddle out without having to duck-dive. On swells that are either too small or easterly the wave is a mushier left. This morning while looking out towards the gray horizon I saw many more lefts than rights, and with a forecasted swell on the way I supposed they figured they could wait one more day. The contest director was overseeing a crew fervently trying to put the contest site back together after a sudden thrilling storm two nights ago involving wind, rain, hail, and even a tornado ripped the tents off the site, tweaking quite a bit of metal in the process. It’s even stranger considering there are no tornadoes in Brazil. I guess you can never say never!
Self portrait in my guest house in Brazil
The lay day allowed me to explore the place a little. Other than Mick Fanning who is not taking any chances being distracted from clinching his world title by staying right in front of the contest site in Inbituba, I am staying about 25 min. South in Garopaba along with most of the other competitors and ASP staff. This afternoon I went for a walk in what started as just a light drizzle but then turned into a downpour.
The path to the beach. Even in the rain, Brazil is beautiful. Concluding there was nothing much else to do and considering the fact that if I was going to be wet, I might as well try to get wave out of it, I joined quite a few locals in the one foot shorebreak.
I was about to give up on trying to do a turn in the mushy dribblers until CJ Hobgood and Gabe Kling showed up to demonstrate how good Floridians are at ripping in tiny surf. They didn’t surf long, hardly more than 15 minutes, but it was enough to inspire me to stay out until I could claim at least one worthwhile ride. It took just under an hour until a nice little one-and-a-half footer came in and doubled up, running just long enough for me to get in a floater and then a finishing turn. Success!
With only five days left in the waiting period the contest will most likely start tomorrow with Round One. Since this is the second to last event on the schedule most of the guys have a pretty good idea of where they stand in the ratings. There are quite a few injured surfers who decided to stay home and rest up before Hawaii and even one or two that are rated so low that the situation is hopeless, which prompted them to cite “family reasons” as an excuse for not making the long trip. The ten Brazilian wildcards that got into the event as a result are sure to be ecstatic and hungry to take down some big names. As Adriano De Souza demonstrated recently by winning back-to-back WQS events in his home country, Brazilians at home are definitely dangerous. It should be a very interesting first few rounds. 
