Kieren Perrow (AUS), 34, has won his inaugural ASP World Tour event, taking out the Billabong Pipe Masters in Memory of Andy Irons over fellow countrymen Joel Parkinson (AUS), 30, in four-to-six foot waves. John John Florence (HAW), 19, also found his way to the podium as the overall winner of the 2011 Vans Triple Crown.

Perrow, who finished runner-up to Jeremy Flores (FRA), 23, in last year’s Billabong Pipe Masters, returned to form again this year and charged the massive Pipeline conditions on the opening two days of competition to solidify his position on the 2012 ASP World Tour. The Australian was equally deadly in the smaller conditions on the final day and commanded the Final against Parkinson in a backdoor shootout to secure his maiden ASP World Tour victory.

read more at aspworldtour

Garrett McNamara wasn’t planning to surf on 1 November. “I just didn’t really feel it,” he says. He agreed, however, that he would tow his British friend and fellow big wave surfer, Andrew Cotton, on his jetski.

What happened during that session has already entered surfing lore. Persuaded to take a wave, McNamara, 44, found himself on a freak mountain of water 90ft (30m) high, surfing one of the biggest waves ever ridden, probably the largest in Europe and the biggest recorded on film.

The video and photographs of Mc-Namara’s ride have been viewed by hundreds of thousands on the internet. They depict a tiny figure dropping down against a huge blue, hurtling backdrop.

It is all the more extraordinary because of the hazardous nature of the break, an hour north of Lisbon, where some of the world’s biggest waves collapse almost on the shoreline.

read more at guardian.co.uk

Brodie Carr, CEO of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP), submitted resignation today, effective at the end of this year. “The Board of Directors met today and reluctantly accepted the resignation of Brodie Carr,” says Richard Grellman, independent chairman of the ASP Board and interim CEO. “We would like to recognize his valuable contribution over the last six years and wish him every success in the future.”

Carr is credited with several positive initiatives for the sport, including bringing Fiji back to the ASP Dream Tour in 2012 for the Volcom Fiji Pro. However, his recent restructuring of the ASP World Tour was a cause for complaint among some throughout the past year.

The news comes on the heels of the ASP’s premature crowing of 11-time World Champion Kelly Slater last week at the Rip Curl Pro Search in San Fransisco. “It is my duty to accept responsibility for the recent calculation error,” said Carr in a statement released by the ASP. “The determination of the ASP World Title is the most important moment in professional surfing. Ultimately, the responsibility for every activity within ASP lies with me. Therefore, I have elected to resign my position as CEO.”

Carr’s resignation is a bit surprising, but no word yet on his next moves. Carr brought impressive professional achievements to the ASP when he started in 2005, previously working for the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. We would not be surprised to see him catapult to another, just as impressive, position in the near future.

According to the ASP, “Slater, who officially confirmed his 2011 ASP World Title on Sunday at Ocean Beach, will join the remainder of the ASP Top 34 at the 11th and final event of the 2011 ASP World Title season, the Billabong Pipe Masters, from December 8 – 20, 2011.”

story via transworld