Sullivan and Bacalso make Vans round of 96

Despite conditions trickier than usual, Hawaii’s Pancho Sullivan won his heat in the first round of the Vans World Cup of Surfing on Tuesday at Sunset Beach.

Sullivan had the highest combined heat total of the day in 4- to 6-foot waves with a 15.50 out of 20. He is a veteran at Sunset who has five titles in his more than 20 years of competing here.

“I feel good, even though it took me a while to get going out there,” he said. “It’s a tricky size and direction for Sunset right now.  Even after all the years I have been surfing out here, it’s hard when the waves are like this. I had to change my wave selection and just start trying to ride waves.”

Another Hawaii surfer to advance in a very entertaining heat was Mililani’s Kekoa Bacalso. Midway through the heat, he took what was undoubtedly the wipeout of the day, only to have the waves behind it land on him and push him roughly 100 yards back to shore.

“It was a pretty tough heat for me,” he said. “I had a really slow start, with my first wave being the worst wave in the world, and on my second wave I went straight over the falls on an 8-footer. That’s just part of surfing Sunset.”

Bacalso picked up a good wave toward the end of the heat and needed another score of 2 points with a couple of minutes left. Roy Powers was in an advancing position and was battling with Bacalso for wave position. With 15 seconds to go, Bacalso went on a left-breaking wave to score a 7.50 and win the heat.

Tom Whitaker of Australia had the highest single wave score of the day with a 9.0.

When competition resumes, it will be the round of 96. The swell is on the decline and it might be a day or two before the second leg of the Vans Triple Crown resumes.