click the image to watch the wipeout.

Kaimana Jaquias won the 2010 NSSA Nationals Open Men’s title today at South Huntington Beach Pier while Lakey Peterson snatched her second consecutive Open Women’s title. Also taking out a big victory was Keala Naihe, who clinched the Open Junior’s NSSA National division.

Jaquias launched out to an early lead in the 30 minute final matchup with a solid 8.25 out of 10, but struggled to find a second backup score until the last few minutes of the heat. The Hawaiian regular-footer locked into a wedgy righthander breaking off of South Huntington Beach Pier by cracking several forehand turns to overtake then heat leader Conner Coffin to win the 2010 Open Men’s National Title.

“I’m on top of the moon right now,” Jaquias said. “I got that 8.25 at the beginning and I was just hoping I could get another one. Conner (Coffin) got that second 5.00 and I was just praying to God that I could get another wave to take over the lead.”

Jaquias’ prestigious victory also puts his name on the list of NSSA champions including his father Kaipo Jaquias, who was the 1987 Open Junior Champion.

“I’m just so happy to have my name up there with my father,” Jaquias said. “I wanted to have my name up there with his.”

2010 NSSA National Champions:
Open Men’s Champion: Kaimana Jaquias
Open Women’s Champion: Lakey Peterson
Open Junior Champion: Keala Naihe
Open Boy’s Champion: Kanoa Igarashi
Open Longboard Champion: Shaun Thompson
Open Mini Grom Champion: John Mel

Explorer Men’s Champion: Ezekiel Lau
Explorer Women’s Champion: Leila Hurst
Explorer Junior’s Champion: Parker Coffin
Explorer Boy’s Champion: Taylor Clark

HS Varsity Men’s Champion: Ezekiel Lau
HS Varsity Women ‘s Champion: Kaleigh Gilchrist
HS Varsity Longboard Champion: Jeff Newell
HS JV Men’s Champion: Jonah Carter
HS JV Women’s Champion: Lani Doherty
HS JV Longboard Champion: Eli Gillis

NSSA Air Show Champion: Sam Orosco

DOHENY BEACH, California/USA (Thursday, July 1, 2010) - Nate Yeomans (USA), 28, is one of California’s greatest ever exports. A lightning-fast forehand and backhand approach that mixes no-nonsense carves with a full array of progressive fin-free and aerial maneuvers, Yeomans has been at the vanguard of futuristic surfing for years. Into his rookie year on the ASP World Tour, Yeomans finds himself in the fight of his life to crack the Top 32 following Tahiti and stay amongst the world’s elite. Despite all this, Nate still takes time to volunteer with Surfer’s Healing (an organization that takes Autistic children and gets them in the water surfing), where he was a major attraction to the kids at Doheny yesterday.

“I have a cousin that suffers from autism,” Yeomans said. “I actually got the call from a friend yesterday to come down and help out. It was amazing to see how it really soothes the kids when there out there surfing. I was talking to a mom of one of the grommets and see said, ‘It’s a sensory overload for them out in the water. All the different feelings that are going on really mellows out the kids.’ It’s just like us. That’s why we surf, and to be able to share that with them was one of the raddest things I’ve done. The only bummer was none of the kids wanted to leave. One of the boys, Jordan, got done surfing. They brought him in, and as soon as he touched the sand he turned around and ran right back to the water and started swimming to get back on a board. Its was awesome.”

Untitled from Derek Peters on Vimeo.