The 9th Annual Tommy Tant Memorial Classic
MAGMA Official Wax Sponsor
November 1st - 2nd, 2008
Jasset Claims Pro Women and Open Women victories.
Photographer: Mike Rutherford
Surf Wire:
FIRST TIMES A CHARM
Asher Nolan beats two former champs and a local to win the 2008 Tommy Tant Memorial Classic
By: Mike Cianciulli
November 3, 2008
For a contest founded on good vibes, the final was heavy. There was 2007 champion Aaron Cormican on the south end punting towards the free surfers. 2006 champion Jesse Heilman was blowing up the pier bowl. In the middle was hometown hero/event organizer/brother of the deceased Will Tant. Next to him was Florida's top WQS warrior and first-time Tant Classic competitor Asher Nolan. All the pieces were in place for a doozy, as hundreds of spectators lined the arena on the south side of the Flagler Beach Pier.
In it's ninth year, the Tommy Tant Memorial Classic has always been more than a surf contest. It's a place where old friends get to relive memories of past times. New generations of Florida surfers compete in the "tadpole" division. Money is raised for scholarships and to feed hungry families during the holidays. But at its root, it is the local community's way of giving back to itself.
"When something tragic happens - like my brother Tommy's passing -- it's a beautiful way to honor the community that helped us in our time of need," explained Will Tant, whose brother Tommy, a great surfer in his own right, passed away in 1999 with an aortic aneurism. "They played Pennywise's 'Bro's Hymn' at the start of the final which was played that at my brother's funeral and I just got chicken skin. Even though it is competitive and there were interferences, you still get stoked to see someone get a barrel."
At most beaches, there's hardly a barrel in sight when the surf is two-to-three feet and blown to bits. But at the right tide (and with the right surfers in the water), Flagler Beach can produce a few drainers no matter how choppy the surf is.
Cormican drew first blood in the final with a pigdog wedge shack. Asher Nolan immediately answered back with a giant no-grab, full-rotation aerial that sent the crowd into an uproar.
"I was messing with Asher out there going, 'You're lucky you just did the air of your life,'" Cormican, the defending champion, laughed. He soon upped the ante with a second backside pit, this time going the old school layback route.
Meanwhile, Heilman hacked his way from the pier over to the middle peak to join Nolan and Tant. As soon as he arrived next to Nolan, a perfect teepee took shape and both surfers wanted in. Nolan went right, Heilman left and the two danced their way straight towards the beach, bumping and grinding. Heilman was flagged for the penalty, while Tant notched a few solid waves under everyone's noses.
"It was really cool out there until me and Jesse got into a little interference," Nolan recalled. "Two in two days and I haven't had one in like five years... but they weren't on me. I mean, I can't let a grom out paddle me."
Not to be denied, Nolan shook it off and found another barrel amongst the sloppy surf that was enough to top Cormican's pair of tubes. The Tant Classic had a new champion.
"It's such a cool event," Nolan said. "It's one of my top finishes for sure. I'm stoked to win."
"It's good to see the title go up to Jacksonville," Tant smiled, after Asher had taken the win and the $1000. "It's been in Daytona (with Heilman in 2006), it's been in Smyrna (with Cormican in 2007). This is Asher's first year doing the contest so hopefully he'll come back and defend the title next year. That's the way this event is -- the surfers who do it are stoked and tell someone and then they tell someone and that's how it grows."
Growth might be an understatement. There were two podiums running over two days, with over 200 competitors. There was a food festival, live concert, and a six-foot mural being painted. Plenty of contestants traveled from out of state, like Dylan Graves from Puerto Rico, Noah Snyder from North Carolina, and one of Tommy's close friends Shaun Noble returned home from California.
Noble, who made the semifinals in pro and the final in Open Mens best describes the inexplicable aura that surrounds the Tant Classic, "When there were no waves in my heat, I'd look up and say 'Tommy, where are you?' and every time he'd send me the nicest peak and that's how I got through."
As evident by the weekend's vibe and Noble's claim, Tommy Tant is still with us.
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