Tanner McDaniel is the youngest bodyboarder ever to qualify for the 2012 IBA Pipe Challenge, in Hawaii. The Hawaiian green-eyed rider is 12 years old and he has secured a ticket to the main event, at the Pipe Trials.
McDaniel showed off in the competitive pre-event qualification round and even named a new bodyboarding maneuver - the "Angry Dragon". "It’s like a reverse back flip", reveals Tanner McDaniel.
The young grom reminds us Mike Stewart, when he started competing a few decades ago. McDaniel placed second in his fourth round heat, in testing 2-3ft side-shore conditions, at Sandy Beach.
In total, 16 successful trialists from around the globe qualified for the main event, starting Wednesday, February 15th. The Men's trialists names are: Ruben Quiñones, Javier Baez, Sacha Specker, Clement Lodeho, Lewy Finnegan, Nick Shand, Jacob Hein, Miguel Hernandez, Drew Innocend, Felipe Mendez, Luis Valazquez, Guy Williment, Kainoa French, Davin Alexander, Alberto Colucci and Tanner McDaniel.
The winner of the last tour event of 2011, the Australian Jason Finlay, is the first alternate. Finlay had the highest third place score in round four. The forecast for the opening round of the 2012 IBA Pipe Challenge looks great, as a big west swell is heading towards the north shore of Oahu.
The Women’s trialists will be Fabiana Correa, Roberta Bitzer, Asako Shiotsuki, Anne Lacoste, Mayumi Kondo and Emma Cobb. The Dropknee trialists qualified for the main event are Landon Gapser, Tyson Kaaua, Dayton Waggo, Nick Shand, Jacob Pembrook, Cole Hansen, Brett Roldan, William Kaai.