Slater advances to Quiksilver quarters

On his final wave of Round 5, Kelly Slater dipped to his right and then sprung to the air, spinning once, maybe twice, before landing cleanly out of the foam. He glided onto the beach for a victory lap of sorts -- you don't get to be a 10-time world champion without a little showmanship.

After two murky days, the weather -- and the superstar Slater -- gave fans at Long Beach something to cheer about. Uncertainty about the conditions and quality of the inaugural Quiksilver Pro New York dissipated as the day unfolded. And the surfers indeed put on a show.

"If you get a highlight package of the moves here it would be one of the best on tour," Slater said.

Slater's fourth-round matchup with Josh Kerr early Thursday afternoon certainly featured its share. When the top seed completed a high-flying "alley-oop" -- scoring a 9.37 (out of 10) on the move -- the fans standing beach side whipped into a frenzy.

But the 27-year-old Kerr, who lists Slater as his inspiration on his website, answered with a skateboard move known as a "varial" -- in which the surfer spins the board around in midair -- to score a 9.57, then followed with a 9.70 on a soaring "alley-oop." His 19.27 (out of 20) total score is the best of the event so far.

"I didn't expect to make that varial and when I did I thought, 'It's time to go now,' " Kerr said. "I couldn't have planned it any better."

The loss forced Slater to have to surf again two hours later, and the 39-year-old easily handled France's Jeremy Flores to advance to the quarterfinals. The event concludes Friday, starting with the quarterfinals at 8 a.m. Fittingly, Slater will face Kerr again in the second heat.

On Thursday, focus finally moved off the forecast, the steady rains abated, and the surf provided some of the best conditions New York can offer.

With Hurricane Katia pushing wave heights up to seven feet, the surfers took advantage with aggressive moves, some normally reserved for waters in sun-kissed locations.

Australian Joel Parkinson rode the first barrel -- surfing underneath the crest of a wave, for a tunneling effect -- of the week midway through the morning, signaling that the swells were better than many expected.

"I didn't think I'd be barreling here," Parkinson said. "It's better than I thought."

The high scores and entertaining maneuvers seemed to quell criticisms about hosting a World Tour event on Long Island. Even without the local sensation Balaram Stack (he lost in Round 2), the beach was packed with enthusiastic surfing fans.

With temperatures in the 80s, sunglasses replacing umbrellas, and waves piling high, they got what they came for.