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| Talk Story with Melanie Bartels |
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A Hawaiian Champion By Pake Salmon West Side local Melanie Bartels has been called a lot of things. The female Sunny Garcia. Top female aerialist. Top Hawaiian female surfer. But one thing she’s never been called is an ASP World Championship Tour event winner. Until Friday, Dec. 1, 2006, that is. Mel entered the the Roxy Pro Hawai‘i at Sunset Beach as a last minute wildcard and, advancing consistently from the trials, found herself in the finals with co-wildcard Stephanie Gilmore (AUS). Like a classic underdog, Mel caught a wave with just 14 seconds on the clock, stole the lead from Gilmore, and won her first-ever ASP Women’s WCT event. Bartels surfed on the WCT in 2004 and 2005, never making it past the third round in any event. She was infamous for failing to translate her immeasurable talent into competitive results on tour. Anyone who has seen Mel in action during a free surf session knows that she is one of the most progressive female surfers out there, but keeping her dynamic talent in the confines of heats and points has been a struggle. After failing to re-qualify for the 2006 ‘CT, Mel spent the last year on the ‘QS. She put her head down and charged the WQS scene, and at the Op Pro Hale‘iwa, successfully earned enough points to re-qualify for the 2007 ASP Women’s World Tour. When my fellow West Side wahine Mel called to tell me she had tickets for us to go to Maui for the Billabong Pro at Honolua Bay, the final jewel of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing (thanks to her win at Sunset, she is able surf the trials at Honolua Bay), it was no vacation; she wanted me to cover the action with my camera. This is my first trip with Mel, and I always wondered what these women’s shortboarding competitions were all about. I had been a competitor in the world longboarding events, but never experienced a women’s shortboarding event. Mel was fresh off her win, focused, and having faith to achieve her goals and dreams. I am Pake Salmon and this is talking story with Melanie Bartels, a Hawaiian champion. PS: Take me through the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing event at Sunset Beach. Were you even supposed to be competing in that event? MB: No, I wasn’t even in the contest. I was just talking to my sponsors, and I was kind of thinking, “Why wouldn’t I be in the contest? I am one of Hawai‘i’s top female surfers.” It was a little bit awkward the way the trials were set up. I kept bugging the contest directors. I called Randy Rarick and Faith eight times, leaving messages about how much I wanted to be in the event and how much I at least deserved to be there in the trials. Fortunately, on Thanksgiving Day, Randy called me and said he had a slot for me because there was a girl who wasn’t going to show up. From that point on I was like, GAME ON!! I’m in it to WIN IT!! Ten G’s is good, but it was awesome to prove to everybody, Mel’s an animal and the bomb! [Laughing] PS: You surfed from the trials all the way to the finals, you were in second place with less then a minute in your heat, what was it like in the finals against Stephanie Gilmore? MB: I felt nervous and I was thinking: “You can do this. What do you have to lose? You have nothing to lose. If a wave comes, you better be the one to catch it, and kill the sh-t out of it! And if not, you are still a winner going home with second place.” I was trying hard the whole time, and I came from the bottom to the top to make Hawai‘i proud. Yeah! I was praying through out the whole competition, “please God send me one wave, my timing is there— all I need is one wave.” At the last minute, a wave came in and I just tried my best. I didn’t think this wave would give me the score I needed, but it turned out to be a good one, and I just threw chunks! PS: After doing a year on the ‘QS, how did it feel to swoop in as a trialist and win the second jewel of the Triple Crown, a WCT event? MB: I felt ecstatic. I felt blown away. I never thought I’d be winning a contest at Sunset. Let alone a WCT event, you know. I was proud of myself. For the first time, I believed in myself, had a focused mindset and felt positive throughout the whole competition. I believed in myself for the first time and it paid off! I had no doubts and set a goal for myself to make the final. I set goals and I just believed in my ability, my surfing, and even if I lost, I still would have won because I was trying my best for the first time. It was just good to know that whether I win or lose, I was giving it all! I worked hard to win that contest. I worked from the bottom. PS: Sunset was the first time you started believing in yourself? MB: Something just hit me. I knew I was going to do good in one of the events in Hawai‘i. I wrote down goals. I was practicing on the North Shore a lot. Getting more confidence in my boards, having the right equipment and just being more confident in bigger surf and being prepared. I wasn’t taking it seriously last year. This year, anytime there’s a swell, I’m just going to go there and practice. If it’s at Hale‘iwa or Sunset, I’m going there to practice, just to get comfortable and learn those lineups, the feel of those waves, currents. This year I am prepared and taking it very seriously. PS: How was it when you got back to your home on the West Side? MB: Great! There were a lot of people who were stoked that I won. I represent the whole West Side. I don’t think there has been a Hawaiian surfer to win that event for a long time—especially for the women’s part. So I am stoked to be the one. I was reading the newspaper after I had won, and it said that no Hawaiian woman has ever won it. So I am stoked to the one making history! PS: Why is it important for you to do well in competition? MB: It’s important because it gives kids from the West Side hope. As long as you believe in yourself and set goals you can achieve anything. Just keep trying and never give up. You can get out of your poverty, make money, you can do something you love, you can enjoy life. PS: How has the experience at Sunset changed you? MB: I’m thinking this is only the beginning of Melanie Bartels. That contest at Sunset was just the beginning— a steppingstone. There will be many more to come. It’s all about the mind and being focused. I am pretty focused. When that horn blows, it’s not a game. I am gonna get the job done, no matter what it takes. PS: How did it feel to have your son Ezekiel and your family by your side for your win at Sunset? MB: It made me feel good to have my brother them come down, too. I thought, “I better do something! Go big or go home!” And it’s great having Ezekiel around because he makes me laugh. Every time I am doing an interview or something he sneaks his head in, trying to get involved . He’s all shy and everything but you know, he wants the attention. It’s good he is around different people and these events, so he may want to be a pro surfer, too. He may see what it can offer and hopefully he wants to. But if he doesn’t, I’ll be stoked for him in whatever he chooses. PS: Does Ezekiel like to surf? MB: I wouldn’t say he likes to surf. He’s only wanted to try it recently. He just goes out and catches a couple of waves. If he’s over it, he’ll catch one in, grab his bodyboard and sand slide. I think he’s more into sand sliding. I just try to encourage him to try something new like surfing. No pressure, just encouragement and love. PS: What do you have to say about the current state of women’s professional surfing? MB: It has progressed a lot. It’s not just one person standing out. Even the younger generation is getting better. It’s good for competition, knowing you gotta work hard. You gotta try your best every single time. PS: What can we all look forward to from you next year now that you’ve re-qualified for the WCT? MB: Be expecting the new Mel. I’m gonna have a business one day, but for the most part I’m gonna do as many of the WQS events as I can to make sure I am on the WCT. I’m just gonna keep progressing and make as much money as I can right now for me and my son, make his life easier, and for my retirement one day. I just hope when I am World Champion I stay true to me, be humble and not let it get to my head. [Giggles] PAU
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