Cody Thompson Wins 2008 Quiksilver King of the Peak; Blake Jones Wins ESM Air Show

Cody Thompson of Jacksonville, Florida joined the prestigious ranks of former Kings,
Quiksilver team-rider Kelly Slater and Floridian C.J. Hobgood this
past weekend taking the coveted crown at the 14th Annual Quiksilver
King of the Peak Skins event. The two day surf contest at Sebastian
Inlet wrapped up Sunday.

With only one wave score counting in each heat and 92 surfers, two
rounds, 46 heats total and $12,000 on the line, this year's King of
the Peak brought out the best of the best and was one of the fiercest
contests to date.

The $100 entry fee from each surfer is pooled together towards the
total prize purse. For each heat win, surfers are awarded a Skin
($245) and advance to the next heat. The surfer with the most Skins at
the end of the two-day contest is crowned the winner and the
Quiksilver King of the Peak. ESM threw in some extra cash for the
five-star ESM Air Show.

The action began with 23 heats of Round One on Saturday in solid 3-4
foot surf and clean light offshore winds. Surfer's names were pulled
out of a hat to determine the heat draw and match-up. Wesley Desouza
of South Florida led the first campaign claiming two Skins, only to be
halted by Matt Keenan. Later in the round, Asher Nolan took home the
most Skins of the day rallying up three in a row while posting the
highest scores of the round.

Day one finished up with the ESM Air Show with 18 surfers vying for
the $500 cash prize. Nine-time World Champion and Florida-local Kelly
Slater made an appearance to sit in alongside the judges. First prize
went to Blake Jones for his impressive clean successful Superman
launch three feet above the lip. Eddie Guilbeau and Jensen Callaway
tied for even second.

Round Two was held on Sunday with the heat draw flipped. The swell
picked up a little and the Inlet delivered consistent four foot wedges
all day long. Skin leader, Asher Nolan was in good position with three
Skins and seeded in the middle of the round. Hitting the water earlier
than Asher, Jacksonville local Cody Thompson went for broke in the
one-wave heat score format and put together four Skins before coming
face-to-face with his closest challenger. In the end, Cody prevailed
over Asher with a clean open barrel and the highest score of the
event, 8.33. Cody went on to grab two more Skins and the 2008 title
Quiksilver King of the Peak.

For photos and more on the Quiksilver King of the Peak, visit
www.surf.quiksilver.com