American Schuyler McFerran Crowned ASP World Longboard Champion

BIARRITZ, France (Saturday, July 8, 2006) American Schuyler McFerran (Encinitas, California) has won the Roxy ASP Women's World Longboarding Championship presented by Evian after surfing from the first round and winning every one of the eight heats she contested.

McFerran, 19, defeated fellow Californian Jennifer Smith (Pacific Beach) in the final which was held in clean, three foot (one metre waves) at Côte des Basques, Biarritz, France.

McFerran's win cemented her spot in the history books by becoming the first-ever ASP Women's World Longboard Champion. She won the US$4,500 first place prize in the US$30,000 event.

"I'm so thankful and stoked, happy and relieved – there's just so many emotions. I've surfed so many heats that it's just overwhelming, then to have all of my friends out here screaming and cheering for me, I just broke down," an ecstatic McFerran said.

"I knew that I could win this event if I really put my heart into it and I gave my very best effort every heat. To be able to have my mom here supporting and coaching me and to have my family and boyfriend at home rooting for me, it was just so incredible."

McFerran notched up more time on the nose during the inaugural Roxy ASP WWLC than any other competitor in the 67-woman field and was rewarded handsomely for it. A long stint on the nose during the final earned her a 9.25 score (out of 10) and a commanding heat lead.

"I love noseriding and I think that it's a huge part of longboarding. That's one of the main things – you need to be able to noseride well because that's what sets longboarding apart from shortboarding. I knew the judges were rewarding really good, clean noseriding so I wanted to go out there and get the longest possible noseride I could get and hang ten so I was super stoked with that 9.25," McFerran said.