Andy Irons

Philip Andrew "Andy" Irons
File:Andy Irons.jpg
Personal information
Born	(1978-07-24)July 24, 1978 Oahu, Hawaii
Died	November 2, 2010(2010-11-02) (aged 32) Grapevine, Texas, U.S.
Residence	Hanalei, Kauai, Hawaii
Height	6 ft 0.5 in (1.84 m)
Weight	170 lb (77 kg)
Surfing career
Years active	10 years
Best year	Ranked 1st on the ASP World Tour, 2002, 2003 and 2004
Career earnings	$1,495,533
Sponsors	Billabong, Von Zipper, Nixon Watches, Kustom Footwear, Dakine
Major achievements	ASP World Champion in 2002, 2003 and 2004 Quiksilver Pro France champion (2003, 2004, 2005) Rip Curl Pro Search title (2006 & 2007).
Surfing specifications
Stance	Regular (natural foot)
Website	www.andyirons.com

Philip Andrew Irons (July 24, 1978 – November 2, 2010) was a professional surfer. Irons learned to surf on the dangerous and shallow reefs of the North Shore in Kauai, Hawaii. Over the course of his professional career, he won three world titles (2002, 2003, 2004), three Quiksilver Pro France titles (2003, 2004, 2005), two Rip Curl Pro Search titles (2006 and 2007) and 20 elite tour victories including the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing four times from 2002-2006. On September 3, 2010 he won the Billabong Pro in Tahiti. He and his family hosted the Annual Irons Brothers Pinetrees Classic, a contest for youngsters. The Governor of Hawaii declared February 13 forever "Andy Irons Day". He is the only surfer to have won a title at every venue on the ASP calendar.

Career

His younger brother, Bruce Irons, is a former competitor on the World Championship Tour of Surfing (WCT). During his childhood Andy regularly lost to Bruce in contests, but that changed once he entered the World Championship Tour.

In 2009, Irons withdrew from doing the full ASP World Tour season for personal reasons, though he did participate in a few events. He requested a wildcard entry for the 2010 ASP World Tour season, which was granted by ASP President Wayne Bartholomew. As a result, Irons did not have to re-qualify in 2010 via the World Qualifying Series (WQS). Irons won the Billabong Pro Tahiti 2010.

He was inducted into the Surfing Walk of Fame in Huntington Beach, California in 2008.

Billabong produced an "Andy Irons" line of board shorts.

Death

Irons died on November 2, 2010; according to The Association of Surfing Professionals, "he had reportedly been battling with dengue fever, a viral disease." It is believed that this may be linked to his death however, Professor Robert Booy, an infectious disease academic, was suspicious of this, saying that dengue fever deaths are rare. Investigators have ruled out foul play as a cause but are currently waiting on toxicology reports. He was found lying in bed on his back with the sheets pulled up to his chin, by two hotel staff after he had failed to respond to knock on the door and they went in to investigate.

In response to Irons's death, a World Championship Tour event in Puerto Rico was postponed for two days with competitors holding a "paddle out" memorial service for Irons. Irons had withdrawn from the event citing ill health and was flying back to his home in Hawaii before dying during a stopover in Dallas, Texas. He had reportedly stopped in Miami after leaving Puerto Rico and early reports said he was put on a saline drip. Later reports suggest he went to South Beach to party. He was reported to have been vomiting on the Hawaii bound plane before being removed prior to take-off.In the days immediately following his death it was reported that, in Dallas, an extremely ill Irons had attempted to board his connecting flight to Honolulu at 11:30 a.m. but was turned away at an American Airlines gate—a claim the company denies.

Local officials said the cause of death was not immediately known but Hawaii's Star Advertiser reported that his death was being investigated as a possible overdose of methadone, citing information provided by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office. Irons was diagnosed at one point with sleep apnea. A toxicologist said combining methadone with that condition could be risky. According to the official police report Alprazolam and Zolpidem were found in Irons' hotel room. Despite many rumors that methadone was also found in his room, the official police report does not confirm that theory.

A memorial service was held November 14th in Hanalei Bay, Kauai. His wife Lyndie and brother Bruce, scattered his ashes outside Hanalei Bay where thousands of family, friends and admirers said their last goodbyes.

Rival surfer and friend Kelly Slater dedicated his November 6, 2010 victory to Irons. "I just want to send my condolences to Andy's family," Slater said. "I'm a little overwhelmed right now but I want to dedicate this to Andy... It's like exact opposites. This doesn't really offset that, I'd give this title away in a second if Andy could come back."

On November 20, 2010, while making his entrance into the arena for his fight against Matt Hughes at UFC 123, mixed martial artist BJ Penn wore a shirt that read "A.I. WOULD SCRAP." UFC broadcaster Mike Goldberg pointed out that the "A.I." stood for Andy Irons, and mentioned his recent passing. Goldberg also noted that Irons was a close friend of Penn and his family.

Personal life

Irons married Lyndie Dupuis on November 25, 2007 in Princeville, Kauai. She was seven months pregnant with their first child at the time of his death.

Films

The 2004 movie Blue Horizon (directed by surfing filmmaker Jack McCoy), paralleled his life on the WCT tour with that of free surfer, David Rastovich. The film also touched on his long-time rivalry with ten-time world champion Kelly Slater. Although the film was created in a documentary-like style, there has been some debate over whether or not the film offered an accurate and fair portrayal of Irons' surfing lifestyle. In addition to "Blue Horizon", Irons was also a subject of many other surf films, including his screen appearance in Trilogy, which starred himself, Joel Parkinson, and Taj Burrow.

Rivalry with Kelly Slater

File:Andy Irons Billabong Pipeline Masters 2009.jpg

Andy Irons at Pipeline, 2009

Irons had a much-publicized, and, according to him, over-hyped, rivalry with fellow professional surfer Kelly Slater. In an interview, Irons said:

For me, just being affiliated with Kelly--to be next to him--I mean, that's awesome. He's the ultimate surfer. He's the best surfer in the world. Ever. Best competitive, best free surfer, you name it, and to have my name put next to his everywhere really is flattering. He's the Michael Jordan of our sport. Kelly knows how I feel about him. Despite all the media hype that comes out of a rivalry there's a lot of respect given both ways. People don't realize there are times when we hang out. We'll go check the waves together. We talk about boards. He invited me personally to his contest on Tavarua. There's a ton of respect there.

External links

• Official site