The pressure of performing on the World Surf League Championship Tour has fallen from Paige Hareb's shoulders.
Results have been hard to come by on the world's top tier for the 28-year-old Kiwi this year. With two remaining competitions on the schedule, winning both would still likely see her fall short of finishing with direct qualification for next year.
Now, on the CT at least, Hareb can simply paddle out and get stoked.
"It's a bonus to go out and have some fun," she told the Herald.
It's been a whirlwind year for the Kiwi, who admitted she felt as though the season had disappeared before her eyes. The penultimate event of the year got underway in France tonight, with Hareb being sent into a round two survival heat for the eighth time in as many events. But speaking ahead of the contest, the Taranaki surfer said she would be using the competition to try some new things as she turns her attention to performing on the qualifying series.