Thanks to the 14 wave-sailors who competed in challenging conditions, I?m sure it keeps us focused makes us better in the long term. Thanks also to all the spectators who braved the frequent showers to give the event a good social vibe (was it the cold that meant people huddled up closer than normal or was it Bert?s wine?). I hope you all enjoyed yourselves, you hardy souls, and it was good to see a few new faces.
Congratulations to all the medal winners:
Scotty Mc (1st Open Mens) managed to ride an impressive 7 waves in a 20 minute heat (we were only scoring the best 2 waves)! I reckon he was hungry because he didn?t sail on Saturday because too busy earning Brownie points around the home to free up Sunday (he wasn?t the only one!)!
Russh (2nd Open Mens) ? pulled out all the stops in his last year before being eligible for Masters with a nice front-side wave, a big turn and then he looked like he was going for a back-side barrel (Shortboard instincts kicking in - I reckon he forgot he was hanging onto a sail!).
Gareth (3rd Open Mens) ? proved a little local knowledge has its value, our local Middleton lad, scored high with a three turn wave, narrowly putting some points between himself and Geoff and some of the other lads . He also go the ?Dismount of the Day Award?; apparently this was a tactical dismount to get in the best position for the next set (?whatever it takes? I say!).
Kym (1st Open Womens) ? fresh off the rocks from Ho-okipa, had the crowd gasping as she headed for a big aerial off the lip, but unfortunately it ended in a big swim (and she wasn?t the only one doing some swimming, I can tell you ? by the end of both heats there we?re many left standing!).
Richard (1st Masters Mens) ? was doing some impressive fully powered wave riding on what looked like slalom kit!
Kurt (1st Junior Mens) ? gets the virtual Storm Chase award ? when you?re half the size, everything?s twice as big ? good effort and we?ve got a reliable eyewitness to back up that wave you rode! Get some of your mates involved (see the Come?n?Try it event we?ve got organised in Jan 2014) and we?ll start organising some Grom comps in less demanding conditions.
Impressive sailing from everyone else. The wind felt like it dropped as the day went on, making sail and equipment selection tricky to say the least.
Wave selection in the building swell became critical ? the bigger ones were dumping before they had a chance to clean up ? luckily the whale parked out the back forced a few early gybes and some smaller waves to be caught! During the free sailing session a bomb set arrived, cleaned up almost everyone (the wall of white-water was reported to be mast high!) and announced it was time to get stuck into the BBQ and the beers...
A special thanks to:
Starboard for the prizes.
Hale Electrical for the beer, power and shelter.
Dave for judging
Kym for catering.
Bondy for the PA and commentary (also awarded the Demolition Award!).
Everyone who helped out with set up, BBQ , pack up and all the donations (we might have just broken even
).
PS: I wondered why the Council has BLEVE (Burning liquid expanding vapour explosion) on their standard risk assessment when I filled it up....now I ain?t wondering no more! ? on the way home the BBQ blew over in the trailer, narrowly missing the gas cylinder and punched a hole in the whiteboard! Good advice from Russh ? strap your own kit down & then you?ve only got yourself to blame (yes I'm to blame!)!
PS2: Looking forward to seeing some photos
