Having my two brothers and nephew in the water wherever we go, means we need a place to surf, that has no-one else near us. Luckily the Transkei is down the road, with it’s gracious serving of perfect right-handers. On camera is my brother Marc (he films a bit like Bruce Gold), and in the water, Roosta and Buzz (Brandon Lange).
Buzz put the edit together, a great job pal! The guitar is by Roosta, in the soundtrack provided by Trollsmoke, the band Roosta plays in, in Norway.
The winter has not been epic this year. The sand is all caught in the bays, and we gonna need at least two or three proper winter fronts to move it all out to the points.
So we have all mostly been surfing away, down south. Saint Mikes and Southbroom, and then into the ‘Kei.
Time is running out for this huge sand moving task. A task that can only be accomplished by nature, as we move into full on Winter. The current spring tides looks promising as it carefully co-ordinates low tide with a strong south swell, and stiff, warm offshores – for Monday. A big west is moving up the coast and promises to change everything for the better, for us.
Very good music in that soundtrack het? Check them out on Soundcloud and have a listen.
More surfing action to follow…Trashed at Saints is the title of our next clip and its coming soon!
Jeffreys Bay – The first round of the JBU Supertrial presented by RVCA has been drawn. With the contest waiting period of 1-12 June opening this Monday, surfers will need to be on their toes and ready to head for JBay at a moments notice. There are some big storms lurking, and should the forecast look favorable the contest organisers will have no hesitation in calling the contest on.
Surfers in round 1 will obviously need to be present on the morning of the event, or risk losing their spots to one of the very capable alternates in the event.
With only 24 surfers in the event, all heats are loaded, and the contest is going to be cut-throat and exciting from the get-go.
Round 1 Heat 1
1. Dan Thornton
2. Shane Sykes
3. Matt Bromley
4. Brandon Jackson
Round 1 Heat 2
1. Remi Peterson
2. Dan Redman
3. Benji Brand
4. Chad Du Toit
Round 1 Heat 3
1. Frankie Oberholzer
2. Simon Nicholson
3. Ricky Basnet
4. Ryan Payne
Round 1 Heat 4
1. David Van Zyl
2. Shaun Payne
3. Joshe Faulkner
4. Casey Grant
First and second placed surfers will advance to the quarterfinals, where they will come up against the 8 seeded surfers. Alternates in ranking order:
1.Shane Thorne, 2.Max Armstrong, 3. Kelvin Zehmke, 4. Llewellyn Whittaker, 5. Sebastian Williams, 6. Koby Oberholzer, 7 Simon Fish. 8. Josh Salie, 9. Grant Baker.
Jeffreys Bay: first event in the Billabong Junior Series
Local JBay surfer Rewaldo Abersalie will be competing in the event. @ Ian Thurtell
Jeffreys Bay – The first event in the Billabong Junior Series Presented By BOS is around the corner, and here are all the facts pertaining to the contest.
What is it all about? It is the first event in the 2015 Billabong Junior Series Presented By BOS. The Billabong Junior Series presented by BOS is the longest running junior series in the world, having started way back in 1997. It is also the richest junior series in the world, already having paid out R1,3M to junior surfers in South Africa since the series inception. The series hashtag is #BillabongJnr
Who is in? – The competition will see the best junior surfers in the country all vying for points and prize money. There are both PST (Pro Surf Tour) and World Surf League (WSL) Pro Junior rated divisions. The U12 Boys is a 1A PST rated division, while the U14 Boys, U14 Girls, U16 Boys and U16 Girls divisions are all 2A PST rated. The U20 Boys and the U20 Girls divisions are both WSL 1000 Pro Junior rated. There are also a number of international surfers entered into the event, including Ethan Ewing (Aus), Griffin Colapinto (USA), Seth Moniz (Haw), Shaun Manners (Aus), Eithan Osborne(USA), and Liam Obrien (Aus).
Local JBay surfer Rewaldo Abersalie will be competing in the event. @ Ian Thurtell
Where is the contest venue? – This year will see the event take place at Magnatubes – the perfect right-hand break around the corner from Supertubes. Magnatubes is a long and fast right-hander and the ideal canvas for the best junior surfers in the country to strut their stuff in front of the event judges. With a lot at stake at this event, including prize money, PST and WSL points as well as Billabong Junior Series points, the junior surfers will be going all-out at this new contest venue.
When is it happening? – The tournament is going to be held over three days in July. For the first time in Billabong Junior Series presented by BOS history, the event is going to utilise a waiting period. The contest needs three days of competition over a five-day waiting period, from the 13 – 7 July. The contest also falls under the waiting period of the JBay Open WSL Championship Tour event. The JBay Open is the anchor event of the JBay Winterfest – www.jbaywinterfest.com/
Why is it happening? – Billabong South Africa prides itself in the way that it has supported junior surfing on the country since 1987. Junior surfing paves the way towards professional surfing careers, Championship Tour qualification, and ultimately World Titles. Billabong has been consistently nurturing junior talent in South Africa from a grass roots level over the years, and will continue to do so with the ongoing Billabong Junior Series presented by BOS. Co-sponsors include Nixon and VonZipper.
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The Billabong Junior Series presented by BOS is sanctioned by Surfing South Africa. Surfing South Africa is a member of the South African Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) and is recognised by the Dept. Of Sport and Recreation as the national governing body for surfing.
About the World Surf League
The World Surf League (WSL) organizes the annual tour of professional surf competitions and broadcasts each event live at WorldSurfLeague.com where you can experience the athleticism, drama and adventure of competitive surfing — anywhere and anytime it’s on. The WSL sanctions and operates the following tours: the Junior Tour, Longboard Tour, the Qualifying Series (QS), the Big Wave Tour and the crown jewel of the sport, the WSL Championship Tour (CT) which determines the sport’s undisputed world champions.
First 8 Surfers Selected For The JBU Supertrial presented by RVCA
Jeffreys Bay – The entries for the JBU Supertrial closed on Monday, and there were 54 entries in total. Only 24 surfers will be invited to compete in this prestigious event, with first prize being a wildcard slot into the WSL Championship Tour’s JBay Open. This surfer will receive a minimum prize of US$9,000 (R109,000). The JBay Open is the anchor event of the JBay Winterfest – www.jbaywinterfest.com
These surfers all entered through the www.zigzag.co.za/supertrial/ portal. There was a flurry of public votes, as well as a big Social Media push, and a final panel selection. The first 8 selected surfers are a mix of hard-earned experience and young blood, of local Supertubes talent, and others from as far afield as Durban and Cape Town. “The first batch of surfers has been anounced, and there is some red-hot talent in there,” said RVCA’s Arno Lane. “We are looking forward to the announcement of the last 16 surfers, who will be competing in the first round, next week.”
There has been a slight contest format change from last year. These 8 selected surfers have been seeded directly into the quarterfinals of the event, and the next 16 surfers will surf a first round of heats to find out who will be meeting the 8 seeds in the quarterfinals.
The 8 seeded surfers in no particular order:
Dylan Lightfoot
Sean Holmes
Matt Mcgillivray
Beyrick De Vries
Mikey February
Greg Emslie
Slade Prestwich
Dale Staples
Last year’s finalists, in Lightfoot, February, Prestwich and McGillivray, are all included in the first 8.
“I’m stoked to get into the event,” said Lightfoot. “I have been surfing Supers non-stop the last few weeks so have had loads of practise. I always look forward to surfing Supers with just three other guys out. Hopefully we get a good run of swell this year.”
Sean Holmes, still recognised as the best wildcard at JBay, and known throughout the surfing world as ‘The Nemesis’ was equally excited about his inclusion. “I’m super excited to be selected for the JBU Supertrial. It’s such a cool event with a real local feel,” said Holmes on hearing the news about his inclusion. “The fact that it presents an opportunity to possibly surf against the best in the world on local soil is the cherry on the cake! Thanks to everyone for all the support over the years.”
Nixon South Africa will be awarding a Nixon Tangent Sports Watch valued at R6 000 for the surfer who rides the best tube in the event, as well as a Nixon Blaster for the event winner.
The JBU Supertrial presented by RVCA is sanctioned by Surfing South Africa. Surfing South Africa is a member of the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC), and recognised by the Dept. of Sport and Recreation as the national controlling body for surfing.
The JBU Supertrial presented by RVCA precedes the JBay Open WSL Championship Tour event, which takes place during the JBay Winterfest.
The JBU Supertrial presented by RVCA is supported by Arbor, Firewire, Stance, Nixon, Monster Energy South Africa, Zigzag Magazine and El Jimador Tequila.
Successful Four Elements Conservation NPC Ocean Challenge sees youngsters take top titles
The second edition of the Four Elements Conservation NPC Ocean Challenge was an overwhelming success with all 120 competitors managing to finish within the two-and-a-half hour time limit and a whopping R100 000 raised for environmental conservation.
17-year-old Sasha-Lee Corris-Nordengen (Berea) took the top title at the Four Elements Conservation NPC Ocean Challenge.
The swimmers – ranging in age from 11 to 74 years – took to the ocean at 7am from Durban’s Vetch’s Reef, swimming to North Beach and back in fairly tough conditions. And although everyone swam extremely well, it was 17-year-old Sasha-Lee Corris-Nordengen who took the top title, and the winning prize valued at R6 300, in the 5km Ocean Challenge with a time of 1:06:08.
“It was a great swim!” said the Durban Girls’ College pupil, “The conditions there were flat although coming back was a bit choppier, but my surf lifesaving background helped and I really enjoyed it.”
Corris-Nordengen has represented South Africa from the age of 14 competing recently in the Junior World Open Water Champs in Hungary, the World Champs Lifesaving in France and the Region 5 All Africa Games in Zimbabwe. She has also been selected to represent South Africa in Australia later this year at the International Surf Rescue Challenge.
“I definitely prefer the open water swims, anything in a dam or an ocean. I was so happy to be able to compete because I was unavailable last year. I will definitely compete again next year,” she said.
First in the men’s division was one of the youngest competitors, 14-year-old Chad Michau from Clifton College with a time of 1:08:54.
Michau has overcome a fear of ocean swimming, competing in a few Dolphin Miles, however, this was his first 5km ocean swim making the win an even bigger achievement.
“The conditions were not too bad, a bit choppy, but I enjoyed it,” he said.
“This is my second year swimming competitively and I didn’t expect to do so well.”
Organised by Durban’s Olivia Taylor, 18, the founder of Four Elements Conservation, the Ocean Challenge aims to create awareness about ocean degradation while raising funds for conservation. The Ocean Challenge falls under the banner of Four Elements Conservation NPC, an internationally-recognised environmental organisation which Taylor founded at age 15.
Commenting on the race, Taylor said: “Last year we had 16 competitors and it was a huge success but this year surpassed all my expectations,” said the young environmentalist.
“Every swimmer finished despite the conditions being quite tough. The second leg of the race was difficult because of the currents and wind but the last swimmer came in six minutes before cut-off.”
Taylor said the feedback from participants after the race was overwhelmingly positive.
“The atmosphere was fantastic and they all expressed how happy they were that there was a long-distance ocean swim in Durban. The water was warm and visibility was great. They were humbled by the experience and I feel we achieved our goal.”
She also thanked the sponsors who included Woolworths, FMI, Suncoast Casino, Nandos, Island Style the Letschert, Hancock and Bantock families.
A simultaneous beach clean-up, headed by Julia van der Westhuyzen of the Durban Girls’ College Environmental Club, was also a success with a number of youngsters picking up litter between Durban Surf Lifesaving Club and uShaka Beach.
Funds raised at the epic swim will also go towards the Four Elements Evironmental Scholarship Camp which will be awarded to at least six environmentally passionate youngsters between the ages of 10 and 18.
Taylor will be selecting the candidates based on a written application, followed by an interview, and the successful adolescents will attend an informative four-day camp at on the Zululand coast in December, headed by Taylor.
“The camp will involve a series of workshops covering essential business skills, sustainable fundraising and using your youth to your advantage. There will also be engaging environmental activities such as shark dives and walking with rhinos,” Taylor explained.
Four Elements Conservation NPC Ocean Challenge 2015 Results:
