Early Sunday morning the airwaves were abuzz with information sharing. Wave spotters from around the peninsula fed critical information in to a secret central location, where, in pitch black and locked room, a blindfolded and weather beaten old codger listened to the recordings. Each piece of information was voice polarised to disguise its source so that there could be no possibility of bias or favour. The conditions were presented in location neutral format, option A had an offshore, option B was on, option C was windless but there was already a crowd. Option D was out of control and not expected to improve. Swell sizes broadened the options but expec ted winds narrowed them again. What about the sharks. Time was tight, the old brow became more furrowed, a decision needed to be made which would direct the contestants. The pressure built ….and then it came “Uuuuuuaaah Long Beach!”
And so it was.
Now the calls went out – no need to disguise the frantic voices as instructions were barked. Update the surf line, collect the trailer, collect the judges, collect the Muizenberg guys, get the bus rolling from Site C, draw cash, who’s got the heat sheets, what do you mean late entries? I know it’s your birthday dear but I have a competition. (Did anyone let the codger out?… he was in an early heat!)
A solid 5 foot storm swell met the early heats and the wind picked up from a direction that was both unexpected and not making things easier. The morning pre coffee glitches were soon smoothed over and, as the day moved on, the waves did indeed improve as the wind swung, the volume of non-contestants stayed modest and the program rolled.
While there were in excess of 60 entries, there were a few divisions where there were disappointing numbers. That said, it was good to see a few old faces on the heat sheets and the men’s 50+ was one of the most contested divisions. While the ladies were unhappy with a 15 minute Final (caused by accepting a late entry and the officials not adjusting the heat time), the old guys didn’t complain – they were too busy wheezing. There were reports that Timmy K had an oxygen mask in his car that he slipped on before his final but a quick call to SADA cleared the practice.
There were a few suprises but, as the saying goes “you are the business if you do the business” and there was not a single judge’s decision queried, something that always makes the officials job that little bit easier. That’s not to say that there were not difficult decisions with contestants sometimes only separated by the third wave score of the third judge. Decisions were that close at times.
All in all, the 2011 Western Province Championships was a great one day event and some of the concepts (and mistakes) will help to improve events as we go forward.
Thanks to all of you who competed in good spirit and congratulations to all the winners and indeed all the finalists. It was great to see that finalists did not give up in the face of competing against the “big names” and were giving it their all until the final hooter. Wave of the day?? There were lots of big moves by big names, plenty of air’s, hacks, punts and tail slide 360’s, but the one that stood out for this humble scribe was the “death cheater” through the lip re-entry by Junior Juggernaut Jake Elkington in the sand dredging Crons shorebreak. I want some of that wax!
The results of the event will be posted as soon as the auditors have verified the cash payments from the winners are all in:
All members are invited to the awards evening this coming Saturday night at Fishermans in Kommetjie, 6:00 pm for 7:00 pm…… Please try and wear a shirt or jacket with WP on it, the older the better!
