Sun up to Sundown

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It’s 6am and I rock up to Southend to find Rich, Karo and Hickey patiently waiting at the bottom of the ramp to see what first light would bring. I say g’day and from their responses I sensed there was bit of nervousness there. It’s a big year for the club. 30th straight year and we all want to make sure the season kicks off on the right foot.

As first light peeked over the horizon we saw some super fun 3ft lines. A clean easterly swell with a light SW blowing and the boys had no hesitation in claiming the bowl at Southend as ours for the day.

Early indications were that there was going to be a huge roll up this year boy those indications weren’t wrong. The people kept streaming down the beach and by the time the first heat hit the water at 8am we had worked out that we were going to have to run 40 x 6 man heats to complete the day. And that did not even factor in the micros. Easily one of the biggest comps we have held in years.

From the Cadets who hit the water in heat 1 to the Junior Boys Final that hit the water in heat 40 at 6.30pm surfers were pushing the boundaries on every wave. It was very noticeable that the bar has been raised this season and surfers will have to be on their game if they want to win the title. The same goes for all the micro competitors. They were just outstanding and everyone at the club is really excited to watch them progress throughout the year.

Congratulations to the all the divisional winners

  • Micro Boys Koda Killorn
  • Micro Girls Zoe Cass
  • Cadet Girls Meg Woods
  • Cadet Boys Jason O’Rourke
  • Junior Boys Max McGuigan
  • B Grade Rich Cass
  • Grand Master Greg Watling
  • Open Women Emma McGuigan
  • A Grade Monty Tait

In coming days we will post the full comp results and the full rankings for each division so keep an eye on the website and Facebook.

Finally we would like to thank everyone who turned up to comp 1. The surfers new and old, the judges, the guys cooking the BBQ, the photographers, the mates and families of the surfers hanging out and watching the event go down. Every one of you contributed to one of the most amazing comp days Southend Boardriders have ever had. What a way to kick off our 30th year. Great weather, fun waves and a super vibe on the beach. What more can you ask for…. We look forward to doing it all again for comp 2 on May 3rd.