The festival of feet on the nose rose early after an absolutely massive night with the Allah-lahs to perfect rights and not a breath of wind. The first fab four slide out at seven and after a blast on the siren we began in earnest. There wasn’t an ounce of disappointment either. The queen of the south sea pushed the perfect size swell our way. The full field of riders took advantage of the conditions and began weaving their magic across the waves. What looked easy and simple was repeatedly reported as tricky and tough. They just made it look easy. Contestants wandered to the beach in their own good time making the original seeding of the field a mess of cross outs and changes. So much for being prepared.
After ploughing through eight round of heats, full of feats of awe and more, as one we cheered a hearty beach welcome of the nine representatives of the fairer sex as the Ladies Expression Session got under way. What a delight to watch. The ladies made it look just as easy as the men though they added a lovely layer of calmness, easy and grace. They spent forty golden minutes swapping waves and smiles and gliding in and back out to everyones absolute delight.
The men splashed back into the quarter finals just as the wind came up and the tide pulled the sea out. They scratched over increasingly exposed outcrops of rocks for what was on offer in a tough field of competitors. The judges conferred and decided it was in everyones interest to take the event no further today rather opting for a cleansing ale washed down with reports and retorts of the mornings surf.
Tomorrow we will be back down just after dawn to run the semis and final. Time willing we’ll get to do the Under 9ft & Single. Given that there is suppose to be a significant bump in swell overnight, tomorrow might be a better than great event to watch at the river mouth. You gonna be there?
