Wahoo!!!!!
Finally, after many years of coming to Cornwall on what seem like good forecasts and being disappointed, this time it delivered! and big time!!!The conditions were probably the best wave sailing conditions i've ever had in mainland UK, ever? i'm trying to think back and there really isn't anywhere that compares to the conditions we had for this event.
The contest area was quite a long walk up the beach from Gwithians car park but the waves were just insane! The sets were rolling in at around mast high and if you were clever and got the right wave it just reeled along the sandbank, perfectly forming, i think in the final i had a wave with 5 good turns on before finishing with an aerial... it was crazily good!
We managed to complete a single elimination and half of a double elimination before conditions deteriorated.
It was an epic contest, 18 minute heats in perfect waves, it was pretty windy and side offshore, i was using my 4.5 manic so i had enough power to get out but on the waves it's so light and so much control you can power and de power it super easy..
I have to give a big up to my brother Dave at this point, he was last years UK amateur champion and entered his first pro wave event, he ripped!! his second heat was awesome, he caught 2 really good waves and shredded them all the way in, knocking out pro mens tour leader Ben Proffitt in the second round! good scalp boyo. Ben might already have had the overall title sewn up but this was a bragging rights blow for the shrewsbury lad that he didn't want to lose! well done dave though, must be those boards and sails you got!
The Final was just about as good as i could have wanted for me. I was on my JP Kauli Quad 74 production board and my 4.5 Gaastra Manic. I caught a solid logo to mast high wave that peeled perfectly and i could really push hard in my turns off the bottom and off the top, i'd seen some other guys struggling on their top turns earlier in the day with the offshore wind but i could just carve it super hard with so much control, it all felt so easy!! The new quads are working so nice.... they seem to have everything i need, it's nice to feel confident on your gear and then you can just think about your wave selection.
Straight away i got a second wave and ripped that all the way into the beach, that was 2 incredible waves in the first 10 minutes!! i had another 8 minutes but i wasn't sure how i could have bettered those waves!!
I went hunting a massive aerial thinking if i did something extra spectacular i might get more but i crashed pretty hard and thought i better look after myself and my gear a bit better than that!!
It turned out i'd already done more than enough and got the 2 highest scoring waves of the day in the final, a nice way to finish i thought! :)
The conditions deteriorated as they started the double elimination, eventually being abandoned after the first 5 heats or so...
The competition rolled into the weekend and the Amatuers had their turn in some more good conditions but they never really fired anything like the day before and so the pro result from the single elimination and half double stood.. Leaving me Cornwall Wave Classic Champion!!! wooooohooooo!.......
I wish all contests could be in good conditions like these... too many times we've had to scrabble around in uninspiring knee high, light wind, mush.... this was the other end of the scale!! a contest in going off conditions that made me want to compete again!!
you can see some quick video highlights of the 1st day on
Boardseekermag
there's more pix and info on
Boards too.
Pix thanks to:
www.Guavajelly.co.uk
BWA / Crowther
Factory MediaGo to http://www.ripandslash.com for the full website and latest news/pics/videos
