Big, blustery and consequential conditions hit East Beach in Port Alfred for the finals of the Premier U16 division and the U18 division of the Rip Curl GromSearch on Monday.
The Rip Curl GromSearch, presented by The Royal St Andrews Hotel and supported by Sea Harvest, was an anchor event of the annual Port Alfred Easter Festival.
Undaunted by the gruelling conditions, Leah Lepront surfed her way to victory in the Premier U16 girls’ division, taking the win from Jasmine Venter to secure her berth into the Rip Curl International Finals.
She also won the R20,000 travel voucher to help her along the way to the international finals event.
“I’ve been working so hard and training for this event,” Lepront said. “This was my one focus and I am so happy I took out the win.”
Similarly, Port Alfred’s Carl Wiersma ruled supreme with a heat total of 15.50 (out of a possible 20 points) to take the U16 boys’ title.
Wiersma was the standout in the U16 boys’ division, surfing at an incredible level throughout this event, and will also be flying to the international final later this year.
He beat goofy-footer Ben Esterhuyse into second place, with another local, Owen Heny, third, and Melokuhle Zotshana fourth.
“It was tough out there,” Wiersma said of the heavy conditions.
“I paddled across to the mouth and was waiting there, ducking under the sets, and then I saw this double-up and I paddled across and got it, and it was the best wave of the final.”
The U18 girls’ final was another exciting affair, with superior surfing from Taylor Emslie seeing her take the win from Louise Lepront, with Leah Lepront and Camilla Heuer filling the third and fourth positions respectively.
Emslie’s highest scoring wave banked 8.5 points in the early moments of the final and saw her shoot into the lead and keep her position there until the end.
In the U18 boys’ final, it was all about power surfing, with goofy-footer Loghann Tilsley coming on strongly at the end of the heat to grab the lead from Rory Dace.
Tilsley showed supremacy in the massive conditions at East Beach.
As the tide rushed in and the wind dropped in the late afternoon, the waves improved somewhat, allowing for massive scoring potential and subsequent big scores on the board for the surfers.
Ben Esterhuyse and Cooper Smith were third and fourth.
The Rip Curl GromSearch presented by The Royal St Andrews Hotel is part of the Port Alfred Easter Festival, a multi-sports, music, and culture festival that takes place every Easter weekend on the banks of the Kowie River.
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