Solid lines greeted the competitors on the opening morning of the Rip Curl GromSearch at Seal Point, Cape St Francis, with three to four-foot waves and light onshore conditions, making for highly contestable sets.
The contest organisers wasted no time in getting going, and the U16 Boys were the first division to hit the water. Good performances from Loghann Tilsley (14.67 out of a possible 20 points) and Kai Stubbs (15.50) set the mood for the day, with good scoring potential across the inside section of the fabled pointbreak.
Other surfers to stand out in this division included Ben Esterhuyse, Slayde Shooter, Olie Pascoe and Tyson Johnson, putting his Nahoon Reef experience to the test.
With much on the line, it was an exciting start, with the top U16 Boy in the series as well as the TOP U16 Girl set to win entries and R20k prizes towards the Rip Curl GromSearch International Finals, set to take place at Hossegot in France in November. With a very close spread amongst the top three U16 boys and the top two U16 boys, there was no time for mistakes.
The Rip Curl GromSearch International Finals will be hosted this year by World Champion and Rip Curl Team Rider Molly Picklum, along with Crosby Colapinto, also from team Rip Curl.
Sinoyolo Tsongolo advanced out of the U16 Round One Heat Four – © Kody McGregor.
With a little bit more wind on the wave faces, the stand-outs of the U14 Boys were Ethan Schermbrucker, Harry Walton, Valdemar Gwenin and Slayde Shooter, with all winning their heats with relative ease.
The U12 Boys were charging in the at-times bumpy sets, having a dig at impressing the judges in their quarterfinals. The top point scorers were Lazaro de Bruyn, Ethan Schermbrucker, Leo Macleod, and Cody Painter. By the time these heats started, the predicted easterly wind had done enough damage to the surf to prompt the contest organisers to call the contest off for the day.
The forecast for tomorrow, October 4, looks significantly improved, with a late morning wind shift to the southwest and the chance of some epic surf throughout the day.
© Kody McGregor
It is a Surfing South Africa event.
The tournament is hosted by The Cape St Francis Resort.
Channel Islands Surfboards South Africa is a supporting sponsor.
St Francis Today is the media partner in St Francis Bay.
The Rip Curl GromSearch Seal Point is a Surfing South Africa event.
It is presented by Sea Harvest
The Royal St Andrews Hotel Port Alfred is a co-sponsor of the Rip Curl International GromSearch Finals prizes and awards.
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Alan Straton
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