TANGAROA is still refusing to come to the East Coast surf party, despite two Gisborne surfing competitions being staged this weekend.
The Tauawhi No Violence Longboard Classic and the penultimate event in the Gisborne Boardriders Club shortboard series are scheduled for tomorrow and Sunday respectively.
Both days look set to have swell, but will likely be plagued by onshore/cross-shore southerly winds.
The No Violence Classic is one to get behind, regardless of your skill level.
The whanau-friendly event is in its third year, and all profits go to the Tauawhi Charitable Trust, which supports the Tauawhi Men’s Centre to help raise awareness about and prevent family violence.
Organiser Tim Marshall says it always has a really positive atmosphere, “with everyone enjoying the whanau-friendly day and embracing the kaupapa of a violence-free Tairawhiti”.
The competition has support from Moananui Longboardriders Club, and starts at 7.30am tomorrow at Makorori Beach.
It is open to all ages and costs $40 for open and older surfers, and $20 for those under 16. The speedos/bikini event is free.
The major spot prize is a longboard, and other spot prizes will be awarded for best Hawaiian shirt and wildest hat.
Registration is at Charcoal Chicken, Gladstone Road, tonight from 6pm to 9pm.
For more information, contact Tim Marshall on 027-5586-362, or check out the Tauawhi or Moananui Longboardriders Club Facebook pages.
Congratulations to Gisborne Boardriders Club, named Club of the Year at the Logans Sporting Excellence Awards last Friday.
Three surfers also received special commendations for international selection — Stella Smith and Sean Hovell for the ISA Stand Up Paddleboard World Championships and Saffi Vette for the ISA Junior World Championships.
GBC was a finalist for New Initiative of the Year for its after-school surf programme Rippers, and Ricardo Christie was a finalist for International Sportsperson of the Year.
Christie progressed to Round 3 of the Qualifying Series 10,000-point rated Hawaiian Pro this week.
In a nail-biter, the Gisborne-Mahia surfer came second in his Round 2 heat, with a two-wave total of 11.74, pipping Tahiti’s Ariihoe Tefaafana by 0.14 of a point.
Brazil’s Bino Lopes won the heat with 13.06, while Australia’s Jackson Baker was fourth on 10.37. The top two advanced to the next round.
Christie was lucky to make it through as he looked a little off his game in the soft waves.
While we have come to love watching the power surfer unleash on open faces, during this heat he tended to hold back and play it safe, when he should have gone full throttle.
That said, the conditions at Haleiwa this week have been abysmal (by Hawaiian standards).
The four surfers battled it out in soft, waist-high surf — none of the towering, bone-crushing walls of water we have come to expect from Oahu’s famous North Shore.
The next three days look small but on Monday a solid, overhead swell will likely fill in with potential for another swell, potentially in the XL range, for Tuesday and Wednesday.
The penultimate QS event offers the winner 10,000 points towards Championship Tour (CT) 2018 qualification.
Surfers need to finish the QS in the top 10 to seal a place in the elite CT, and as this is the second-to-last event of the 2017 QS, 19th-placed Christie is looking for a solid result.
In Round 3, he faces CT Brazilian surfers Miguel Pupo and Wiggolly Dantas, and fellow QS surfer Jorgann Couzinet.
Closely following this competition is the Vans World Cup at Sunset Beach, beginning on November 25, also offering a maximum 10,000 points to the winner.
For all other Gisborne surfers not competing this weekend, it might be a good idea to head out of town for a wave.
The west coast has been absolutely pumping in the past two weeks, although it looks as if the swell will drop a fair bit this weekend.
The Bay of Plenty could have some options late tomorrow and on Sunday morning, with a small bump in swell from the north.
Waves can be found, you just need to hunt them down.
See you out the back.