The Australian Surf Festival returned to North Haven today for the fifth day on the trot, with some of longboarding’s elder statesmen surfing their round two heats and semi-finals in the Australian Longboard Titles.
NSW’s Richard Smith and Victoria’s Greg Brown went toe-to-toe for the lead in the Over-50 Men semi-finals with both surfers trading excellent scores and lengthy waves. When the final hooter sounded it was Richard who got the nod by less than half-a-point. Both surfers booked their spot into the Over-50 Men final.
John Lane showed he would be one to watch in the Over-50 Men final after snatching a solid win in the remaining semi-final. The Victorian surfer successfully locked in an 8.25 and an 8.50 to steal the win from NSW surfer Gary Burden.
“I was wrapped with that score, it felt awesome. It was probably a fluke though,” laughed John. “It was one of the best semi-finals I’ve ever surfed. Greg Brown shapes my boards, so it’ll be great to surf a final with him. This year will be the fifth time I’ve made the final of the Australian Titles, in the past I’ve got two thirds and two fourth places, so I’d love to beat that this year.”
John Skinner and Glenn Mahoney impressed the judges over the course of their respective Over-55 Men semi-finals both locking in heat wins and booking themselves a finals berth. The two NSW surfers will be joined by Allan Brown and Jack Howarth in the final of the Over-55 Men.
“I’m pretty happy with the way I surfed. I feel like I could have surfed better, but I think I performed as well as the waves would allow,” said Glenn Mahoney. “I won the Australian Title in 2009, so it’d be great to do that again this year. I always love coming down to Port Macquarie for this event. It’s only two-hours away for me and it’s a beautiful part of the world. It’d be great to see more swell over the next few days.”
NSW’s Daniel Bond and Queensland’s Neville Smith both put on an impressive display of traditional manoeuvres to qualify for the Over-60 Men and the Over-65 Men final.
“I’m really happy about qualifying for both finals,” said Neville. “The waves were a little bit slow, but everyone is in the same boat. I figured I would try and catch the set waves and work them through to the reform section. It obviously worked for me. With the swell having lifted slightly, I opted to sit a little north of the other competitors and pick off whatever I could.”
Neville added: “It’s great to surf against these guys every year. There’s a great camaraderie in both divisions and everyone really enjoys each others company. Danny Bond and I have been adversaries for a long time now and have shared countless finals together. Sometimes he wins, and sometimes I win. It’s really all about whoever gets the best waves in the final really.”
Daniel Bond took out the Nikon Wave of the Day for an 8.75 ride in his Over-65 semi-final. For his efforts Bond received a Nikon Coolpix AW110 camera.
The small waves are predicted to continue over the next few days with a strong likelihood of northerly winds.
Contest Director Glen Elliot said: “We are seeing a slight and more predominant organised swell hitting the open beaches to the north and with an incoming tide we should see decent shaped waves throughout the morning, but still only in the two-to-three foot range.”
All heat results, event highlight clips, images and news is available at www.australiansurffestival.com
All competitors are advised to ring the event hotline (0458 247 212) by 6.45am on the days of competition to confirm location and running order.
The main base for the Australian Surf Festival will be Town Beach, which is located in the heart of Port Macquarie, however the event is mobile with numerous beach break options available between Port Macquarie and North Haven (20 minutes drive south of Port Macquarie CBD) including Flynns Beach, Lighthouse Beach, Rainbow Beach at Bonny Hills and Grants Beach at North Haven.
This year’s event will feature a busy schedule out of the water with live music and surf education courses, including Surfing NSW’s free CPR and board rescue course, Surfers Rescue 24/7. Town Green Inn is the official headquarters for all functions and courses.
The Australian Surf Festival is a key regional event on the NSW Events Calendar, and is supported by the NSW Government’s tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW.
The Australian Surf Festival is proudly supported by the NSW Government, Destination NSW, Port Macquarie Tourism, Port Macquarie Hastings Council, Be the Influence, Harley-Davidson Australia, Town Green Inn, Nikon, Suncorp, Australian Sports Commission, Coastalwatch, NBN, Port Macquarie News, 2MC, Star FM, Surfing World Magazine and Pacific Longboarder Magazine.
2013 AUSTRALIAN SURF FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
10-18 August – Australian Longboard Titles
16-18 August – Australian Logger Titles
16-18 August – Australian Longboard Titles – Under 18 Boys and Girls
19-23 August – Australian Surfmasters Titles
21-23 August – Australian Single Fin Titles
