Border clinch surfing title
THE Border team dominated the Cool Shoe South African Masters surfing championships at Nahoon Reef in East London, clinching their eighth successive team title, along with four out of seven individual titles.
Competing in excellent one to two-metre waves with stiff offshore winds on Saturday, Border had representatives in the final of every division and accumulated 39764 points to retain the Masters Cup.
Zululand surprised their counterparts by finishing runners-up in the team standings ahead of Eastern Province, Western Province, KwaZulu-Natal Central, Southern Cape and Southern KwaZulu-Natal.
Devyn Mattheys (Border) excelled in the final of the senior men (over-30), selecting the best waves on offer and posting a heat total of 15.50 out of 20, leaving team-mate Tyrell Johnson needing a near-perfect 9.0 point ride for victory. Alan Johns (Zulu) picked up third place with Kelvin Zehmke (EP) in fourth.
Reigning World Masters champion and defending SA Masters champ Greg Emslie (Border) was in a class of his own in the Masters (over-35) final, finishing nearly five points ahead of runner-up Clinton Fraser (EP). Stuart Fowles (Border) and Andrew Banks (Zulu) claimed third and fourth.
Gary van Wieringen (SKZN) battled with Wayne Monk (Border) in the Grandmasters (over-40) before securing the crown with Kevin O'Brien (Border) and Vince King (Zulu) collecting the minor positions. The Kahunas (over-45) division saw Gareth Sepp capture another title for hosts Border as he comprehensively outscored Rob Moore-Boyle (KZNC), David Malherbe (Border) and Mark Wooten (KZNC).
Fred le Roux claimed the Grandkahunas (over-50) title for Zululand with a dominant display. Nick Pike (Border) grabbed second place and Arthur Cowan (KZNC) narrowly outpointed Andre Venter for third.
Border's Brian Heathcote produced the upset of the day in the over-55 section when he finished just 0.50 of a point ahead of four-time World Masters champion Chris Knutsen (KZNC) with Gordon Harmer (Border) in third and Hand Kamhoot fourth. Heather Clark, a two-time women's World Masters champion, earned the women's title. Tasha Mentasti (SC) was runner-up with Nicky Hare (Border) and Carolyn Dent (WP) in equal third.
