An icy winter morning greeted competitors on the opening day of the O’Neill SMTH Shapes Rookie Rippers event as excited junior surfers headed down to register. This popular contest starts two weeks of competition surfing in Ballito, around the Ballito Pro Festival. The waves were small and highly contestable, and the event had a full entry list, so it was early into the water for Heat 1. The first heat win in the first heat of the day, the U12 Boys Quarterfinal Heat 1, went to local surfer Tyler Balfour, who took out Slayde Shooter (St Francis Bay) and James Gunning (Ballito). Jumping forward to U16 Boys Round One Heat Three, Matt Canning (Durban) put on an explosive performance to outpoint his competitors and took a comfortable win, advancing to the following round. Canning went on to do the double, winning his U18 Boys Round One Heat as well, with another inspired performance in the small conditions. READ OUR BEHIND THE SCENES SCOOP FROM DAY 1, HERE The low tide around midday made the conditions punchy, allowing the surfers to go for aerial moves and other high-scoring manoeuvres. With the sudden-death format, junior surfing is always exciting and sometimes brutal. […]
The post CONTEST NEWS | O’Neill SMTH Shapes Rookie Rippers Day 1 appeared first on Zigzag Magazine.
This popular contest starts two weeks of competition surfing in Ballito, around the Ballito Pro Festival.
The waves were small and highly contestable, and the event had a full entry list, so it was early into the water for Heat 1.
The first heat win in the first heat of the day, the U12 Boys Quarterfinal Heat 1, went to local surfer Tyler Balfour, who took out Slayde Shooter (St Francis Bay) and James Gunning (Ballito).
Jumping forward to U16 Boys Round One Heat Three, Matt Canning (Durban) put on an explosive performance to outpoint his competitors and took a comfortable win, advancing to the following round. Canning went on to do the double, winning his U18 Boys Round One Heat as well, with another inspired performance in the small conditions.
READ OUR BEHIND THE SCENES SCOOP FROM DAY 1, HERE
Matt Canning with a winning performance across two divisions © Tostee/Ballito Pro.
Emile Jenkinson. © McGregor/Ballito Pro.
The post CONTEST NEWS | O’Neill SMTH Shapes Rookie Rippers Day 1 appeared first on Zigzag Magazine.
