A golden morning with excellent waves pouring down the reef at Outer Pool soon gave way to odd bursts of rain. A little taste of winter came whistling around the corner at The Point area of Mossel Bay and attempted to cool down all the excitement of Day 2 of the Billabong Junior Series presented by BOS. But action in the water stayed red-hot and continued unabated through the bad weather.
The swell had increased slightly overnight, and some solid sets were showing up on the Outer Pool reef, running through into the inside and providing a perfect canvas for the junior surfers to boost their futuristic moves and impress the judges. Some of the waves bent at a perfect angle over the reef, allowing for a few great barrel opportunities. Surfers pulled into barrels unperturbed by the hungry Outer Pool rockshelf.
Matt McGillivray from JBay was the first surfer to turn heads, showing that he is fast becoming a real talent and a serious threat in any conditions. McGillivray had been out of the water for a few months following an operation, and is now back to strength and showing that he is determined to regain his place as one of the best and most dynamic young surfers in the country.
Throwing caution to the wind, McGillivray projected into the air on a decent sized set wave to perform a perfect forehand air reverse move, landing perfectly in front of the wave to carry on surfing through to the inside. The wave scored him 8 points and saw him advance from his heat in first place.
Another surfer who blew minds happens to be the one surfer in the event who is not from our country. Sebastian Williams of Mexico found his rhythm early, easily deposing of some of the top South African surfers. Riding a FireWire shaped by Gary Linden, Sebastian dominated his heat and showed the boys some BMT as he casually waited for the set waves with high scoring potential. His patience saw him rewarded with two tube rides, the highest scoring move, and the heat win.
"I had a great heat out there, and had loads of fun as well," said Williams. "The wave out in front is so much fun. So rippable. It reminds me of Trestles."
In the Women's Pro Junior Round 12, Heat 1, it was JBay surfer Emma Smith who surfed confidently into first place, with Crystal Hullet in second also advancing.
"I was a bit nervous in that heat as I didn't get a wave for the first nine minutes or so, and I always like to start off quickly," said Smith. "The waves were fun though, and once I started catching a few I got into a good rhythm."
Today also saw the launch of the Billabong Surfers Helping Surfers initiative, where surfers can hand in their old full-suit wetsuits at certain drop off spots around the country for distribution to surf outreach programs that Billabong supports. In return, donators will receive a voucher for 20 percent off their next Billabong wetsuit purchase.
"We wanted to reach out to less fortunate people out there who might not have equipment like wetsuits," said Billabong Marketing Manager Chad D'Arcy. "It would make us happy to see some of these people getting into the water and going surfing through this initiative."
The event is set to finish tomorrow 27 April. The event hashtag is #billabongjnr and the highlights from Day One can be viewed here.
Surfers in Billabong Junior Series Shine In Bad Weather
WSL
A golden morning with excellent waves pouring down the reef at Outer Pool soon gave way to odd bursts of rain. A little taste of winter came whistling around the corner at The Point area of Mossel Bay and attempted to cool down all the excitement of Day 2 of the Billabong Junior Series presented by BOS. But action in the water stayed red-hot and continued unabated through the bad weather.
The swell had increased slightly overnight, and some solid sets were showing up on the Outer Pool reef, running through into the inside and providing a perfect canvas for the junior surfers to boost their futuristic moves and impress the judges. Some of the waves bent at a perfect angle over the reef, allowing for a few great barrel opportunities. Surfers pulled into barrels unperturbed by the hungry Outer Pool rockshelf.
Matt McGillivray from JBay was the first surfer to turn heads, showing that he is fast becoming a real talent and a serious threat in any conditions. McGillivray had been out of the water for a few months following an operation, and is now back to strength and showing that he is determined to regain his place as one of the best and most dynamic young surfers in the country.
Throwing caution to the wind, McGillivray projected into the air on a decent sized set wave to perform a perfect forehand air reverse move, landing perfectly in front of the wave to carry on surfing through to the inside. The wave scored him 8 points and saw him advance from his heat in first place.
Another surfer who blew minds happens to be the one surfer in the event who is not from our country. Sebastian Williams of Mexico found his rhythm early, easily deposing of some of the top South African surfers. Riding a FireWire shaped by Gary Linden, Sebastian dominated his heat and showed the boys some BMT as he casually waited for the set waves with high scoring potential. His patience saw him rewarded with two tube rides, the highest scoring move, and the heat win.
"I had a great heat out there, and had loads of fun as well," said Williams. "The wave out in front is so much fun. So rippable. It reminds me of Trestles."
In the Women's Pro Junior Round 12, Heat 1, it was JBay surfer Emma Smith who surfed confidently into first place, with Crystal Hullet in second also advancing.
"I was a bit nervous in that heat as I didn't get a wave for the first nine minutes or so, and I always like to start off quickly," said Smith. "The waves were fun though, and once I started catching a few I got into a good rhythm."
Today also saw the launch of the Billabong Surfers Helping Surfers initiative, where surfers can hand in their old full-suit wetsuits at certain drop off spots around the country for distribution to surf outreach programs that Billabong supports. In return, donators will receive a voucher for 20 percent off their next Billabong wetsuit purchase.
"We wanted to reach out to less fortunate people out there who might not have equipment like wetsuits," said Billabong Marketing Manager Chad D'Arcy. "It would make us happy to see some of these people getting into the water and going surfing through this initiative."
The event is set to finish tomorrow 27 April. The event hashtag is #billabongjnr and the highlights from Day One can be viewed here.
Sebastian Williams
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