The Beagle
- Dec 5, 2022

December Dalmeny Boardriders Sandy Santa Surf Comp

By Alice Wilson On Sunday the 4th of December the Dalmeny Boardriders wrapped the year up with our last point score for 2022. It was certainly a day to remember, with promises of good waves all day. It was dubbed “best competition of the year” by several club members. The sun was out and as predicted, the wind blew steady from the north-east. Yabbarra Beach, the local lover of a north-east swell, was unscathed by this wind. Dreamy 3-4 foot sets of clean swell rolled around the point, the goofy foot surfers were excited by these left hand gems. A few excited youngsters had spittle flying from their lips as they raced to hit the water for a sneaky pre-competition surf. The BBQ was sizzling early, with Helen dressed in her Christmas best she brought in the festive season. There was a noticeable buzz in the air amongst the spectators and competitors, we had been told there would be a special visitor at some stage in the day. First in the water was the Under 14 boys final. Goofy footer Hamish White made a statement early in the heat as he took off on a 4-5 foot bomb, laid out a massive bottom turn to snap floater and free fell with the lip to land with control and continue on the finish the wave - a well earned excellent 8.5 point ride. Mitchell Louden found an elusive right hander on the inside, reading the wave well with a smooth cutback and a tight closeout re-entry. Sam Harris and Ruben Smithers played it safe with some smooth and controlled turns. Ruben Smithers took off on a few steep waves, grabbing rail and hoping for an opening but his waves unfortunately didn’t hold up. It was Hamish White who brought home the bacon with a back up 7.67 point ride - throwing buckets off the lip and a tidy re-entry to take first place. The Under 18 girls final was next. These young ladies paddled out with admirable confidence. The first few waves ridden didn’t offer much wall and faded quickly. It was Ruby Davis who started with a bang with two 5 point waves, she displayed marked improvement in her backside surfing with several carves and some serious speed down the line. Georgia Dawson wasn’t afraid as she managed a few turns on a medium sized runner, receiving 4 points. Anna Woolnough sat in close, picking off the punchy foam balls in the hope of a re-form. A 5 foot clean-up set rolled around the point and re-set the lineup. It was then in the dying minutes Marley Eaten found her feet on two waves which offered green face for her to get to work, finishing in first place. In the first heat of the Over 45 Men, after series of missed waves and surfers going over the falls, Mark Anderson took off on a self proclaimed “comical” wave. He belly boarded down the bumpy face, each thump bringing him closer to a whiplash injury, then when he reached the bottom he made a miraculous recovery by popping to his feet and executing a beautifully tight snap right in the pocket. Anthony Ireson rode a long wave but unfortunately a rippable section didn’t present itself. Andrew Johnson worked hard on a few turns and finished with a floater but unfortunately didn’t stick the landing. Johnson’s last wave however was a bomb, a running left hander, and after almost falling off the back of the wave on his second turn he snaked his board back to the power pocket and smashed out another 5 or 6 wiggles to score a tidy 6.33 points. In the second heat, goofy footer Luke Waters turned on the froth. Relishing in the frontside conditions, he got on the rail for a few carves, pumped down the line and as a big steep end section presented itself his water-logged dreadlocks defied gravity as hit the lip and floated the foam to score a deserved 7.33. The Over 45 final was as suspenseful as they come, with Luke Waters and Andrew Johnson battling it out for the year’s podium finish, we could almost see the tension radiating from the surfers in the water. Luke Waters scored a spectacular 7 point wave getting whippy in his frontside wonderland. Mark Anderson got a 6.33 on a solid left with some big speedy turns and took out the Open Mens division. There was only 0.23 of a point separating first place from third place. The open women hit the water next. As if someone flicked a switch, the sets that came through were relentless. It was a struggle to get out the back but goofy footer Alice Mood was determined - her first wave, a running 4 foot set wave, resulted in a snapped leg rope. Good old Dalmeny community spirit shone bright as Alice dragged herself into shore, one fellow club member running to fetch her board, another running to her car for a fresh leg rope, and a third offering her his own rope from his board (which was quickly fastened on with a cable tie). As the girls struggled to find rideable waves in the intense impact zone, Alice managed to sneak out the back again and pick off another left hander to claim a 6 point ride to win the heat. In the second heat the women battled to find waves with a wall. Lucy Baltis rode a wave all the way into the beach. Despite raising her arms and crying out in frustration as she fell off the back of a bomb, Jodie Hoar managed some good takeoffs and cutbacks on some fading walls to win the heat. In the final only 20 minutes later, the exhausted females struggled once again to get out the back. Melissa Hoar picked off a couple of good waves, one left taking her halfway down the beach. Alice Mood earned her self a Big Niles voucher for first place with a 6.3 point wave, a nice turn on her new board - only just managing to ride out still standing. It was then, the moment we had all been anticipating. From around the point, paddling onto a scorcher of a wave, weaving and carving around each other, throwing buckets of spray while holding buckets of lollies, arrived the not-so-big man-child in the red suit and his little helper - surfing santa arrived onto Yabbarra beach. This lollie wielding sandy santa was bombarded by a hoard of ecstatic screaming little humans. It was a day for the little (and medium) ones. Kristen “master of fun” Guseli had these mini frothers occupied with games like musical towels, tug of war and some sandy sort of relay race. Even those who weren't winners were still grinners whilst under the Guseli charm. The assisted groms and their pusher-on-ers faced mayhem in the foam ball washing machine. Ayla Hoar and Abigail Black demonstrated balance and control. Lucas Heinemann showed consistency with a 5 point ride and a 4 point ride. But it was goofy foot Flinder Black who shone, with a long 6 point ride - popping up quickly and pumping along the face on a speedy wave. Flinder also managed to win a pair of Oakley sunglasses for “wipeout of the day”. The kids certainly earned their sausages and the parents a cold beer for their efforts. The Under 18 boys had a straight final too. Silas earned himself a hamburger from Blue Octopus Takeaway with another “wipeout of the day” award - taking off on a bomb and becoming one with the lip and free falling to oblivion and beyond. Jet Lange reached maximum velocity on a nice inside section and Will Tiffen milked a runner to the beach with multiple snaps on a smaller wave. But it was Matt Driscoll who dominated. He scored an excellent 8 points on one wave - working hard, throwing spray and getting the board halfway above the lip and almost past 12 o’clock (vertical) - head judge Andrew Johnson described this wave as “critical, smooth and in control”. Matt backed this wave up with a nice square close out re-entry scoring a 6.5. Finally the Open Men hit the water. Visitor Adam Seminara had the judges excited by committing to some extreme sections with manoeuvres that had potential for excellent scores, unfortunately coming unstuck on these. Matt Driscoll rotated the board over 180 degrees under the lip and executed all the right moves in all the right sections. Matt Hoar had it in the bag when he opened his score by leaning hard on his backside rail with a massive hack into a small cover up, followed by a few more turns throwing spray almost 5 metres in the air, awarding him 7.4 points. After a nail biting day in the water, Adam Seminara from Surfing NSW ran a “Surfer’s Rescue” and first aid course for our motivated members. Final results: Under 13s - Flinder Black Under 14 boys - Hamish White Under 18 boys - Matt Driscoll Over 45 men - Mark Anderson Open mens - Matt Hoar Under 18 girls - Marley Eaton Open women - Alice Mood It has been a busy and successful year for our boardrider club. Thanks to Kaz Hush Creative, we now have a fresh new website where you can order merchandise, find upcoming events and our 2023 schedule, read competition recaps, competition rules and rankings and of course find some cool surfing photos - www.dalmenyboardriders.com.au On behalf of the Dalmeny Boardriders Club, vice president Dean Lange wanted to thank all participants and volunteers for their contribution throughout the year. Dean reported “with today’s amazing conditions there was some impressive surfing. There were some huge sets coming through, especially in the women’s final, it was great to see some of the waves that were caught by the women”. Dean extended a big thanks to Jim, Helen and Megan for their tireless help with the canteen every competition day. He hopes to see returning faces and some new members for the 2023 season. Become a member in 2023 - social or competitive memberships available! Presentation Day: Sunday 29th January 2023