Lisa Auditore Crowned WP University Surfing Champion

Lisa Auditore with her competition winnings

On Sunday the 26^th of August the surf teams from UCT, Cape Peninsular University of Technology and Stellenbosch University gathered at Big Bay for the revival of the once annual Western Provence Inter-University Championships. Grey skies and blustery conditions remained from the cold front which passed over during the night and reminded everyone that the Cape winter had not quite given up for the year. But with June’s national student surfing championships still fresh in everyone’s memories the competitors were keen to reignite the rivalries.

The event got under way with the men’s Round 1 but, with 5 guys in each heat and high tide Big Bay not entirely coming to the party, progressing through the first round proved difficult. Many a surfer found themselves caught in the mid-break paddling furiously too little effect as precious minutes ticked by. For those who didn’t succeed in Round 1 the Repo Round offered another chance to impress, while those fortunate enough to luck onto a wave which allowed for the linking of turns, got to relax with a Red Bull in the lee out of the chilly North Wester.

Our Ladies in the Final with Candice from Maties Sport

Following the Repos the Men’s Quarterfinals were staged as the tide began to drop. This made the mid-by peak the clear place to be, but did little for the consistency of the sets. Emerging from the Quarters were: Maties, Bjorn Larsen and Kurt Dreyer, along with Ilan Sheer, Cyle Myers, Logan Eales, Philip Visagie, Daniel Wilson and Grant Arense. With the Men’s Quarters out the way the ladies took to the water for the first time and with only 8 of the fairer sex present as a result of only Stellenbosch being able to muster a full side their competition begun at the Semi-final stage.

The Maties ladies not only dominated numerically, but also out surfed their UCT and CPUT adversaries, with Lisa Auditore, Julia Buchanon and Lisa Mace making the final. That meant that they would compete the final against a lone Mother City student, UCT’s Jessica Lee. In the men’s Semis meanwhile, the UCT surfers dominated claiming all four berths with Cyle Myers, Logan Eales, Philip Visagie and Daniel Wilson ensuring that Ikeys scored big points in the team competition.

Men's Finalist Daniel Wilson

In the ladies final wave selection played a massive role, with Lisa Auditore picking the best two of the 20 minute heat and the title. What made her victory all the more remarkable was the fact that after her second wave, with more than ten minutes still on the clock, she got caught inside and did not manage to catch another wave of consequence for the remainder of the final. Jessica Lee was more cautious in her approach and avoided being caught inside, but also failed to match Auditore’s commitment to the final manoeuvre and ended a valiant second. Lisa Mace and Julia Buchanon placed 3^rd and 4^th respectively after both being subjected to very long paddles without much joy from Poseidon.

The men’s final was a more tightly contested affair which saw Logan Eales place 4^th and Daniel Wilson 3^rd while Philip Visagie and Cyle Myers were nearly inseparable at the final reckoning. But despite a sneaky little barrel Visagie came up short and Myers took home the title. UCT claimed the overall trophy in the team competition with Stellenbosch coming in second and CPUT third.

Ilan Sheer in Round 1

Despite the often difficult conditions in the water, the men’s finalists in particular put on a great exhibition of surfing and contest director Liam Wood of Cape Town Surf Adventures ensured the event ran without a hitch (which is no small feat when coordinating 28 student surfers from 3 institutions). Hopefully under Liam’s watchful eye and with the support of the sponsors – Creatures Grips & Leashes, Truth Clothing, Beach Religion Sandals, Primi Piatti, Sport n Surf and &Union – the Western Provence Inter-University Championships can once again become a mainstay of the Cape student surfing calendar.