An impressive group of champions have been crowned at the iconic Yallingup main break, after an exciting conclusion to the opening event of the Health Insurance Fund of Australia WA Longboard Titles presented by SunSmart.
Commencing on Friday, longboarders from across WA were greeted to three consecutive days of amazing surf, as Yallingup provided groomed swells and mostly clean ocean conditions.
Some of WA’s best and most experienced longboarders were on show, with competitors using every inch of their nine-foot plus surfboards to maximise their scores across total of fourteen separate divisions contested, ranging from under 18 Juniors to over 70 men’s.
Jack Medland from Dunsborough claimed a double victory in the hotly contested Open Men’s and Open Logger divisions.
Medland’s mix of traditional manoeuvres and critical rail turns saw him take down some highly rated opposition on his way to victory.
Medland kicked off the blue-ribbon Open Men’s final with an excellent score of 8.50 (from a possible 10) and then used priority superbly in the dying moments of the heat, scratching into a long left-hander that earned him a back up 6.83 and victory in the final seconds.
Despite the best efforts of in form surfers; Ryan Clark from Dunsborough), Ryan Egan from Mandurah and Andrew Bland from Yallingup, Medland showed poise and precision when it mattered most to claim the Open Men’s victory.
"It’s been such a great event and I’m so stoked to win both the Open’s and the Loggers, it’s like a dream come true," said Medland.
“It’s probably the toughest field of surfers I can ever remember competing against at a state title."
Georgia Young from Swanbourne proved yet again she’s one of WA’s best-ever female longboarders, defeating a trio of Yallingup locals including Crystal Wallace, Lauren Williams and Emily Gibbs to win the Open Women’s final.
Finishing on a combined total of 15.56 (from a possible 20), Young’s strong technique and superior wave selection left her opposition chasing excellent scores in order to snatch victory away from her.
"This has been one of the best turnout of girls we’ve had in a very long time,” said Young.
“Myself and Crystal use to compete heaps and it was great to catch up with her and share some memories out there.”
Karl Leavy from Yallingup was a standout, using his local knowledge to advantage picking off the best waves and smashing them to pieces in the over 40 men’s final.
Leavy scored using a strong backhand attack, which saw him send buckets of pray and amass a combined total of 16.07 (from a possible 20).
“It’s pretty rare that you get to surf Yallingup with just a handful of people out there,” said Leavy.
“I’m really happy to get a win and I’m stoked with the introduction of a priority system for the first time, it’s been great.”
South West surfers dominated most other divisions, with the locals clearly benefitting from their intimate knowledge of the Yallingup line up.
Margaret River’s Bill Gibson was a double winner, taking out the over 40 Loggers division as well as the Over-60 Men’s.
Doug Carruthers from Margaret River won the over 50 Men’s divisions, Brett Merifield from Dunsborough won the over 55 men’s, while Bob Monkman from Yallingup won the over 65 men’s and Busselton’s Dave Ellis won the over 70 men’s.
In other results, Neil Thompson from Scarborough won the over 45 grand masters, Amanda Curley from North Beach won the over 40 women’s, with Jacob McIvor from Rockingham and Zali Corry from Mandurah the best of the under 18 juniors.
“Longboarding is such an important part of surfing’s history and it was so good to see how well everyone competed no matter of their age or gender,” said Surfing WA events manager Justin Majeks.
“I’m delighted with the outcome of event and I’m really happy to see the successful introduction of a priority system, as well as the high levels of stoke and encouragement on offer for the past three days.”
Proving age is no barrier, over-65 men’s winner Bob Monkman picked up the ‘West Coast Suspensions Wave of the Weekend' for a near perfect 9.33 (from a possible 10), the highest individual score of the entire event.
Scott Trew from Gabbadah walked away with a brand Special T longboard thanks to Firewire Surfboards, the official surfboard partner of the HIF WA Longboard Titles.
After a hugely successful start to the 2018 HIF State Longboard Titles, all eyes are now turned towards the second event of the series, which will head to the beautiful beaches of Denmark in May.
Joe Jordanoff’s surfing tips for this week
Forecast: Thursday has SSE winds and a building new two metre groundswell which will continue into Friday with more SE winds.
Saturday also looks good with a solid two metre swell and SE winds while Sunday drops off to 1.5m with clean ESE winds.
Hotspot
Shallows
Final results for the HIF WA Longboard Titles presented by SunSmart
OPEN MEN:
1. Jack Medland (Dunsborough) – 15.33
2. Ryan Clark (Dunsborough) – 12.57
3. Ryan Egan (Mandurah) – 12.00
4. Andrew Bland (Yallingup) – 10.23
OPEN WOMEN:
1. Georgia Young (Swanbourne) – 15.56
2. Crystal Wallace (Yallingup) – 14.33
3. Lauren Williams (Yallingup) – 8.06
4. Emily Gibbs (Dunsborough) – 5.0
OPEN LOGGER:
1. Jack Medland (Dunsborough) – 14.53
2. Lindsay Small (Melville) – 13.07
3. Mark Matisons (Cottesloe) – 9.53
4. Jock Bahen (Cowaramup) – 1.83
U18 JUNIOR BOYS:
1. Jacob McIvor (Secret Harbour) – 28.34
2. Archie Le Grice (East Fremantle) – 18.78
*combined best two waves from 2x finals
U18 JUNIOR GIRLS:
1. Zali Corry (Mandurah) – 13.77
2. Laura McEwan (Denmark) – 10.10
*combined best two waves from 2x finals
OVER 40 MEN:
1. Karl Leavy (Dunsborough) – 16.07
2. Neil Thompson (Scarborough) – 14.64
3. Brendan Collins (Mandurah) – 11.50
4Robin Somogyvarni (Dunsborough) – 9.40
OVER 40 WOMEN:
1. Amanda Curley (North Beach) – 21.89
2. Laura Colombo (Dunsborough) – 18.06
3. Belinda Le Grice (East Fremantle) – 15.06
*combined best two waves from 2x finals
OVER 40 LOGGER:
1. Bill Gibson (Margaret River) – 23.84
2. Doug Carruthers (Margaret River) – 20.8
3. Kim Hardeman (Scarborough) – 11.63
4. Gary McCormick (Mullaloo) – 9.16
*combined best two waves from 2x finals
OVER 45 MEN:
1. Neil Thompson (Scarborough) – 27.06
2. Paul Burke (Dunsborough) – 22.04
3. Kevin Anderson (North Fremantle) – 21.34
4. Alfonso Puzzarini (Yallingup) – 20.97
5. Karl Leavy (Dunsborough) – 19.04
*combined best two waves from 2x finals
OVER 50 MEN:
1. Doug Carruthers (Margaret River) – 16.00
2. Kevin Anderson (North Fremantle) – 10.0
3. Tim Churack (Yallingup) – 8.90
4. Steve Becker (Palmyra) – 5.03
OVER 55 MEN:
1. Brett Merifield (Dunsborough) – 14.90
2. Frank Gray (Secret Harbour) – 14.66
3. Richard Wain (Yallingup) – 10.56
4. Mike Neunuebel (Denmark) – 10.43
OVER 60 MEN:
1. Bill Gibson (Margaret River) – 12.63
2. Bob Monkman (Yallingup) – 9.67
2. Chris Fullston (Mandurah) – 9.50
3. Brent Moss (Esperance) – 8.50
OVER 65 MEN:
1. Bob Monkman (Yallingup) – 30.96
2. Tony Harrison (Albany) – 17.04
3. Stan Davies (Daglish) – 16.03
4. Mick Marlin (Dunsborough) – 10.60
*combined best two waves from 2x finals
OVER 70 MEN:
1. Dave Ellis (Busselton) – 5.00