On Saturday the 7th November we held the second race, of the Xpression on the Beach – Millers Downwind Series. Unfortunately the wind did not come to the party, but the God’s blessed us with a spectacular Cape Town day, and Fish Hoek was on top form with blue water, white sand beaches and the sun out in full force.
We decided on a triangular course around the bay. We were to start on the beach, with a short run into the water. Local legend Gary Van Rooyen was eager to get going and mounted prematurely, resulting in his fin being caught in the sand, sending Gary face first over the “Handle Bars” – a highlight for the spectators. From there, it was a sprint to the back of the bay, where we rounded the first buoy. We then headed down the Catwalk to the Fish Hoek Corner to “touch” the second buoy. From the corner it was a crosswind section down the beach, back to the Start/Finish line, where a beach flag was set up for a short beach run and then the lap was to be repeated. The Shark Bait and Shark Spotter’s groups, each did 2 laps (3.4km), where the Shark Warriors had to do 3 laps (5.2km).
The Shark bait and Shark warrior’s set off first. Ex-Capetonian, (now residing in England) Ashley Barnard was out the blocks first on his Coreban Dart Pro, with the rest of the guys close on his tail. In the ladies, we saw Kim Du Venage and Monika Wolgemuth fighting it out for first place in the Diva’s. New and upcoming Diva, Jan Beamish was fast out the blocks and paddled an excellent race. First time racer’s and XOTB Wahine’s, Lizanie Teron and Liezel Paul paddled like champions and we look forward to seeing them along with the rest of the Wahine’s in the next couple of races to come!
In the Shark Warrior’s, it was business as usual, with a fierce battle between all competitors. Tom and Tarryn King broke the pack early and managed to grow their lead with every stroke, taking first and second place respectively. Gary, who had taken a tumble at the start line, had some work to do in order to catch up, and eventually found himself in a head to head battle with Armin who managed to beat Gary on the final stretch and take the third.
Although it was no Downwind and not what we had planned, it was a great afternoon and a really fun and challenging course.
We are looking forward to the next and final race of the season which will be happening on the 28th November, fingers crossed for some wind!
ALOHA!
Miller’s Downwind Series – Race 2
Leave A Comment