Longboard Competition 2024
Held at Portinfer on Saturday 13th April in some quality long board waves. Congratulations to everyone who took part in and a big thanks to everyone who gave up their day to help. Thanks to Skywave Photography for the video.
Mens
1st Matt Le Maitre
2nd Greg Le Tissier
3rd Dominic Mathews
4th Danny Ohara
Womens
1st Ruth Hurst
2nd Florrie Cooper
Congratulations to everyone who took part in the Cold Water Classic 2024 and a big thanks to everyone who gave up their day to help. We had an excellent day of surfing in some solid waves. Starting with the juniors at T-other Side this morning followed by the women’s and men’s heats at Portinfer this afternoon.
U18 Boys
1st Thomas Le Cheminate
2nd Felix Cooper
U18 Girls
1st Florrie Cooper
2nd Katie Smith
3rd Indi Warren
Women’s
1st Indi Warren
2nd Katie Smith
3rd Bee Smith
4th Charlotte Scherdes
Men’s
1st Johnny Wallbridge
2nd Tom Colley
3rd Ed Cooper
4th James Le Tissier
Words to George
I was lucky enough to know George for about 25 years. There are many people here who have known him for half a century or more.
George was a kind, gentle and extremely friendly man. Who always made you feel welcome and valued at all times. These attributes I feel, we all need to work on.
George was one of the “Saga-Surfers”. I only hope that I am that active and surfing like that when I am in my mid 70’s.
I will always remember surfing with George at Portinfer in the early evening when the Sky was going red and sea a lovely turquoise blue. I managed to get a nice wave, paddle back out and was then greeted by that wonderful twinkle in George’s eye that said so much.
I will end this by paraphrasing someone much more eloquent than I: Mary Elizabeth Fry:
“Do not stand at my grave and weep.
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the gentle Autumn rain.
I am the swift uplifting rush of the swell.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry.
I am not there. I did not die.”
To George and his family, 2023
Remember George’s lovely winning smile
And that twinkle in his eye
Which endeared him to all he met
Without having to even try.
From his fellow surfers in the waves
And co workers at Banks and shops
To the chuckling hawkers on the Moroccan beach
To us all George was the tops
*Remember he was such a good listener and friend
Non judgemental he’d quietly advise
After listening to your grave concerns
His responses helpful, witty and wise
*Remember he and Katie were intrepid travellers
Something they needed to be
To visit their beloved Laura and Matt
Who both travelled far O’er the sea
*Remember our group cycle rides?
So fast his legs a blur
His speed on the flat was legendary
Particularly en route to the Fleur
*Remember George loved to surf glassy “knee to head”
Then surfed out we’d laze in the sun
Before raising his head from his sandy slumber
Saying” It’s cleaned up boys…time for more fun”
*Remember after a hard days surf we’d eat
George would say “don’t you think it’d be rude”
“To not finish off with a wee brandy
To complement the food”
*Remember our fantastic Boys surf trips?
We’d retire surfed out to the core
But paper thin walls at Les Dunes were no match
As dear George was known to snore!
*Remember he loved his MG and Triumph
How he and Katie would jump at the chance
To pack up (very lightly) the red sports car
And go touring together around France
*Remember Cobo was his beloved place
Where he and Katie would sit back in the day
To soak up the sun and bathe in the sea
Watching Laura , Matt and then Lilly play
*Remember at Cobo he was part of the community
“What Ho George!” the locals would call
He’d love a wee chat in Maryland shop or the Rocky
Or just sat on the old sea wall
Remember the tides will ebb and flow
Cobo’s red sun will always set
There are some things we will always remember
And George we will never forget.
Kev
Congratulations to Naomi Mather and Matt Le Maitre for winning the 2022 Longboard Surfing Contest 🙂
The Longboard Surfing contest was held at Vazon on Saturday 21st May 2022 with a small swell in the alcove and on the reef. A big thanks to Cooper Brouard for sponsoring the contest and all the judges who helped run the comp.
First in the water was the women’s with Ruth Hurst, Florrie Cooper, Bea Smith, and Naomi Mather competing with Naomi opting for the lefts on the Vazon reef while the others surfed the alcove. With some very close surfing in waist to chest high waves Naomi Mather took the win followed closely by Ruth Hurts in second place, Florrie Cooper third and Bea Smith in fourth place.
Next in the water for the men’s semi-finals heat, were Jeffery Babasa, Ben Ralph, James Cooper, and Matt Le Maitre with Matt Le Maitre and Ben Ralph progressing through to the finals. In the second heat of the semi-finals were Harry Hider, Greg Le Tissier, and Ed Cooper in a very close heat with Harry Hider and Greg Le Tissier making it through to the finals.
The finals was a closely fought match with any of the surfers looking like they could take the lead, Matt Le Maitre took a long right on the reef that gave him the edge to take the victory winning the competition closely followed by Ben Ralph in second place, Harry Hider in third place and Greg Le Tissier in fourth place.
Women’s
1st – Naomi Mather
2nd – Ruth Hurst
3rd – Florrie Cooper
4th – Bea Smith
Men’s
1st – Matt Le Maitre
2nd – Ben Ralph
3rd – Harry Hider
4th – Greg Le Tissier
Congratulations to Ruth Hurst and Tom Hook for winning the 2022 Cold Water Classic 🙂
The Cold Water Classic was held at T-Other’s with blue skies and solid swell throughout the day with great surfing from all the competitors. A big thanks to Cooper Brouard for sponsoring the GSC for 2022 and thanks to all the judges and everyone that helped run the comp. Thanks to all surfers that stayed out the water until the comp was over this is much appreciated 🙂 We had a great turnout for the event and it was great to see some new surfers taking part in the comp.
First in the water was the women’s with Lottie Smith, Ruth Hurst, Florrie Cooper, and Bea Smith. There was great surfing from all the women in challenging conditions with some big clean-up sets to deal with during the 30-minute heat with Ruth Hurst taking the win.
Next in the water for the men’s heat, was Tom Hook, Jeffery Babasa, Martin Baxter, and Joey Abbott with Tom Hook and Joey progressing through to the semi-finals. In Heat two Matt Le Maitre, John Smith, Owen Hunt, and James Le Tissier with Matt Le Maitre and Owen Hunt made it through to the semi-finals. The third heat of the mens was Matt Gill, Ed Cooper, Tim Le Compte, and Sam Falla with Sam Falla and Tim Le Compte progressing through to the semi-finals.
In the first semi-finals, Tom Hook took the lead and moved on to the finals with some impressive surfing on the long right-handers on offer, linking solid turns and powering through the slower sections of the waves. In the second semi-finals, Matt Le Maitre put on a great display linking big turns with speed power and flow on the long rights to take the lead and progress through the finals.
The man-on-man final showdown between Tom Hook and Matt Le Maitre was a very closely fought match, with both surfers putting on an excellent display of surfing with Tom Hook taking the victory.
Women’s
1st – Ruth Hurst
2nd – Bea Smith
3rd – Florrie Cooper
4th – Lottie Smith
Men’s
1st Tom Hook
2nd Matt Le Maitre
Semi-Final 1
Tom Hook
Owen Hunt
Sam Falla
Semi-Final 2
Joey Abbott
Matt Le Maitre
Tim Le Compte
Heat 1
Jeffrey Babasa
Tom Hook
Martin Baxter
Joey Abbott
Heat 2
Matt Le Maitre
John Smith
Owen Hunt
James Le Tissier
Heat 3
Matt Gill
Ed Cooper
Tim Le Compte
Sam Falla
The Guernsey Surf Club held the second 10 and under Junior Series on Sunday 22nd August at Vazon.
The 10 and under age group showed the judges a very good standard of surfing in what was a very close result. First in the water were the girls followed by boys with the pushing tide and small waves giving the juniors challenging conditions.
A big thanks to everyone that helped out today running and judging the competition 🙂
1st Ollie
2nd Felix
3rd Thomas
4th Corey
5th Devon
1st Indi W
2nd Willow W
3rd Sophia B
The Guernsey Surf Club held the first 2021 Junior Series on Sunday 8th August at Vazon. The judges were very impressed with the level of surfing, commitment, and attitude of all the kids well done to all who took part.
Thanks to everyone that helped out on the day. It was great to see some many juniors taking part 🙂
1st Thomas Le C
2nd Ollie O
3rd Felix C
4th Joe G
1st Ed C
2nd John F
3rd Chay
4th Teo
1st Indi W
2nd Willow W
3rd Sophia B
1st Florrie C
2nd Katie S
3rd Tara L
4th Belle O
5th Claudia B
By Gilo Robilliard
Photo by Wave Garden.
When we left Guernsey in January – I was super annoyed about the consistent Swell ! My Dad promised me that my time would come – and here we are today !
As soon as things began to open up and we could travel further we booked our first session at wave garden in Bristol with no expectations. It was probably the clsoest place we could go to with guaranteed waves …… 200-300 per hour !
We left Sussex at 6 am in the morning and we were scraping ice of the windscreen and by the time we reached Bristol it was 23 centigrade and beautiful sunshine !
The walk from the car park to the place is a long one – I’d advise bringing a skateboard. It’s a 20minute walk or a 10 minute skate.
The staff are super friendly and helpful from the check in to the time you get there. Wetsuits and foamies are included in the price. You can also hire a selection of other boards if you want.
I did the advanced session and towards the middle of the hour they crank up the settings. Steeper and quicker take off and faster sections. There’s a small barrel section if you are small enough.
The take off varies slightly with each set – I found the 3rd wave in the set was consistently the best.
There’s a powerful rip to get you back out for the next set which saves your arms.
I caught 13 waves in my hour long session. Great value for money. I had an hour break before a 2nd session – if possible I’d leave a little longer.
Also ,there’s plenty of space and a great surface to skate around when you’re there. The staff are really encouraging and helpful.
Make sure you bring your sunscreen on a hot day as there was no shade !
Overall the experience was great ….. so good that we went back 5 days later.
The results for both competition will be announced at the GSC Christmas meal Sunday Lunchtime 20th December 12.30. @ Cobo Bay Hotel with evening drinks afterwards for anyone that wants to stay out at the Rocky’s Sports Bar.
Reserve your table today so you don’t miss out by emailing [email protected] menus and more details can be found here https://www.guernseysurfclub.com/christmas-meal-and-awards-ceremony-2020/
Check out the photos from the comp below..
If you could please let us know as soon as possible who wants a table we will reserve them on a first come first served basis.
This year the price for the 2 course menu is £20.95 and for 3 courses its £25.95 – this includes £1 extra per person to cover the cost of booking the Cobo Bay Hotel.
Children Under 12 can order from the children’s menu.
For menus see below.
To reserve a table email [email protected].
