A small team of Belhaven Surf Club (BHSC) travelled north for the “rearranged” Junior Nationals in Sandend! The young team had good success winning 4 titles in very small surf conditions.
Saturday opened with a beautiful still sunny day with small clean long period surf in the waist high region. It was a perfect day for the younger categories – under 8yrs, 10yrs, 12yrs and the heats of u14yrs and U16yrs.
The U10yrs Holly Hadden backed up her Fraserburgh debut win, surfing brilliantly in heats with some lovely rides. She won the title with some of the highest scores of the competition. Two competitions in and two wins Holly is one to watch!
Sunday was again perfect sunny light wind day but unfortunately the surf had reduced giving even smaller surf than the day before. Greeted with marginal conditions the organisers debated but decided to call finals day on. It was so small board choice became critical with certain points in the tide – that a foam surfboard was the only way to surf the waves. The BHSC team used the full portfolio of boards in the van from 5ft 4 shortboard to 7ft foamy through finals day.
Rae Hood surfed really well in a super tight contest that went to the wire in the U14yrs girls being overtaken in the last 5 mins to finish 2nd.
In the U16yrs girls the strategy was definitely the more foam the better – with pivot turns and longer rides scoring well. This worked perfectly for Erin Patterson taking the national title with fellow team mate Rosie Moore coming second.
Rudi Forrest Johnson, played a blinder in the U16 boys, being the only one to take out a short hardboard in the small surf conditions, two bigger set waves popped up just where rudi was and he surfed both really well to the highest combined score of the day, all inside the first 5 minutes of the final winning the U16yrs boys national title. Joel Christopherson could not catch Rudi and finished 3rd with Broch national team fellow surfers Gabe and Kai finishing 2nd and 4th.
In the U18yrs the girls final was an all national team affair with Lola (BSC) joining Callie (BSC) both from Fraserburgh joining Erin and Rosie. Surf was still small but this time multiple national girls champion Callie Cruishank adapted her board and wave choice to take the win with Rosie again 2nd and Erin this time 3rd – excellent results for our young girls.
In the U18yr boys, this was a really closely fought final with four national team surfers again battling it out. Tam Hood (BHSC) took an early lead on a 5ft 4 shortboard with Gabe Noble (BSC) very close in second. Joel Christopherson was lying third choosing also a 5ft 4 backed potato surfboard needing a good second wave. With minutes to go and leading, Tam had priority and his next wave choice was critical – he had to choose whether to go on the first set wave or wait to see if a bigger second wave came through. Tam gambled and Joel was gifted the first wave surfing it really well, Tam took the next set wave off Gabe but stumbled on take off which hampered his turns on the wave. No more waves came through. Joels 2nd wave score was then announced, high enough to leapfrog into first and Tams final wave was not enough to regain the lead. Joel finished with his first national title, Tam 2nd, Gabe 3rd and Ansel 4th.
The Junior Nationals in Sandend was held in the smallest conditions of any nationals in Scotland to my knowledge but was testimony to the skill and talent these kids have to make it just contestable. Thanks to the Scottish Surfing Federation and Suds Surf School for making this possible and sponsors Lost Shore, Finnestre and Vision Events amongst others. As a coach and on behalf of the young surfers and parents we do hope that the surf can be bigger in the future especially for a national event.
If your interested please look out for two local competitions likely to take place in November at Pease Bay – Gathering of the Clans and the Lowland Open. For more information on surfing events locally check out the Coast to Coast Surf School events page.
Junior National Results
U18yr Boys
1 Joel Christopherson (BHSC)
2 Tam Hood (BHSC)
3 Gabe Noble (BSC)
4 Ansel Parkin (BHSC)
U18yrs Girls
1 Callie Cruishank (BSC)
2 Rosie Moore (BHSC)
3 Erin Patterson (BHSC)
4 Lola Mitchell (BSC)
U16yrs Boys
1 Rudi Johnston Forrest (BHSC)
2 Gabe Noble (BSC)
3 Joel Christopherson (BHSC)
4 Kai Cruishank (BSC)
U16yr Girls
1 Erin Patterson (BHSC)
2 Rosie Moore (BHSC)
3 Callie Cruishank (BSC)
4 Scarlette Heddle (NSSC)
U14yr Boys
1 Kai Cruishank (BSC)
2 Reuben Milbourne (TSC)
3 Oscar Morgan (ASC)
4 Dylan Wiley (BHSC)
U14yrs Girls
1 Skye Brock (NSC)
2 Rae Hood (BHSC)
3 Meri Clarke (NSSC)
4 Holly Hadden (BHSC)
U12yrs Mixed
1 Reuben Milbourne (TSC)
2 Skye Brock (NSSC)
3 Oscar Morgan (ASC)
4 Asher Noble (BSC)
U10yrs Mixed
1 Holly Hadden (BHSC)
2 Karis Noble (BSC)
3 Maggie MacDonald (SSC)
4 Ava Sutherland (SSC)
BHSC Belhaven Surf Club
NSSC North Coast Surf Club
ASC Aberdeen Surf Club
BSC Broch Surf Club
TSC Tiree Surf Club
SSC Sandend Surf Club
