Conditions on the Saturday were a choppy 3-4 ft with a stiff south westerly, making conditions difficult. However, this didn’t stop the 70 competitors producing some outstanding performances. Ben Haworth was back defending his 2011 Open division title against Ben Skinner, (current European Champion) and Adam Griffiths, last years English title holder was also competing in his home break.

The finals on Sunday saw another sunny day with equally tough conditions but some excellent surfing, especially in the Open where Ben Skinner of Perranporth won the event, closely followed by Newquay’s Adam Griffiths. Ben Haworth the 2011 champion came third, with youngster Josh Le Marquand from Jersey fourth.

It was good to see the new Grand Masters division well subscribed again while the Masters, won by Matt Thomas from Perranporth, remained fiercely competitive.  The Ladies enjoyed an expanded entry requiring four heats and the newly introduced U16 Girls produced an expanded entry of 5 who were game enough to paddle out in testing conditions – hats off to these girls for having a go!

The National Trust again provided a great venue with tents, vehicles and support from the local rangers to ensure the event ran on time with staff protected from the elements.  The Bowgie Inn was the venue for the pre-contest briefing and it also provided overnight parking.

Vic Danks, BLU secretary, said that many of the contestants expressed their appreciation for the hospitality of the Bowgie Inn and the support of the National Trust. ‘While the local rangers had helped run surf events before, having to cope with 70 competitors was a first, and they did an outstanding job.’

Rob Joules, Watersports co-ordinator for the National Trust, said ‘The BLU ran a really professional surf contest and it was great to be able to host it at Crantock, an area that the National Trust works so hard to conserve. The rugged landscape was a perfect backdrop for some excellent surfing in typically testing English conditions.’

Full results below:

U16 Boys:
1st Ben Bates, 2nd Aron Rowe, 3rd Aaron Bright, 4th Raife Gaskell

U18 Girls:
1st Maise Marshall, 2nd Lucy Howell, 3rd Emily Currie, 4th Cara Gaskell, 5th Jenna Richards

U18 Boys:
Connor Griffiths, 2nd Ben Bates, 3rd Alex Maddocks, 4th Aaron Bright

Ladies:
1st Claire Smail, 2nd Grace Davies, 3rd Nicola Bunt, 4th Chantelle Coote

Masters:
1st Matt Thomas, 2nd Colin Bright, 3rd Alan Reed, 4th Adam Chell

Grand Masters:
1st Adrian Howell, 2nd Eric Davies, 3rd Colin Bright, 4th Glyn Griffiths

Open:
1st Ben Skinner, 2nd Adam Griffiths, 3rd Ben Haworth, 4th Josh Le Marquand