Throughout the weekend just passed some of the best that British surfing youth has to offer competed at the Caravan Club British Schools Surfing Championships, in Widemouth Bay, Bude. A weekend designed to celebrate and bring together students and pupils of the UK schooling system and find the best individual and team surfers.
As surf events go, some follow linear and predictable lines, others are built of chapters and seem to grow their own personality, and the chapters of this year’s event were written from the word go. The story started almost 4 months ago, where the first postponement was called, then weeks later a second postponement called both for lack of waves. A relocation to Widemouth Bay from Woolacombe and we found ourselves in July and who’d have thought it… a 2 day forecast of waves in a month with one of the smallest UK swell windows, let’s surf we thought!
On Saturday morning, day one, another chapter of unpredictability began to write itself as a fair selection of top seeds were discovered to be abroad competing in European events. This in turn pressed the time warp button on which the speed of early round heats were raced through and running orders morphed and event staff, surfers and their supporters tested by the circumstances, all of whom met the demands and powered on through. The surf conditions offered plenty of waves but the trained eye could appreciate the influence of the tide and competitors searched intently to find the right wave and the right score. After a crazy day of short board heats the day came to a close with a stand out show and highest heat total of the day by longboarder Jack Unsworth, whos stylish skills were well appreciated by judges and spectators alike.
Semi and finals day commenced and boom solid sets rolled in from the horizon and broke across the Cornish coast as surfers excitedly awaited their turn to tackle the 3ft waves, which for most of whom was overhead high. Competition was rife and fierce and a pleasure to watch, but watching was to become a precious and unknown privilege as Mother Nature wrote another chapter.
Sea fog was to be the next challenge and as the Girls under 18 finals paddled out the fog consumed the beach, and apparently most of the Cornish and Devonshire coast, and competition immediately put on hold as visibility limited down to about 50 metres. Around one and half hours later it lifted, reviling much improved surf and allowing a fantastic stretch of impressive finals to play out in the high tide arena.
The champions earned their crowns in their respective divisions and the overall Caravan Club schools champion was awarded to Thretharras of Newquay. Under 18 girls champion Ruby Breadon and boys champion Will Bailey taking top honours and prize of a ferry crossing for a car and four passengers from Dover to Calais return, we hope this allows them to take their free and competitive surfing to the continent and experience its joys.
Thank you to sponsors, staff, supporters and surfers for creating another wonderful and chapter filled event.
Results
2016 Caravan Club British Schools Champions – Tretharras Newquay
U18 Girls Longboard
1st Ruby Breadon
2nd Rosie O’Neill
U18 Boys Long board
1st Jack Unsworth
2nd Jordan Zervas
3rd Joe Hornbuckle
4th Barnaby Innes
U14 Girls
1st Ffion Hughes
2nd Lauren Sandland
3rd Esmee Gregorius
4th Bonita Whitlock
U14 Boys sponsored by Billabong
1st Max Hudson
2nd Noah Capps
3rd Aiden Hopkins
4th Sol Hawkins
U16 Girls sponsored by Billabong
1st Amy Dyer
2nd Lily Mandeville
3rd Rosie O’Neill
4th Jess Knight
U16 Boys Sponsored by Carve Visionaries
1st Leo Reeves
2nd Seth Morris
3rd Barnaby Cox
4th Kamron Matthews
U18 Girls
1st Ruby Breadon
2nd Niamh Mathias
3rd Tilly Theobold
4th Esme French
U18 Boys sponsored by Carve Visionairies
1st Will Bailey
2nd Max Payne
3rd Cieran Hughes
4th Alex Ashen
