ALLAN, MACKIE AND FERNANDES DOMINATE TILE GALLERY JUNIOR SURF EVENT
Event #2 of the Burkie Junior Surfing Championship series sponsored by TILE GALLERY was held in beautiful, three foot semi-glassy waves, ideal conditions for the junior surfers at South Point on March 28th. The event attracted 81 entries in three divisions.
The 10 & Under Division had eighteen entries, the Under-12 Division had thirty entries and the14 & Under Division had thirty three entries .Nine-year old Che Allan and twelve year old Gavin Fernandes took top honors in the 10 & under and under-12 Divisions for the second time as in many events.
In the 14 & Under Divison, Dane Mackie threw adult type turns and got the better of Fernandes, dethroning him from the 14 & Under top spot. The high tide played a significant role during the finals, causing the waves to become inconsistent and making the competitors scrabble for any wave they could find.
In the earlier rounds, there was some phenomenal surfing from the kids; with seven-year old, Zander Venezia receiving 9.0 score from the judges. Other outstanding performances were seen from seven-year old Axe Garrett, Ryan Burke, nine-year old Anna Aimetti and eight-year old Jacob Burke; paddling into some steep drops and showing some class with backside rail grabs.
"There is absolutely no doubt that the skill level of these kids has risen significantly since the 1st Burkie event, held in February at Freights Bay," stated the organizer Alan Burke, "Most of these kids a few weeks ago would not have even paddled out at South Point in these waves, but yet are out there surfing them from start to finish in a competition. We are seeing above average surfing from Che Allan, Zander Veneiza, Jacob and Joshua Burke, Dane Mackie and Gavin Fernandes.”
Receiving lovely marble plaque trophies were:
10 & Under Division
1st Che Allan, 2nd Andrew Rose, 3rd Zander Venezia, 4th Jack Degruchy.
Under 12 Division
1st Gavin Fernandes, 2nd Dane Mackie, 3rd Che Allan, 4th Josh Burke.
Under 14 Division
1st Dane Mackie, 2nd Gavin Fernandes, 3rd Adrian Williams, 4th Josh Burke
Event # 3 Burkies Junior Surfing Championship Series sponsored by ASHFORD DAIRIES/BRANKERS will be held at Surfers Point, July 25th.