Bay of Plenty for Billabong Juniors

The Bay of Plenty on Durban’s famed Golden Mile beachfront will be awash with a couple of hundred of the country’s top junior surfers next weekend, when the second event on the 2007 Billabong Junior Series will be held in the famed waves.

Scheduled for Thursday to Sunday, 29 March to 1 April, the event offers more than R30 000 in total prize-money to the top competitors in the Pro Junior girls’ division.

The coveted event and series titles, now in their 11th year, continue to attract entries from the entire coastline of South Africa, while the results of the Pro Junior division determines the top girl to receive an invitation to the annual Billabong ASP World Junior Championships in Australia.

A string of excellent results, including victory at St Mikes, sees Tarryn Chudleigh (Kommetjie) head a quality field of SA’s top junior girls, with her biggest challenge likely to come from the exceptionally talented Sarah Baum, the 13 year-old from Athlone Park who continues to impress at every level.

Reigning U14 series champ Michael February will be hoping to finish ahead of Heidi Palmboom (Bluff), who made history by becoming the first girl to reach the final of an U14 event.

While the competitors all display progressive surfing to impress the judges while chasing the prize-money, points and glory in the various divisions, it is in the Von Zipper Air Show that they really cut loose.

Featuring a select group of a dozen of the country’s best aerial surfers, the winner will take home R1 800 for the single best manoeuvre in the air, spectators should expect to see exhibition of new school surfing.

There are also Kustom awards for the top local boy and girl and the highly prized Zigzag ‘Blowing Up’ award of R1 000 along with its unique replica hand grenade trophy at each event.

The Billabong Junior Series is sanctioned by Surfing South Africa (SSA) and proudly supported by First National Bank, Palmers, Kustom, Von Zipper, Red Bull and Silver Bullet Productions.

The 2007 series started at St Mikes in February and after Durban (March 29-April 1) it has stops in Cape Town (May 17-20) and Victoria Bay in the Southern Cape (August 9-12) before wrapping up in the legendary surf Mecca of Jeffreys Bay (September 21-24) where the 11th annual series champions will be crowned.

Entry forms and further information on the Billabong Junior Series, including profiles of the top performers, can be found at the Billabong Africa webpage.