By Hollie Harris
Another end to a great surfing event for the year, and although the finals fell a little flat, the overall event enjoyed the perfect point waves synonymous with Noosa.
The Laguna Real Estate Noosa Festival of Surfing wrapped up at the alternative location.
The Under 15s saw exceptional form from Hawaiian Kelis Keleopa’a and our local up-and-comer, Liliana Bowrey coming in fourth place.
The boys final was super tight. There was some very impressive surfing coming out of this age group and Josh Armistead snuck in first.
Festival organisers called the interference from defending champion Honolua Blomfield “very unfortunate and uncharacteristic” and she was relegated to fifth, with Mason Schremmer taking the undisputed win for the Australian in the Salt Magazine Women’s Under 18.
A big performance that secured a win for Kaniela Stewart against local talent in Kai Annetts, Nic Brewer, Cale Coulter and Tom Morat.
Sue Altman took out the Magoo Memorial 70 and Over Open and the World Surfaris Men’s 65 and Over crown went to Earle Page and Albie Curtis was a very stoked victor in the Old Guys Rule Men’s 60 and Over final. It’s such fun to watch the stoke continuing on right through their sixties and seventies (plus some) in these tussles.
Swell and tide dropping, wind elevating from the north, conditions were rapidly deteriorating.
Crowd favourite – the inaugural Gordon and Smith ‘Switch’ Invitational – saw local legend Josh Constable surfing brilliantly on both long and shortboards, but couldn’t quite nab the win from Gordon and Smith team rider Dane Wilson.
Crumbling waves didn’t offer much for the Logger Pros to get up the nose on, but they worked hard with what they had. Local lad, Clinton Guest somehow managed 11 seconds of tip time taking him the victory.
With barely a ripple left in sight, the Logger Pro competitors did their best to create something out of nothing. Bowie Pollard found a bump to ride and took the win.
As quickly as it arrives, the festival vanishes from sight and the points are quiet once again.
After a run of nothing in Noosa and a mess out on the opens, there hasn’t been much to play on up here. The Gold Coast has had some great surf over the last week with near perfect four-foot sets peeling through Snapper Rocks.
Onshore winds developing over the weekend will confine the best waves to only a handful of protected spots. Building surf will bring some size but with the opens and outer points likely to be blown out, you will have to find that perfect spot.
Next week looks pretty solid and with plenty of rain keeping some of the crowd away, we could be in for a nice start to the week.
