RPS/Starboard Prince of The 'Tone - Sunday 16th October

Due to the debacle beach renewal works at Half Moon Bay, today's second round of the RPS summer series was relocated to Mentone Beach, below the Naples Rd car park. Conditions were definitely not "Currumbin Creek", with an icy westerly gusting 25+ onshore, chop to 1m and air temp around 8-9 degrees (NOT factoring the wind chill...brrrr...your correspondent wasn't that unhappy about the flat car battery by the time he'd ridden his bike down to the beach ).

Thirteen hardy souls tackled the conditions face-on, in a 2-heat modified BOP-style contest, each heat 3 laps of an out 'n' back course with a 250m-ish beach run between laps (more or less, thanks to the magical, self-moving bin )


Race results (in finishing order - Warwick and PT can sort out the class rankings and series points later) :
Heat 1:
Chris (12'6 Fanatic Red Rocket)
Rupert (17' Naish Glide)
Mark (17' Naish Glide)
Warwick (12'6 Fanatic White Whale)
Christian (12'6 Naish Glide)
Paul PT (12'6 Starboard Race)
Al (14' Naish Glide)
Con (12'6 Starboard Pin)
Emma (12'6 Hobie Race)
Jean (12'6 Starboard Pin)
Mel (Nalu)
Tim (12'6 Pin)
Young Johnno (Naish Mana) (a never-say-die effort, young feller - and good luck with the Karate Tourno this arvo!)

Heat 2:
Rupert (17' Naish Glide)
Chris (12'6 Fanatic Red Rocket)
Mark (17' Naish Glide)
Warwick (12'6 Fanatic white whale)
Christian (12'6 Naish Glide)
Paul PT (12'6 Starboard Race)
Al (14' Naish Glide)
Emma (12'6 Starboard Pin)
Jean (12'6 Hobie Race)
(the ladies swapped rides for round 2)

A few pics (sorry not DJ quality, in the absence of an "official" photog I took these with my Blackberry)

Rupert, Tim, Warwick & Jean on the start line for Heat 1:
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Chris finds some shelter between Heats
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Con takes the wiser course?
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Getting sorted for Heat 2
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Run Rupert, run
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Wooz to windward
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Beach run PT? That's the bike path, matey!
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Friends.and rivals.
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This face tells a tale
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Rupert brings the big girl home
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Chris brings it in
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Wooz
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Christian stylin' & working on the tan line
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A jubilant PT
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. Emma chasing the style points...
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...and Jean says '''aaah to be sure that was luvverly!"
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Great pictures.. Thanks.. Shame I had a Tontine appointment and couldn't make it.

DJ

Just a quick note to say thanks for putting on the Prince this morning, and Tim definitely beat me home in heat one..
Jono and I haven't paddled over the winter so it was a crazy start to the SUP season but good fun as always. Jono did well overall at the karate tournament (but slipped up once in a weapons heat against his younger brother,) so I think the conditions maybe took their toll.
Bring on summer
Cheers Mel

Well done to everyone who made the effort to come and race last Sunday.

Whilst the conditions were testing, most people seemed to enjoy the modified BOP style of racing. Thanks to the bin ghost in race 2 for the repositioning of the bin.

Hopefully the conditions for both beach and wind/weather will be more kind for Rd 3. Sun 20th November.