Young father positive until the end
Shane Petersen’s mates reckon he was a bit of a bodyboarding legend but it was his positive vibes and determination in the face of adversity that he’ll long be remembered for.
‘‘He showed us you just can’t sweat the small stuff because there’s absolutely no reason to not enjoy every day,’’ old high school pal Andre Stanway said. ‘‘That’s going to be my life lesson from him... he never wasted a moment.’’
On Thursday, Petersen, a young father of two, lost his long battle with cancer. He was 35 years old.
About six years ago the New Plymouth man was working on an oil rig when he first suffered a seizure.
Doctors attributed the sudden illness to an eight-centimetre tumour lodged in the right side of his brain and advised he had a fifty per cent chance of survival. But Petersen maintained an upbeat attitude and for four years defied doctors’ predictions.
His positivity was largely due to his children, CJ and Chloe, and instead of seeing the diagnosis as a death sentence, he looked upon it as a source of inspiration.
Sadly, radiation treatment to stop further growth became ineffective and in July 2016, he collapsed again and was this time given 12 months to live.
That still didn’t hold him back, said Jody Stevens, who had been his mate since they were 13. He said Petersen was fondly known as Horse due to his ‘‘running and bucking’’ on the rugby field.
‘‘He had his sense of humour right to the end.
‘‘He would sit there and tell us if we were pissing him off...he would get grumpy. It was still him right to the end, he didn’t give in.’’
Stevens described Petersen as ‘‘a bit different than the rest’’. ‘‘He was real outspoken and had no shame at all. The first day I met him he asked for half of my apple that I was eating at school at lunchtime.’’
In 2017, a charity bodyboarding competition, Waves For Shane, was held in his honour and saw 32 surfers compete, including Petersen.
Stevens said his mate had a knack for stand-up bodyboarding, something described as no easy feat.
Petersen became known for the move and reaffirmed his legend when the two were catching waves together in Australia.
‘‘He said to me ‘everyone at home reckons I can’t do stand-up over here ‘cos the waves are too fast and too big’.
‘‘The first wave he dropped in on, I was paddling over, and he flew straight into the barrel standing up on a bodyboard.’’
Stevens said the move blew away the Gold Coast locals.
Another longtime friend, Shane Coomey, said Petersen was wellliked and a genuine ‘‘hard case’’. He has been moved by his late mate’s zest for life.
‘‘Seeing how he handled being told he had a terminal illness and still being positive has been inspirational to myself,’’ he said. ‘‘You’ve just got to hold your head high and carry on – like he did.’’
A celebration of Petersen’s life will be held at Eagars Te Henui Chapel on Tuesday.
Tara Shaskey ‘‘He showed us you just can’t sweat the small stuff because there’s absolutely no reason to not enjoy every day.’’ Andre Stanway, speaking about friend Shane Petersen