JEFFREYS BAY STAR AIMS FOR RETURN TO WAVES
JEFFREYS Bay surfer Dylan Lightfoot will be looking to make a strong comeback to the competitive surfing scene when he competes in the Nelson Mandela Bay Surf Pro presented by Billabong this weekend.
Having taken some time away from the waves to work on a video project, Lightfoot said he was ready to do battle against the country’s best surfers in the search for valuable qualifying series (QS) points.
“I took a little bit of time away to work on my video project about Jeffreys Bay, but I have also been training with coaches, getting back into the gym, and I’m feeling ready to take on waves in my bid for a good result,” he said.
Lightfoot, who will compete in the Men’s QS 1 500 division, claimed a second position at the same event last year, and will be itching to go one better and take the top step at the competition which gets under way on Saturday.
“I am aiming to reach at least a final in one of the events [but] obviously winning it would be nice,” he said.
Lightfoot said the Eastern Cape was blessed to have good surf spots and waves, and while there was enjoyment in surfing around the globe, “coming back to the Eastern Cape to catch a few waves is always special, and PE has some fun spots to surf as well, I really enjoy it”.
This will be the second edition of South Africa’s premier surfing series as it visits different cities along the country’s coastline.
Previously, local surfers serious about making it at a global level would have had to find funding to compete in costly international events, a prohibiting factor for many.
The five legs, to be held across the country, will serve as qualifiers for the grand-finale VW SA Open of Surfing, which will be staged in Port Elizabeth for the next three years.
Spectators are invited to take pictures next to Volkswagen’s giant recycled plastic surf wave, and post them on social media as a symbol of a joint promise to help ride the wave towards a cleaner ocean.
Other activities at the two Volkswagen surf events include a children’s Trash to Treasure craft section, Clean-the-Beach and CSI Learn to Surf Initiatives.
The action is from 8am until 5pm each day.