NEWS

Josh Piper takes the South to South Frostbite Sessions Title

Photos: Lucia Griggi

Following three excellent qualifying events held in the depths of British winter, eight junior surfers came together for the grand final of the South to South Frostbite Sessions last Saturday (19 April).

Event organiser Tyson Greenaway had kept the location under wraps until the day, with the finalists knowing only that they had to meet at a certain time, at a certain place, and that they’d be transported to the best waves Tyson could find. With only eight surfers to contend with, and a simple format of a one off, hour long final, the contest was able to go just about anywhere. The forecast was good for most of the north coast beaches, and after checking out a couple of places, they found clean head high waves at a spot south of Porthtowan.

Jack Whitefield

Throughout the qualifying events the surfers had competed in two age divisions; under-16 and under-18, and had accumulated points, leading to the selection of the final eight. The difference being that now they were all up against each other irrespective of age. Newquay’s Josh Piper was leading the rankings, having placed second in both divisions, and of the eight finalists, five had secured a first place during the qualifiers.

It was clear from the start that it was going to be a tightly fought affair, and for the first half hour there was no real standout; all surfers trying for the big moves, but too often not completing them. With only their top two waves counting, they were all looking for the big one, and were giving it everything. Jack Whitefield from St Ives seemed to be on every wave, and finally found the speed and skill to take him into the lead, followed almost immediately by Josh Piper, who picked up the set wave, and did just that bit more. Those were the highest scoring rides of the day, and with only five minutes remaining, it was looking like a two horse race. Marcus Lascelles, still in with a chance, found one in the last seconds, snapped off the top, and then lost it. It was all over and Josh had secured victory, with Jack a close second.

Josh Piper

Josh’s win was well deserved, as he had surfed so well throughout the entire series, and after his recent second place at the UK Pro Juniors, had always looked like the one to beat. Following the final he was presented with his prize at South to South’s new store in Newquay that had opened that day in Bank Street.

The series had been a great success. Around forty surfers had competed in excellent conditions at four great locations, and sponsors South to South, were delighted with the outcome. Organiser Tyson Greenaway must have been doing something right, as he managed to find waves at every stage. The following day it was flat.

Results
1st Josh Piper
2nd Jack Whitefield
3rd Marcus Lascelles
4th Morgan Elston

Photos: Lucia Griggi

THE SOUTH TO SOUTH STORY
South to South was founded in 1988 when keen surfer Mauricio Fagundes, then only 15, started making tee shirts for his friend, who produced surfboards in his back yard. From these humble beginnings in his parents’ home, he has grown the Company into a major force in the Brazilian surf scene with 65 full time employees, and a production capacity of some 400,000 items in 2006. The company is also proactive when it comes to environmental issues; they support native flora preservation projects, and beach clean ups, as well as launching a full Eco collection this Autumn.
In Brazil, next to soccer, surfing is the second largest sport. With over two million surfers, 800 kms of surfing beaches, a year round tropical climate, and 20% of all surfers on the world tour, the industry is thriving.
The South to South team of athletes consists of: Renato Galvao, Almao de Maresias, Emerson Piai, Lucinei Malas, Yage Araujo, Aline, Luiz Saraiva, Guillermo Ribeiro, Anjinjo, and Tyson Greenaway, and James Mitchell from the UK.