A STRONG field of paddlers gathered at Pirates Surf Lifesaving Club for the second race of the Illovo Suncoast Pirates Wall and Back Surfski Series on Friday evening, where Hank McGregor and Jenna Ward paddled themselves into the winners circle for the first time in 2017.
Friday’s race was the first hit-out for current World Surfski Series champion McGregor who is currently in the build up to the 2017 Ocean Racing World Championships in Hong Kong and he was very impressed by the turn out.
“It was probably the biggest field I have ever seen for a Wall and Back race. My focus is now definitely on surfski paddling with the world champs in Hong Kong coming up and I have been trying out some new equipment which has been working well. I was glad to get the win today against some really good paddlers,” the 10-time Marathon World Champion said.
Euro Steel/Epic Kayaks’ McGregor took the victory from a strong bunch of paddlers that saw Gene Prato come home in second place with Matt Bouman finishing in third.
Euro Steel/Nelo Kayaks’ Jenna Ward registered her first win of the series. Ward finished first ahead of two junior girls, Teegan Hardwick and Alice Edwards, who finished second and third respectively.
Ward, who won the Wall and Back Series in 2016, has taken strong first steps in defending her crown, and will also be using the series as a fine-tuning exercise in her build-up to the surfski world championships in Hong Kong in November.
The first double ski home on Friday evening was the pair of Jason Ekskrand and the young Hamish Lovemore. The duo finished in second in the surfski category behind McGregor who was nearly a minute quicker.
The Wall and Back Series has also incorporated stand-up paddle boards as well as a malibu board category for 2017 and it was Nick Park-Ross and Connor Botha who took home the win’s in the SUP and malibu board section respectively.
The third race of the 2017 Illovo Suncoast Pirates Wall and Back Surfski Series is at 5.15pm on Friday 27 October. Visit: www.wallandback.co.za.
