McGregor and Hartley star in surfski series opener

HANK McGregor and Bridgitte Hartley claimed wins as the popular four-leg Bay Union Open Ocean Surfski Challenge got under way in great weather conditions at the Durban Undersea Club (DUC) on Sunday morning.

McGregor duelled with on-form Brandon van der Walt at the front of the long course race, before shaking off the Maritzburg College schoolmaster on the return leg.

Van der Walt duly finished second, ahead of seasoned surfski racer Gene Prato. Quinton Rutherford and Mark Perrow teamed up to take the double ski honours.

Olympic sprint medallist Bridgitte Hartley won the women’s title, showing her growing confidence racing surfskis in ocean runs. Jenna Ward finished second in the women’s race with Kyeta Purchase claiming the last place on the podium.

Stand Up Paddleboarders (SUP) are ardent supporters of the series and Matt Swemmer took best advantage of the mild wind conditions to win the overall SUP honours, with Jacqueline LeCourt de Billot winning the women’s SUP prize.

The Bay Union-backed series is a hotbed of development paddling talent and always sees emerging paddling prodigies vying for glory in the short and long course races, with Thubelihle Banda winning the prize for the best performance from a paddler from the Point Watersports Club development project.

The second outing of the Sunday morning series next week is the Citadel Race offering the same options of a six kilometre short course and a 12km long course race.

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