Toti in top spots at sprint champs and surf ski race
Trav Slier was 8th in the 200m K1 and 7th in the 500m K1.
THIS weekend, paddlers from Toti Canoe Club took part in the SA canoe sprint championship and the Halfway Toyota Scottburgh Surf Ski Classic.
It was unfortunate that both events ran over the same weekend, nevertheless Toti paddlers featured in the top end of the results for both.
The SA sprints were held at Nagle Dam and are made up of various disciplines from the 200m individual sprints (K1) to 5,000m K2.
In the final results, Tiffany Kruger was 2nd in the K1 200m, and together with her team mate Esti, dominated by taking first place in all the K2 races. Brent Chiazzari came 5th in the K1 200m and K1 500m. Trav Slier was 8th in the 200m K1 and 7th in the 500m K1. Brent and Travis teamed up to secure the bronze medal in both the 200m and 500m. Kerry Segal and her partner Brittney Peterson took second place in the K2 500m and honours in the 1,000m. Kerry went on to place second in the K1 U23 500m and 1,000m, third in the U23 200m and if that wasn’t enough, honours again in the 5,000m for both the U23 and senior categories. Well done paddlers, its clear that all the hard work and long hours training in the dark does pay off.
On to the ocean event, the Halfway Toyota Scottburgh Classic. Postcard-perfect turquoise water, bright sunshine and warm temperatures created the idyllic setting in which the South Coast contest unfolded as paddlers tackled the four lap, 20km course at Scottburgh’s main beach.
Toti’s flyer Michelle Burn (Fenn Kayaks) cruised to an unrivalled victory in the women’s race as she looked to use the FNB Durban Downwind surfski series opener to build towards her longer assignments that loom on the horizon.
“The race was a bit further than I’d anticipated so it was quite tough but it was good preparation for the longer races like next weekend’s Seabreeze Build it 5 Beaches and the Mauritius Classic coming up soon,” said Burn. “It was a bit disappointing more girls weren’t able to make it to the race and their absence meant I had to look to race against the guys.
Gene Prato continued his good form to take third place among a strong field where race strategy was of utmost importance.
Toti will be hosting the legendary Seabreeze Build It 5 Beaches this weekend. This race was originally organised by the late Sam Wyer. The club anticipates in excess of 100 paddlers to take to Toti’s coastline on Sunday in Sam’s honour, starting at Widenham, beach at Karridene, a run around the rocks at Winkle and Warners and finishing at Toti Canoe Club. Go down and support the local paddlers, there will be food on sale at the club, jumping castle for the children and lots of racing entertainment.
Results of last week’s time trial will be posted on Facebook. Time trials will be held every Wednesday and the club will be open.
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