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welsh dragon at ska wave jam

The SKA Wave Jam attracted students from several universities a well as a few locals from Porthcawl including the Welsh Dragon who made its way down to the waters edge to see what all the fuss was about.

With the wind gods appeased the students woke to one of the gustiest mornings seen in Porthcawl this year. After registration and safety briefings, it was time to hit the water. For Pro

rider Ali Barrett, from Solent University, it was chance to show off some moves; huge megaloops with delayed backloops wowed the crowds before the rest of the students took to the water. Not wanted to be outdone, Matt Desmond from Southampton University and Leah McHardy got in on the scene; flicking his surf board in front of the camera, Matt made sure he was going to be noticed!

For some the wind was just too much of a challenge and many headed for the welcome retreated of Malc's Cafe. The leather sofas and 'real fire' were just too much of a temptation for  students still recovering from the night before who promptly 'set up camp'.

With a days riding under their belt the SKA and students packed up camp as the afternoon drew to a close and everyone headed off to Cardiff to get ready for a night of partying courtesy of Cardiff University.

As penguins and chickens hit the streets of Cardiff, don’t ask; we just knew that it was going to be one of those nights! A quick stop off at Ko Ko Gorillaz for refuelling then it was straight to Cardiff University’s SU. 

Initially starting off in a room of their own the students quickly got down to business as the legendry ExPix slide got underway. Ahead of the official prize giving on Sunday, prizes were given out for an array of, shall we say, unusual achievements and the games began!

The room then opened up to the rest of the Cardiff university students and the kitesurfers quickly disappeared into the crowds amidst an army of cheerleaders, the lone Thunderbird and the sports lads still in their team kit! Unable to follow the trail, ExPix left the penguins to deal with the rest of the Cardiff Wildlife!

Sunday morning and Malc’s Café was busier than ever with students calling shotgun for the sofas, hogging the fire and tucking into English, or should that be Welsh breakfasts. Others were seen meandering down the hill in search of the Red Bull van to ‘sample’ more of the product in the hope of getting their penguin ‘wings’ back!

Down on the beach and fortunately the winds had died down slightly; with winds of up to 35 miles per hour and one of the gustiest days in Porthcawl for some time, Saturday had proved a

bit of a challenge and had forced the organisers to place a limit on kite size for safety reasons. This gave the students chance to try out the range of suitable demo equipment courtesy of Flexifoil, Mystic and South Wales Kitesurfing.

As the wind dropped to 25 miles per hour on Sunday and the gusts held off, the air was soon filled with kites as more riders took to the water. With the jam session over 12 finalists were picked to battle it out. As the waves crashed on the shore in the incoming tide, there was tremendous riding from Matt Desmond (Soton),Harry Gregory (Bristol), Zac Andrews (Soton), Manuel Paiva (Solent), Romain Szyjan (Soton), Ali Barrett (Solent), Harry Allerston (Soton), Andrey Manirko (Bristol), Leah McHardy, Ben Gillespie (Soton), Tim Harley (Cambridge) and Jon Cook (Soton) in the half hour final.

Riding either strapped or strapless there was some technical riding on the inside from some riders, whilst others fought to get out back to find the cleaner waves; a winning move for Zac Andrews (Soton) who took first place in the strapped category and Jon Cook (Soton) who took first place in the strapless category. 

 

So to the results: 

Strapped:

1. Zac Andrews (Soton)
2. Ali Barrett (Solent)
3. Leah McHardy

Strapless:
1. Jon Cook (Soton)
2. Ben Gillespie (Soton)
3. Tim Harley (Cambridge)

James Bowker (Southampton University) was crowed ‘King of the Waves’; a true a sportsman embodying the spirit of the event and throwing himself into everything with sheer effort on and off the water.

With over 75 students from universities across the country, the Wave Jam was a huge success and the best attended event to date for the newly formed SKA. A big shout out has to go to the guys from the Rest Bay Lifeguards & Surf Rescue who were on hand throughout the weekend. In recognition of their efforts the SKA presented them with a monetary donation and cases of Red Bull.

To view the kitesurfing images from the Student Kitesurf Wavejam just follow the link and enjoy.

Once again ExPix would like to say a big thankyou to all the students for their hospitality and their antics which as usual provide us with images worth publishing.

Just a little addition to the event report a short (very short) video from Porthcawl. Due to operation on a shoulder approx days before a one handed photographer/videographer found it difficult to handle two cameras, this couple with strong winds and everyone just 'holding on' for one day meant it was difficult to film any proper wave riding, but we hope this gives you a feel for the event ... enjoy !

Pre Event Release

Student Kitesurfing Association (SKA) National Tour Stop 2 - Wave Jam, Rest Bay, Porthcawl. 2011.

What a way to kick start 2011 with non other than a visit back to our old shooting grounds of Rest Bay Porthcawl, this time for Wave Jam, the 2nd stop in the SKA National Tour Competition Series.

Organised by the SKA and hosted by Cardiff University the event is sponsored and supported  by, Flexifoil, Mystic, King of Watersports, ExPix, South Wales Kitesurfing, Ignite Beanies, Red Bull, Cardiff University Kitesurfers, Cardiff University Boat Club and Porthcawl Lifeboat Station.

The forecast looks epic and judging by the planned activities, lets just say that this should be a

weekend to remember, even if the only way to remember is via those oh so painful but annoyingly irresistible piccys courtesy of your favourite ExPix team!!!!!!!

Watch out for the updates on ExPix throughout the weekend and check the galleries to see what the students have been up to this time and if you're lucky there just might be some kiting piccys too!

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