The sun was out and the wind was blowing on the first core event of the SWA series, PONDLIFE III . Almost 150 windsurfers braved the trip up Nottingham Uni to experience what was undoubtedly a great weekend all round.

Saturday saw winds in excess of 25 kts for much of the day, allowing for a great day of freestyle and general blasting around Rutland water. The Boardwise Freestyle competition saw some top performances (and some rather unconventional moves) from the likes of Sam Stevens, Chris Beng and Rob Snocker. The boomerang double nipple-grab in particular, gaining the crowd's adulation and the the Asda cow prize for best new trick. The final standings in the freestyle competition were very close indeed, Sam Stevens was a deserving winner, with John from Bristol Uni just missing out.  

SWA Freestyle competition

In association with

1^st Sam Stevens-Southampton

2^nd John-Bristol

3^rd Al Bentley-Southampton

4^th Chris Beng-Imperial

Lady's competition winner: Jen Moran- Southampton

While the freestyle riders were strutting their stuff, it seemed everyone else was having an equally awesome time on the water, with massive numbers taking the opportunity to go for a free-sail, making the most of the conditions and demo kit.

The party, as always, was messy. Needless to say, beds were broken, memories were lost, and entire houses covered in body paint. The toga theme meant that the little which the wetsuits didn't reveal during the day, was on show all night long, nice work! Was it just me or was there a lot of lovin' going on too?

Sunday saw some racing action in the slightly tamer conditions. Close racing in all categories and a large number of entrants provided some exciting racing, with many places only being decided on the final round. The Advanced group saw impressive performances from Tim Staley from Cambridge, and Chris Beng, but in the end it all boiled down to a command performance from Al Graham.

 SWA Racing

In association with

Advanced

Men's

1^st Al Graham-Southampton

2^nd Chris Beng-Imperial

3^rd Neil- Imperial

Lady's

1^st Rosemary Francis-Cambridge

2^nd Vicky Warner-Cardiff

3^rd Jen Moran-Southampton

Intermediates and beginners saw some close competition too. Rachel Cruz eventually coming out on top in the intermediates to win the Princess castle prize. Hannah from Cardiff sealed the beginner competition in true style by keeping clear of all the carnage, nice work, keep it up!

Intermediates

1^st Rachel Cruz-southampton

2^nd TBA (soon!)

3^rd TBA (soon!)

Beginners

1^st Hannah Dalton-Cardiff

2^nd Lenar- Cardiff & Ed Clark-York

3^rd Rachel Newstead-York

All in all a pretty amazing weekend, proving beyond doubt that late nights, partying and competitive windsurfing is definitely a good idea! A massive thank you for all of you who came, with a special mention to Sam Stevens for being a general legend and Oli Beard for his enthusiasm and perseverance! Thanks also to Mark from Boardwise and the guys from Naish! Hope to see you all in Cambridge!

Alan Delaney