Monday, 23 May 2011 08:48
McGregor wins Race Three of the Discovery Sunglass Hut Surfski Series
Hank McGregor claimed his second victory of this year’s Discovery Sunglass Hut Surfski Series when he won race three of the Series, the McCarthy Toyota King of the Bay, after holding off a strong challenge by Matt Bouman and Brandon van der Walt.
After a long, hard slog around the twenty-two kilometre course the trio were neck and neck as they approached the finish line at Marine SLC. It was McGregor who rounded the final turning buoy with his nose ahead though and he came home to claim his second successful sprint finish in as many weeks.
“There was very little assistance out there today so we all just worked together and tried to conserve as much energy as we could and it was always going to come down to the finish,” said McGregor.
“I took up the pull with two kilometres to go and I really didn’t want things to be as tight as last week so towards the end I put in a couple hard strokes and managed to get Matt (Bouman) off my wave.”
“With the can being so close to the beach today I knew if I could get around it first then it would be tough for the other guys to catch me before the line.”
“I’ve raced two and won two now so I’m very happy with how things are going so far. There’s obviously a long way to go still so we’ll just have to see but I would love to win the Marine series and this one in the same year,” he added.
Having been on the wrong side of two sprint finishes Bouman will be hoping ‘third time lucky’ holds true should the opportunity present itself later in the series.
“I’m working hard and I’m feeling good about where my paddling is at the moment, it’s just my finish that’s letting me down a bit,” said Bouman.
“Both Hank (McGregor) and I have our strengths and weaknesses and he probably backs his sprint at the end a just little more than I do at the moment but overall I’m happy,” he added.
Former Junior World Marathon Champ Brandon van der Walt was somewhat of a surprise package and his ability to stay with the two series favourites throughout the tough race impressed many.
“I’m super chuffed with how things went today,” said van der Walt. “I’ve been working hard recently and I’m probably most comfortable over this sort of distance but to have stayed with the other two all the way was awesome!”
Donna Winter continued her dominance of the women’s race as she made it three from three and now finds herself in a very commanding position despite there still being seven races left in the series.
“It was a really fast start, the guys really went out hard this time but once we got going I settled into a rhythm pretty quickly,” said Winter.
“I’ve been doing a bit of distance training ahead of the World Cup and the Berg and I think that definitely helped today because we didn’t get too much help from the conditions out there,” she added.
Devon Thomson and Jean-Luc Mauvis claimed the victory in the doubles race ahead of race one winner Brett Hadiaris and Ross Fountain whilst Butch Murray and Gavin Searle grabbed the final podium position.
Having struggled with some tendonitis in his forearm recently Jabin Lyons put in an impressive performance to claim the short course singles race ahead of Shaun Simpson whilst the doubles section went to Mark and Joshua Evered-Hall.
Durban produced another beautiful winter’s day for race three and the blue skies and sunshine were warmly welcomed by the large field of paddlers which included a twenty-strong Gauteng contingent as well as a large crowd from Richards Bay and surrounds.
Race four, the Hansa 5 Beaches, takes place on Sunday 29 May at 10h00 and will finish at Amanzimtoti beach.
More information can be found at www.surfski.co.za
SUMMARY OF RESULTS - MCCARTHY TOYOTA KING OF THE BAY
THIRD LEG OF THE DISCOVERY SUNGLASS HUT SURFSKI SERIES
Long Course - Men
1.Hank McGregor 1:47.40
2.Matt Bouman 1:47.46
3.Brandon van der Walt 1:47.55
4.Barry Lewin 1:49.46
5.Bevan Manson 1:49.53
6.Oliver Burn 1:51.17
7.Quinton Rutherford 1:52.38
8.Adam Nisbet 1:52.49
9.Steve Cohen 1:53.06
10.Marc Holtzhausen 1:54.34
Long Course - Women
1.Donna Winter 2:04.02
2.Danica Vorster 2:11.55
Long Course - Doubles
1.Devon Thomson/Jean-Luc Mauvis 1:42.58
2.Brett Hadiaris/Ross Fountain 1:43.26
3.Butch Murray/Gavin Searle 1:43.32
Short Course - Singles
1.Jabin Lyons 48.20
2.Shaun Simpson 51.35
3.Luke Steenkamp 52.04
Short Course - Doubles
1.Mark Evered-Hall/Joshua Evered-Hall 49.48
2.Dean Gafney/Gavyn Hough 50.24
3.Frank Worlock/Sarah Thorpe 50.40
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