Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 October 2013 saw a crew of the country’s most dedicated cable wakeboarders and skaters, gathering at Forever Resorts Warmbaths, Bela Bela to contest the 2013 Liquid Force Cable Nationals.
The Red Bull DJs pumped out the beats and a throng of festive spectators watched from the shore, as the riders pitted themselves against each other and the assortment of rails and kickers for the 2013 Cable Nationals title.
Forever Resorts Warmbaths provided a fantastic venue for the event, with riders, spectators and families making full use of the first-class facilities, and enjoying a warm weekend away. The contests started on Saturday afternoon with qualifiers for all divisions, setting the pace for the finals to be held on Sunday. The qualifying rounds allowed the riders to set the bar high for the finals as everyone made it through to finals, allwoing riders the chance to lay it all down.
Sunday morning’s proceedings were greeted by a light drizzle, but the cloudy conditions weren’t about to put a dampener on what were to be sizzling hot finals.
First up was the Novice division, with CASA’s Learn2Ride development rider, Perfect Dean Dube, a resident StokeCity rider impressing the crowds and landing a huge Railey, while newcomer to the sport, Nikolai Coetzee, competing in only his second contest at the tender age of 11, really impressed the spectators and judges. The division was a real eye-opener, illustrating that the level of young wakeboarding is really on the up!
Next up was the skate division. Tour leader, Matti Buys, recently had an op on his hand, but still managed to ride like a champ using only one hand! The riding in this division was superb, with all the guys really laying it down and sticking some awesome tricks.
The Pro Men division as always had everyone watching with bated breath. These guys were out to impress and went all out! This division is full of the country’s most talented riders, who all deserve to be mentioned: Justin Mitri, Craig Eygenberger, Gregor Reichmuth, Justin Selby, Kaylib Louw, Damien Laird, and Sinjon Phillips – who unfortunately could not ride finals due to tweaking his knee during qualifiers.
The Ladies division was up next, with the two ladies at the top, Melissa Colborne and Candice Bacon, battling it out with CASA’s Learn2Ride development rider, Bryanna Motepe, and Deidre van Niekerk, who is competing on the cable scene again after a little hiatus. The level of riding was impressive with Deidre landing a huge railey off the kicker! Melissa took the ‘Char Award’ for the hardest fall, but got back up to complete her last run, securing her place at the 2013 Ladies Champs.
Next up was Junior Men, and a close battle between brothers Marius and Jacques Labuschagne had the crowd glued to their seats, with tour leader, Jeanu du Plooy laying it down! This division is full of talented youngsters who are always pushing the limits and showing us just how much the sport in South Africa is progressing.
Last up was the Open Men division which is filled with guys who are super passionate about the sport. The guys rode their hearts out during the finals, but ultimately there could be only one Champ!
Special thanks to CASA (The Cable Association of South Africa) chairman Kyle Holtzhauzen for a fantastic end to a great season. As well as to all spectators, riders and sponsors – without all these people an event of this magnitude would not have been possible.
