Warmbaths heats up with cable wake talent

The weekend of the 21-22 April 2012 saw a selection of the country’s most dedicated cable wakeboarders and skaters gather at Forever Resorts Warmbaths (Bela Bela), to contest the 2012 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 2012 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, enjoying a warm weekend away. The VIP’s were well looked after by the staff, and a special mention must go to Tom, Caroline, Hardus and Sam who put in a much appreciated effort to ensure that the hosting of the event was of international standards. The Saturday evening party, hosted in honour of all the riders will be remembered for years to come.

Fierce competition in the heats for all divisions on Saturday set the pace for the finals to be held on Sunday. Sunday morning’s proceedings were greeted with near perfect conditions, and the battle for first place kicked of early.

First up was the novice division, with young Jacques Labuschagne from Cape Town giving all the riders in the category a run for their money. Jacque won the first stop in March, as well as the qualifiers on the Saturday, so he was certainly the rider to beat. The division was a real eye-opener, illustrating that the level of wakeboarding in SA is really on the up. Jacques is also the youngest rider in this division, who at only 12 years of age, also entered the wakeskate division. Next up was Junior Men, which saw a tightly contested battle between Ryan Durham, Liquid Force SA team rider, and Cameron Graham, keeping the crowds glued to their seats.

These two youngsters are both remarkably talented and are always pushing the envelope. Both had solid runs, and everyone waited in awe and anticipation to see who would eventually walk away with the title. The Ladies division saw reigning champ, Melissa Colborne, competing against Bryanna Motepe, one of the CASA Learn 2 Ride programme‘s sponsored riders. Melissa’s rock-solid run and execution wowed the crowd, showing that this young lady has a promising future in the sport. The wake-skaters started out strong and the crowd saw them sticking a stirring array of flat-water and rail tricks.

Once again, Mattie Buys dominated but Darren Turner, a Base 3 local, was certainly not resting on his laurels and is an up-and coming rider to watch out for. Having taken the title at the first stop, he went head to head with Mattie, and the finals had spectators watching with bated breath as Mattie, who had been up all night with a stomach bug, conquered. Open Men was combined with the masters category and the guys really showed their passion for the sport. Vaal local Brendan Tucker, who normally rides boat, was a late-entry, and this saw him competing against Koosie van Heerden, who is normally in the Master’s division, as well as Warmbaths local Jacques Greyling for the top spots. The final division was Pro Men, and as expected, turned out to be a hotly contested affair. Reigning champion Gregor Reichmuth from Cape Town battled ferociously with the other riders to keep hold of the coveted title. This division is brimming with the country’s best talent, and they all deserve a mention: Justin Mitri; Craig Eygenberger – Liquid Force SA team rider; Justin Selby – Liquid Force SA Team rider; Francois du Toit; and Kyle Hecht-Wendt – Hyperlite SA team rider.

Justin Mitri also deserves a special mention for landing a clean Back Mobe 5 that had everyone on their feet. Special thanks to CASA (The Cable Association of South Africa) chairman Kyle Holtzhauzen for a fantastic end to a great season; all spectators, riders and sponsors. Without all these people an event of this magnitude would not have been possible.

For more information on the event visit www.ridecable.co.za, or contact CASA Chairman Kyle Holtzhauzen on (011) 462 9724 or info@ridecable.co.za