Diamonds in the Mist
Wedged between two massive cold fronts in the middle of the most brutal Cape Winter in decades, surf spot Tand fired for the Eagle Lighting Tand Invitational 2024, writes Pierre Marqua.
The invitational bodyboarding event, which is presented by Jack Black Brewery, was bestowed with a day of blessings on Thursday 25 July, with the warm African sun shining on Onrus local and multiple world champion Tristan Roberts, who came out all guns blazing to claim his fourth Tand trophy, and a R30,000 winner’s cheque.
Calling the green light for a specialty bodyboarding event is always a gamble. Event organisers spent agonising hours analysing charts and consulting with locals who know the secret combinations to get perfect waves, offshore winds, and crisp sunshine in one day. The 2024 edition hit the jackpot, squished between the frontal onslaught, at Tietiesbaai, on the South African Weskus.
For those making the pre-dawn drive up from Cape Town, the day’s journey started with fog so thick you required the assistance of GPS just to see where to turn off in the direction of Paternoster.
The event organizers normally look for a swell in the three metre range, which produces the large, dangerous waves Tand has always been associated with. However, this year, due to the brutal winter, it’s been hard to find a gap in the swell where it wasn’t wild and woolly. A day was needed that could showcase the sport of bodyboarding in all its glory, but the cold fronts have been relentless since the opening function down at Jack Black Brewery in Diep River on the 10th of July.
With a month-long window, the final week of July finally enabled a green light. Outgoing Tand organizer Deon ‘Mumbles’ Meyer said: “It’s a total gamble calling it on when the charts are only reflecting 2.2 meters, but the wind and tides are perfect, and there looks like a gap in the rain. I guess we will only know at first light if we made the right call.”
After navigating the fog and safely arriving at the Tietiesbaai campsite, the first rays of the day peaked over the sand dunes, and it was clear that the gamble paid off, and the world was in for a treat. Without a cloud in the sky and a gentle offshore wind, Tand was a clean 4-6ft in the early morning light. With the start time set for 9 am, the event was blessed by the Khoisan King (leader of the oldest living custodians of this beautiful land).
The Tand Invitational is like T20 cricket, with a different format to traditional surfing contests. Only the best riders are invited. There are only seven heats in the event, which allows for more focused action and a faster pace. Tand played her part with every heat jam-packed with high-scoring rides, big barrels, and sky-high aerial manoeuvres. This created a vibe that engaged well with the hundreds of spectators who all found a way to take a random Thursday off work or school to attend an event at a remote location far from normal cell phone range.
Their sacrifice was rewarded with nonstop action and plenty of lead changes. The use of the live heats system and constructive beach communication kept everyone on the edge of their seats with blow-by-blow updates of who did what and why.
Tristan Roberts came out swinging, scoring the highest heat total of the event with a 9 and a perfect 10 in the opening 40-minute exchange. The multiple world champion set the bar high, and the rest of the field responded accordingly. Sacha Specker put up a solid battle, with the lead changing multiple times during the heat, but in the end, he had to settle for second place and a spot in the semi-finals. The top two riders advance. We said goodbye to Luke Bruton and Nic Westman. Both these young riders gained valuable experience in bodyboarding’s meanest arena.
Heat 2 started off slowly, causing a bit of anxiety as the first 10 minutes passed without a bump in the ocean, but as the beach DJ changed the pace of the music, the waves turned on, and the action resumed. Long-time world tour campaigner and one of the best bodyboarding exports South Africa has produced, Richards Bay’s Mark MacCarthy adapted to the cold water and turned up the heat, beating local legend and one of Tand’s original pioneers, Ruan De Bruin, into second place. Hankus Loubser narrowly missed advancing; again, the strategy of patience got the better of him, and he just couldn’t find a backup score. Cato found a bomb but couldn’t find another.
Heat 3 was possibly the most anticipated heat in the event. The greatest bodyboarder of all time, Hawaii’s Mike Stewart, took his place in the lineup and in the annals of South African bodyboarding history - the day Mike Stewart came to town and took on Tand.
Tand is a wave where experience counts, and small fractions in position can be the difference between a good wave, a great wave, or a nightmare. Mike has only had the opportunity to have one warm-up session out at Tand, and this was capitalized on by the local lads.
Luke Staniforth pushed hard, Benjy Oliver snuck in a few bombs, and Mike and Ismaeel Grant had a paddle battle to see who could sit deeper. The action was relentless, and the wipeouts were getting more brutal as the tide dropped out. At the end of the heat, Luke stood victorious with Benjy hot on his heels. Mike found a bomb and missed a bomb, but it was enough to get him an honourable third place in the heat and a first place in all the hearts of the adoring public lining the rocks. As he left the water, the spectators, young and old, formed a guard of honour to congratulate and thank Mike for being part of this year's Tand experience. It was humbling.
While all eyes were on Mike on the beach, heat 4 was well underway as the gents traded barrels and flips. The dark horse of the event, East London’s Dylan Muhlenberg, aka the Mule, who earlier this year was ready to throw in the towel on his competitive career, entered the Cape Town Pro via the last-minute dot-com option, then ended up on the podium and earned himself an invitation to Tand.
Now here we are as he leads from the front with a powerful display of bodyboarding. Coming in second was bodyboard coach Noordhoek’s Aden Kleve. Another major upset came when defending champion, Wes Coetzee from South Coast KZN, was unable to find the rhythm of last year and had to settle for third place with Teegan Coulonval ifourth.
On to the Semifinals. The sun beat down, the rocks warmed up, the layers came off, and the ocean kept on delivering. The low tide allowed Tand to really show her teeth as the boys started to jockey deeper and deeper behind the rock. The mellowness, if you can call anything witnessed thus far mellow, of the high tide had long been forgotten, and the focus now was on wave selection and direction. A mistake now would result in a sudden trip to the dentist’s chair for a mandatory root canal.
Semi-final number one was an outright slugfest; no quarter was given. Tristan and Mark went head-to-head, matching one another wave for wave. With the top two waves counting, all the scoring rides for second and first were in the excellent range. However, Tristan’s combo of an 8 and a 9 beat Mark’s hand of an 8.16 and an 8.73. Yes, it was that close. Contest surfing at its absolute best.
Feeling a little left out of the action, Benjy Oliver replied with one of the longest, deepest barrels seen ridden at Tand for a long time. Taking off way behind the rock, he vanished below sea level as the tube swallowed him up, only to be spat out halfway across the bay a few moments later. That tube earned him Barrel of the Event and a bonus pay cheque of R2000, not bad for third place. Aden Kleve threw everything and the kitchen sink into his heat; he put life and limb on the line, but it wasn’t his day. He didn’t walk away empty-handed, a bone-crunching wipeout that saw him spend a few moments underwater inspecting the crayfish stocks earned him Wipeout of the Event, now known as the Cavity Cleaner Award, and a Buell wetsuit to go with the sinus flush he got earlier.
If you thought the winning margin for semi-final number one was tight, semi-final two said, “Fine, hold my Jack Black beer.” When the spray cleared, it was only 0.04 that separated first from second place. The lead switched multiple times between the Mule, Luke Staniforth, and Sacha Specker. With every new set that rolled over the rock, someone else came out in front. Spex was in overdrive, Dylan was making the impossible seem possible, and Luke was sneaking bombs under priority.
In the end, Dylan got the photo finish over Luke, with Spex just missing out on a spot in the final. Ruan was happy to sit and watch the lads battle it out; he found a couple, but nothing that matched the intensity of what the other riders were chasing.
Following tradition at Tand, the final the public is allowed to be watched from the water, thus giving any willing spectator the chance to experience this unique wave from a perspective usually reserved for water photographers, seals, and sharks. Safety for the public was a priority and the water patrol managed the frothing crowd like a border collie sorts out the sheep.
Picking up from where they left off in the semifinals, Tristan Roberts and Mark MacCarthy made their intentions clear. Both found high-scoring waves early on, however, Tristan seemed to step up a gear. He again went excellent in his scoring, bagging a massive tube to the tune of a 9.75 and backing it up with a bone-crunching barrel to backflip that earned him an 8. Mark gave it his best, but in the end, Tristan dominated the heat by putting every other finalist into combo land. No one could touch him; he really was in a league of his own.
The cheering crowds on the rocks were treated to a textbook display of competitive surf strategy combined with a fearless, innovative approach to bodyboarding that is so entertaining to watch. Dylan Muhlenberg backed up the podium finish he got earlier in the year with another well-deserved third place, and rounding off the final was Luke Staniforth in fourth, who got a little lost in the moment and didn’t find the waves that could earn him the big bucks.
The late arvi prize giving ended a perfect day. Afterwards, athletes joined fans for a special post-event beer with Jack Black's Brewery. With the gees (Afrikaans for mood) high, it was the perfect end to the day before the party continued in Paternoster at the infamous Panty Bar, where athletes and fans kuiered (that’s Afrikaans for partied) till late in the night.
The event was made possible by Deon Meyer who sadly will be leaving the world of bodyboarding events to focus on building his next project. New Tand organiser is James Plumstead. For the last three years James, from What Goes Around SA, has had a massive influence. He has put a professional team together that passionately grind away in the background making sure the Tand dream stays alive. This event will be well cared for and will continue to grow.
Deon and James thank all friends, family and fans who made the trip to support the riders and the event. Special thanks also to all sponsors who helped: Jackery SA for the electricity in the middle of nowhere, Redbull SA, Kifflab , Ryan Boon Meats, Ornate Signs, Fabricant , What Goes Around SA, Urban Hippy, Traeger Grills, Kestrel , Smit Steenwerke, Buell Surf, Protect The West Coast, Paternoster Rentals, Sea Shack, Webodyboard, Boardtalk, ZA Boogie, and Wavescape.
And that’s a wrap, till next year folks.
Final Results:
1) Tristan Roberts: R30,000
2) Mark MacCarthy: R10,000
3) Dylan Muhlenberg: R5,000
4) Luke Staniforth: R3,000
Best Barrel: Benjy Oliver: R2,000
Cavity Cleaner wipeout: Aden Kleve won a Buell wetsuit
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