THRILLS AND SPILLS’ is a term more connected with motor sports.
But after last Sunday’s Banks/Nissan Independence Surf Fest, it is a term that can now be applied to surfing as well.
At the end of the day, national pride came to the fore as local surfers dominated and took home the top prizes when the curtain came down on the 23rd running of the Barbados Surfing Association event at Soup Bowl, Bathsheba.
For Chelsea Tuach, the competition was extra special.
The 14 year-old joined an elite group of surfers who have claimed the top prize more than once.
Her win on Sunday, in conditions that saw the organisers putting caddies in the water as a precaution, sent her to the top of the pack, as it was her third time taking the Independence Pro title in the female division.
As president of the Barbados Surfing Association Simon Coles put it – “it was as big as Soup Bowl got; life or death conditions”. But the conditions did not appear to faze Tuach.
“It was fun, it was tough to get out but it was fun,” she said as she collected her prize and winner’s cheque.
The surfer, who has also performed well on the international scene, and Puerto Rican surfer Maria Kusmovich showed their mettle in battling the vicious rip to get to the line-up and then slashing and carving the waves that Soup Bowl threw their way.
But it was Tuach, with the international experience under her belt, that took the top spot from Kusmovich.
However, it was the much anticipated grand final that pit three local surfers – one of whom was the defending champion – against a lone Puerto Rican wave rider.
And, as if in anticipation, Soup Bowl sent its best sets to the final.
Tucking himself into what was called the biggest barrel of the day, Jonathan Reece emerged from a wall of water to the hoots, calls and applause from the crowd on the beach.
He knew that ride was the event winner as he punched the air with his fists and was later carried up the beach on the shoulders of those who had already picked him as their champion.
But last year’s winner Lewis St.John and Stefan Corbin were not so easily conquered. And neither was Puerto Rican Jose Graves, who is no stranger to Soup Bowl.
St John performed a big floater that kept him in contention for the top prize right to the end, and Corbin and Graves consistently hit the lip of the waves.
At the end of it, Coles expressed his pleasure with the event.
“Today’s competition was amazing. We [had] eight to 12-foot surfing at Soup Bowl. You either had to commit or you get really seriously hurt,” he said.
“All of our surfers performed really well. Barbados shone in every division. We beat the United States of America; we beat Guadeloupe; we beat Puerto Rico; we beat Trinidad. This was the best result for Barbados in many years,” he enthused.
