Wakestock 2009 Girls Final
With 6 women in the final and £1000 up for grabs, the girls were ready to enter their battle for Wakestock 2009 champion. The three automatic qualifiers to the final were all former Wakestock Champions, Jules Haley (2008) Robbie Rendo (2006, 2008-Blenheim) and Kath Moore (2007) who were joined by the top 3 girls from the amateur qualifier, Sammi Filsell, Charlotte Bryant and Elke Venken. This was the closest contest the ladies comp has seen for a while!
The weather wasn’t too favourable and the wind began to pick up making the wake inconsistent and water pretty choppy. This was going to be a real test of the adaptability of the riders. Sammy was first up, and despite a kidney infection, showed that she’s upped her game over the last year and rode clean away from the rail and got in her backroll but just lost the handle on her front.
Charlotte Bryant, National Boat champion and new comer to Wakestock was up next with all eyes on her pipped to take the top spot. This girl has worked so hard over the past two years to set the benchmark for what the UK girls are aspiring to. All her tricks were solid and clean, with a variety of inverts but her spinning skills really stood out, just losing out on a toe 5.
Elke, a well practiced boat competitor, began her run with an intimidating tantrum and almost backlipped the Leviathan rail. But knowing that the points were to be had on the rails, she went for a backside 3 on the wall ride on her return pass but just caught an edge.
Robbie Rendo upped the anti starting her run with a beautiful elegant 360 and floaty tantrum, but fell on her signature trick, the toeside backroll. The conditions were getting tougher for the girls and the chop made no trick a certainty. The girls were really stepping it up and Kath Moore showed more hunger for the top spot than any other starting with a massive tantrum straight into a huge front and dominated the Leviathan rail with a slick boned out boardslide all the way. Her commitment to cable over the last couple of years really showed when she tackled the A frame and made it to the top of the incline.
Last up was current Wakestock Champion Jules Haley, who started her run with her signature uber boned out stalefish grab, but not to be outdone by Kath went for the A frame and managed to hang on to get in her front but fell on her slob 360.
Testing conditions for the ladies final, but one thing’s for sure, these girls proved that the divide between boat and cable riding is getting smaller. Cable riding and rail experience is almost essential for boat competition, certainly at Wakestock where the rails hold so much score value.
The final results came in with such tight margins, but in the end Kath Moore took third spot, Robbie second and in her first Wakestock and best year ever, Charlotte Bryant took the top spot and looked every bit the star on stage with her aviators! Well done ladies. The crowd loved it, the girls loved it and these ladies will have inspired many other women to get involved.
Saturday 18 July 2009 | Permalink
Other posts in this category
