Jason Ribbink, Lisa Smith, Hugh Thompson, Scott Lefevre, Craig Daniel, Pete Peterson, Nicole Annels, Stuart Downey, all winners!

Jason Ribbink, Lisa Smith dominate drama-filled final day at South Coast Surf Carnival

Increasingly extreme ocean conditions at Scottburgh's Main Beach made for interesting viewing on the final day of the South Coast Surf Carnival, presented by Jeep Apparel and the Independent on Saturday. In the premier SALSA (South African Longboard Surfing Association) sanctioned men's open longboarding division, Jason Ribbink (Durban) did well to claim a solid victory in the 2m+ waves, while Lisa Smith (Durban) braved the conditions to claim victory in the women's longboarding event. Ribbink also claimed the stand up paddle boarding event, a memorable double for one of South Africa's most consistent big wave performers.

It was an action packed day, with the massive and powerful swells creating havoc in the line up. Horrendous wipe outs, snapped boards, beatings on the sand bank, and narrow escapes around the rocky point were commonplace, with many more close calls avoided thanks to the YAMAHA wave runners, supplied by RaceTech, who were towing the competitors back out into the line up after each wave.

Ribbink was a dominant force throughout the event, winning all but one of his heats in the lead up to the open longboarding final. 2nd place finisher Brad Weare (Durban) put up a fight in the last final of the day, but was not able to find the wave needed to post a winning score. Scott Lefevre (Durban) and Dylan Macleod (PE) were the 3rd and 4th placed finishers respectively.

Men's winner Ribbink, who suffered a hamstring injury in the SUP final, modestly said that "the victory was just down to luck, I was in the right place at the right time and hooked into some decent waves, which was fortunate". Ribbink also said that, after winning the men's open longboarding title last year, his focus was on the SUP title.

The ladies longobarding final had spectators on the edge of their seats. In conditions that had even the most hardened wave riders nervous, Zaine Cawood(Umhlanga) proved her mettle by sitting wide on the outside in the hope of catching a long running wave into the bay. The risk did not pay off however, as she snapped her board on a mammoth wave. Soon after, and from a very similar position, Kim Bagley (Durban) had a few scary moments caught behind the point in a strong wash.

Luckily, the current pulled her around the rocks into safety, avoiding serious injury. Eventual winner Lisa Smith was more calculating in her approach in the final, a strategy which obviously paid dividends. Cawood claimed 2nd spot, Cheryl Bilson 3rd, while Bagley finished in 4th.

Contest director Hugh Thompson said that "it has really been a fantastic end to a very successful event". "The swell was bigger today, but was more rideable thanks to the weaker wind", said Thompson. "The wave runners also made a huge difference as it allowed the surfers to catch their quota of waves, which just improved the quality of surfing tremendously".

It was the stand up paddleboarders who were arguably the most affected by the large swells and washy ocean. The large craft were out of place in the line up, and competitors did extremely well to not only catch waves, but to execute difficult maneuvers while doing so. Ultimately, Jason Ribbink came out on top, overcoming both the extreme swells and the skilled finalists.

Ivan van Vuuren (Cape Town) came 2nd, Donald Brierley (Durban) 3rd, with Jonathon Rosslind (Cape Town) claiming 4th spot in the exciting final.

In the men's over 50 longboarding division, Hugh Thompson (Durban) overcame a strong challenge from Bruce Jackson (Durban North), 2nd, and Colin Whitmore (Durban), 3rd, in a closely fought battle, using every iota of his experience to master the very testing conditions. In the men's over 35 longboarding division, Craig Daniel (Durban) claimed a well earned victory, over Grant Gilmore (2nd), Fred le Roux (3rd) and Brandon Ribbink (4th).

For most of the junior longboarders, the conditions they faced in the final were some of the heaviest they had ever experienced. Scott Lefevre did well to beat out Kane Bennewith (Durban North), Junaid Sampson (Cape Town) and Daniel Harbers (Durban) in the race for the junior title.

After a fairly still morning, the kitesurfers once again reveled in the blustery afternoon conditions. The sky was filled with multicoloured kites, with the competitors making the most of the near perfect kiteboarding conditions. Pete Peterson (Cape Town) beat out Rob Chrystal (Durban) and Gavin Roberts (Margate) in a men's final featuring SA's top kiteboarders.

In the ladies division, Nicole Annels (Warner Beach) proved her class in the good conditions, claiming a well deserved victory. Linda Potts (Kloof) was a close 2nd, while Lisa Daggney (Warner Beach) claimed the 3rd and final podium position.

The junior division was dominated by Stuart Downey (Durban North) who took 1st place ahead of Feargus Kelly (Durban) in 2nd and Bryce Rawlins (Umhlanga) in 3rd.

Once again, the event was well supported by a big Cape contingent. Jonathan Rosslind led the charge for the Capetonians, with a good showing in the stand up paddleboard division. Current SA champ Justin Bing was also a realistic title contender in the premier men's open longboard division, winning all of his heats in the lead up to the final. Deon Bing, the elder statesman of the Cape crew, snuck his way into the semis of the over 35 longboarding division, before losing out to eventual winner Craig Daniel in the first semi final in the division.

The South Coast Carnival was sponsored by Tourism South Coast, Jeep Apparel and Independent on Saturday. Contributing sponsors to the event Island Style, Pick'n Pay Scottburgh, Bilt Surfboards, Specsavers, Thermo Plastic Concepts & Equipment (TCE), Maisch Fins, Nestle Pure Life Water, Natural Curve surfboards, Bokomo, Ocean 2 Air Kitesurfing, Southern Comfort J Bay Accommodation, Cyclone Kiteboarding, Pro Class Wetsuits, Glaceau Vitamin, uShaka Surf and Adventures and Aunty YO's.