Exit Surf Canterbury Men’s Surfing Championships concluded last weekend with pumping waves excellent surfing and great weather on offer all weekend long.
Alexis Owen Image thanks to Solphoto
As the third and final Open Men’s event for the year the Exit Surf Canterbury Champs attracted the top male surfers from all over the country including National Champions, and New Zealand junior team representatives.
The weekend started with the opening rounds surfing in one meter waves with clean offshores. 2022 National Men’s champ Daniel Farr began his Canterbury champs’ campaign with a solid performance in the opening round winning over Christchurch locals Hugh Ritchie and Jai Oakley.
Heat three in the open men’s saw last year’s champion Taylor Hutchison (Rag) pushed hard by local Myka Black who in turn knocked out top ranked Piha surfer Zen Wallis. Heat six had the 2021 runner up Caleb Cutmore (Rag) register the highest heat score of the day with a 14.27 out of 20.
After 2 big days of surfing the Open Men’s, semi-finals kicked off Mondays final’s day. Semi one was a tight one with Daniel Farr just out pointing junior surfer Tyler Perry. Semi two had Caleb Cutmore and Myka Black knock out 2021 champion Taylor Hutchison.
In the Smooth Star O&E under 14 final Alexis Owen showed why he has won the National under 14 titles twice in the last 3 years with a dominant display against his peers.
The Joyce and Co under 16 semi-finals had Jack Higgins, Lincoln Penei, Rakiatea Tau and Alexis Owen heading to the finals. Where Alexis Owen was again pushed to perform by Rakiatea Tau but a 6.1 & 5.9 towards the end of the heat sealed his second title for the day
The McKenzie/Robertson under 18 semis had Kalani Louis, Jai Oakley, Rakiatea Tau & Jake Owen moving to the final. A very tight affair with the lead changing multiple times. National junior rep Kalani Louis was the eventual winner with Jai Oakley and Rakiatea Tau finishing within a point of him.
Hugh Ritchie, Image thanks to Solphoto
In the longboarding, the Make Collective Longboard final saw National reps Zen Wallis & Hugh Ritchie fighting hard against Charlie Wise and surprise finalist Jared Crawford. Wallis and Ritchie have exchanged wins multiple times over the last five years. After a close heat with an impressive display of high-performance longboarding by all surfers first place went to Ritchie.
Closing out the day The Exit Surf Men’s Open final was very tight. The event favourite National Champion Daniel Farr needed a 6.1 to take the lead with a minute to go, he got a wave that gave him a 6.23 out of 10 to regain the lead. With 20 seconds remaining Caleb Cutmore needed a 6.4 for the win, he made the most of the last wave of the heat and scored a 6.63 out of 10 to give him the win and the Exit Surf $1500.00 cheque.
Please see below for final results of the Exit Surf Mens Canterbury Championships held in Christchurch (23-25 April)
Longboard men’s
Hugh Ritchie (Chch) 1, Zen Wallis (Piha) 2, Charlie Wise (Chch) 3, Jared Crawford (Chch) 4, Nick Tuhikarama (Chch) 5, Will Jamieson (Chch) 5, Jack Hawke (Chch) 6,
Open men’s
Caleb Cutmore (Rag) 1, Daniel Farr (Tara) 2, Myka Black (Chch) 3, Tyler Perry (Kaik) 4,
Under 18 Boys
Kalani Louis (Tara) 1, Jai Oakley (Chch) 2, Rakiatea Tau (Chch) 3, Jake Owen (Dun) 4,
Under 16 Boys
Alexis Owen (Dun) 1, Rakiatea Tau (Chch) 2, Jack Higgins (Dun) 3, Lincoln Penei (Chch) 4,
Under 14 Boys
Alexis Owen (Dun) 1, Sonny Lyons (Kaik) 2, Tai Mckenzie (Chch) 3, Keo Morrison (Dun) 4,
Senior men’s O30
Ryan Hawker 1, Mike Oakley (Chch) 2, Craig Higgins (Dun) 3, Dane Robertson 4,
Grandmaster O45
Mike Oakley (Chch) 1, Neil Robb (Chch) 2, Aaron Lock (Chch) 3, George Roberts Snr (Chch) 4,
Information
For more information on the Exit Surf Men’s Canterbury Championships please contact Ben Kennings on 021 2278732 or email benkennings@surfingnz.co.nz.
Event Hotline
The Surfing New Zealand event hotline is 0211134506. This will be updated daily at with venues, divisions contested and conditions.
Partners
Generous support from Exit Surf , Make Collective, Smooth Star O&E , CHRISTCHURCHSCAFFOLDING , Joyce & Co, Garden City Flooring, McKenzie/Robertson, Mainland Foundation, Christchurch City Council, Solphoto.co.nz, Switch, The Coffee shed, SISA, Surfing NZ, and North Wai Boardriders Club has made this event possible.
Imagery
High resolution images will be available to media upon request. Images will be distributed free of charge.
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