Video and photos from vintage longboard competition
Marietta Hitzemann, surfing wahine
September 21, 2009
Summer felt so short this year, but we were still really looking forward to Labor Day Sunday (September 5), the second attempt for the 2009 Cape Cod Oldtimers Longboard Classic. Those Hurricane Bill waves on August 23 were too big to risk the ancient longboards, so the contest was rescheduled for the 5th.
It was a beautiful evening – chilly, but beautiful. I was psyched because I’ve wanted to see those antique boards ever since I heard about the competition. You all know the rules by now: vintage longboards (pre-1970), no wetsuits, no leashes.
I ran into Cathy Chamberlin so we hung out and cheered on everyone riding that evening. Liz Patton was supposed to be there but a change in plans brought her up to Wellfleet the day before and she couldn't stay for the show. (BTW, the waves were gorgeous the night before the challenge - well organized and nicely spaced. That evening - Saturday - we surfed until the sun went down and the shadows cast by the dunes made us remember all those shark sightings in Chatham...)
Mr. Jerry Johnson was there, as per usual, filming the competition. Desiree posted some of his videos on the Facebook page. Here's the one that shows one of the women’s heats:
The competition ended with what I think was the lifeguard heat and those folks were into tricks and footwork. The winner of the women’s group is a young woman named Jazmin Ment. Here’s a slide show of her winning ride:
What can you say to that? Awesome. Just plain awesome.
Her brother was out there, too. He was the one surfing with a cast/boot on his foot. When I asked him if his foot was broken or sprained, he said “Well, the x-rays were inconclusive…”