If you haven’t raced in Mossel Bay, start filling that piggy bank.

Mossel Bay is a sleepy surf-mecca, new to the sport of downhill. Waves Surf Shop, the local surfstore/skatepark, organised the race. Much like the town, the organisers (Sheppie and Co) are on a mellow vibe and new to the sport of downhill. Their experience in organising events, though, made them pass the test with flying colours. They ran the event unmatched in efficiency, warmth and vibe, with no niggles whatsoever.

Riding Road Mountains is one of the best events since the invention of sliced steeze. They basically closed off the main road of Mossel Bay and half a neighbourhood to create a fun, interesting racecourse. The course consists of a mild slope, followed by a speedbump, a left-right chicane and a big dipper drop to the finish line. Pure glory. If you are not convinced, just look at the photos!

Two shuttles took us to the top of the hill on a different route than the racecourse. The resulting conveyer-belt of runs ensured everyone the necessary bang for their buck. Freeriding on the hill was encouraged, providing riders of all orientations with copious amounts of stoke. Big pack runs, hard ball sliding runs and all kinds of debauchery…

Although most riders were on a relaxed schedule, the racing was tight and fast. With a single, bisexual open categoty and cash prizes to the first four finishers, the ladies and the top speed, it couldn’t be any different. The final saw Matt Arderne, Murray Chandler, Raoul van den Bergh, Glen Phillips, Adam Lincoln-Lewis and Anton Pratt battle it out for that coveted R5000.00 cheque. Matt and Glen went on a nice crash date in the chicane, other stuff happened and Murray won the drag race to the finish line. Raoul was second, Anton third and Adam fourth.

Adam deserves a special mention for his focus and determination, being the only grom to make it to the final. The two lovely ladies that attended, Cheri Morris and Gabi Murray-Roberts, both won cash prizes for being awesome and pushing their limits (almost hitting 70km/h) and Matt won a cash prize for a top speed of 90km/h. All riders mentioned deserve a pat on the back, a high five and an ice-cold refreshment.

This is the perfect event to bring your woman, friends or parents with. It’s a scenic town with heaps of beaches, surfers, a few pretty girls, rad restaurants and various options for cheap accommodation. There’s a campsite on the point (a few minutes from the race) and a backpackers one block from the Surf Shop. Depending on how much time you have, it’s also a short drive to various super rad hills, and lots of exploring to be done. This is pioneering country – just ask Paul and Duss.

I would attend this event just for the party. The crew represented in large numbers, bonded and got up to unprecedented levels of drunken mischief. Unfortunately I cannot elaborate more on this point. What happens in Mossel Bay…

All and all Mossel Bay was a great event and was executed smoothly. The Cape Town and EP crews represented in large numbers, and some locals also made an appearance on the hill. I would like to urge all skaters, local, international. standing up or lying down, to keep your eyes open for the next event, buy that plane ticket or steal a car, and make the pilgrimage to Mossel Bay! I can assure you this race will only get better in years to come…

Pushing your skateboard is a mission. Pushing your skateboard for 15 kays is agonising. Racing your skateboard over 15 kays in a humid, hot Cape Town, is suicide.

The Mega Skop started at the Cape Town Civic Centre and covered the 15km’s to Tableview, along the city’s new NMT lanes (“non-motorised transport” – all the rage). Skateboarding is now legal on these paths. And, as skaters would have it, if there’s a road, there will be a race. The format was basic: R20 buy-in, and winner(s) take all.

Photo by Sharon Le Grange

Riders met at Pakalolo’s in Tableview, parked their cars and took the MyCity bus back to Cape Town. After a few high-fives and bear hugs, the 30 odd riders were ready to kick off. The starting format was everyone standing in a line, then running to grab their board and start kicking. From the kick-off a pack of riders pushed out far in front and worked hard to stay there. The rest of the field was spread out, some brave souls trying to catch the front pack, but the most of us in vain.

Photo by Sharon Le Grange

Photo by Sharon Le Grange

Within the first three kays, Reece Trout used his über-strong push to gain a lead on the rest of the pack. His break-away broke up the front pack of riders, and the distance between each individual rider and the next slowly grew bigger. Reece eventually won the thing, with Matt Crevald taking a tight second. Anel Van der Walt was the first lady across the finish line.

Photo by Sharon Le Grange

Photo by Sharon Le Grange

After the race had finished and everyone had cooled down, we proceeded to Pakalolo’s in Table View for a few well-deserved beers. Riders enjoyed the refreshments, reflecting on the race and just having a good time. For some riders it was the first time since Hot Heels to see old faces again. For other riders, it was a new experience to hang out, wait, and enjoy a good ol’ faff with the skating crew.

Photo by Sharon Le Grange

Photo by Sharon Le Grange

A few drinks later, it was time for prize giving and the crowning of the 2011 Downhill SA Champs (Rankings will be posted on the SAGRA website soon). The winner(s) in the luge/buttboard/junior categories were not present unfortunately. The first three spots on the 2011 ranking were filled by Glen Phillips in third, Raoul van den Berg in second, and Paul Du Plessis taking top dog.

All in all it was a fun afternoon and a rad day out. A big thanks to Alex Duss for creating the facebook event, Justin Boast for organising it and Candice Bouwer and Sharon Le Grange for helping out with admin and taking photo’s.

This event confirmed one thing to me, namely that the SA group of skaters really are a closely-knit family, and no matter what the event, keen to get involved and have a good time. It was rad to see old faces and, as always, meet new ones.

Cheers to that!

Photo by Sharon Le Grange

Penny Skateboards aim’s to inspire new skaters to share the love for the history of the sport, for current skaters to explore a new avenue of skateboarding and for old school skaters to rejuvenate the stoke that skateboarding brings. Made for commuting around town or varsity, pool riding, carving or just when you want to get that feeling of rolling down the street for the fun of it.

Evolution is inevitable and sports grow and change, but the essence of skateboarding will always remain. With 12 years of experience in skateboard manufacturing, Penny Skateboards are made in Australia using only the highest quality materials. The result is a high performance, long lasting plastic skateboard, designed with a sense of fun that will renew any skater’s love and passion for the adrenaline sport.

Penny – The Original Plastic Skateboard from Graetzmedia on Vimeo.

Watch more videos on the Penny Skateboards Vimeo Channel.

At 22 inches long and 6 inches wide you can easily fit your Penny into your back-pack. Available in 14 colours, every Penny comes equipped with custom 3 inch Penny Trucks, 59mm 78a super smooth Penny Wheels and high quality bearings. At the launch price of R950, anyone can afford a penny!

Penny Skateboards. Since forever.

For more information, drop an email to info@firstnature.be.

Technical stuff:

Size: 70mm
Contact patch: 32mm (it gets broader as you wear them in J )
Durometer: 80a
Hub Setting: sideset
Inside Egde: radiused (that means its round – refer to figure 6.66)
Other Features: The wheel is reverse coned. (When new, the inside lip is higher than the outside lip – refer to figure 6.66)
Thane compound: the infamous and mind-reading Mystothane
My setup: PSB Rebel2 topmount, Paris Trucks (I moved to Caliber Fifty’s halfway through), loose Fat Ant Bushings and a few speedrings.
Type of abuse inflicted on them: My 80kg’s doing all kinds of slides, mostly weighted, held-out standups with absolutely no regard for the integrity or roundness of the wheel.

Cult Classics are always up for a challenge, and keen to teach you a new thing or two. Mystothane’s mind-reading power is pretty strong, and allows for more expression and subjectivity than its racing counterpart, Psychathane (but more of that later).

The shape of the wheel is old-school: a modern rendition of the Krypto Classic. The graphics, on the other hand, are modern and trippy. Little eyeballs jamming in a circle around the hub of the wheel. The wheel is sticky, shiny, colourful and smells like jelly babies. It really does, just crack open a fresh set and stick your nose in the hub…

The first few runs are fast and grippy. The mold release is sticky ,providing lots of grip. The wheel is stocky and fat, providing lots of roll. The thane is soft and reboundy, making the wheel faaast. I did a bombing session with them and it was superb, keeping up with race wheels, but still allowing for some creative drifting… When new, it’s a freeriding wheel fit for the faster and braver scale of things!

But alas, it only takes a few slides to reveal the buttery goodness waiting on the inside. When it’s new and round it’s unbelievably smooth, unlike anything I have felt before. You can really gage how fast you are going, how much speed you are scrubbing, and there’s no surprises, nor a hint of chatter. You tend to learn new slides without even realising it.

If you hold a forward moving line through a corner, it allows you to correct your line with minor drifts and an easy kind of hookup. If you square your board up, the slide is smooth and fast, but easy to control. Excuse the cliché, but you can really hold out your standies further and do your slides faster. Its just that true.

The funny thing is when they get worn in (from about 68mm down) you can hear them before they slide. If you carve hard and hit the edge of grip, the wheels make this hissing snake-like noise. If you push them further, you enter the purgatory between grip and slide for which all the Cult’s thanes are known. Push it out, you slide. Keep it there, you drift. Pull it back, you grip. It’s super fun. 

The wheels age very well. Through their lifetime they are predictable and if you keep them round, they maintain a fair amount of roll. I managed to egg some of mine (an oval version of the “flat-spot”), but could easily straighten out the vibrations with 8 speedrings and some mild standies. The wheels held up to a fair amount of abuse. I tend not to de-weight when I slide, putting all pressure on the wheels to perform.

The ‘thane has heaps of attitude: it keeps on fighting back until the last slide. And it doesn’t get all hard and sinewy, it stays soft and reboundy and under the 60mm mark somewhere it hits that sweet spot. I call it the golden age, and every sliding wheel has it. When these wheels reach their golden age, they leave fat lines. I love lines.

I eventually cored them. Two of the wheels broke in half, splitting urethane with core. It was awesome. And, groms, it’s not because they are of inferior quality, but because they were sideset and coned and because I get aroused when I bash wheels up. 

 I could recommend these wheels to anyone looking to progress in their skating and enjoying a bit more wheel lifetime and pleasure for their money’s worth. These wheels helped me to progress in my freeriding much quicker than before, and all the people that have tried them shared this same experience (the Cult grows in Saffa-land, one soul at a time).

Do yourself a favour, join the Cult, and don’t let your ignorance hurt you any further…

Endnote:

Never get sentimental about wheels (thanks Alex Duss for this wise bit of insight)

Fairwell

Gerhard

[FN]

Rayne Longboards are now available in South Africa. Premium Longboards made in Vancouver, Canada. Exceeding every expectation, Rayne Longboards are the golden standard for professionals & amateurs worldwide.

Click on the links below for the Rayne deck of your choice. Send us your order to orders@firstnature.be

K-Rimes Killswitch

Baby Killer (Small Killswitch)

Demonseed

Vendetta

Avenger

Hustler

Nemesis

Hellcat

Rayne Longboards will be landing in South Africa in early 2012. Place your pre-order now and get our introductory discounts on all Rayne Decks. Check out the links below to see more about each deck:

K-Rimes Killswitch: R1990

Baby Killer (Small Killswitch): R1950

Demonseed: R1890

Vendetta: R1650

Avenger: R1690

Hustler: R1490

Nemesis: R1840

Hellcat: R1740

Send your requests to orders@firstnature.be and we will reply with an invoice and payment details. We will can ship to anywhere in South Africa.

After a taxing roadtrip from Johannesburg we finally arrived in the Mother City for 2 weekends of gravity racing and fun. We had more fun than we should have at the various concerts and parties on Thursday and Friday night and only arrived at the Houwteq Complex at 10am, 2 hours after the scheduled start time. Unfortunately the start of practice had been delayed as the track was wet from the light rain that fell the night before.

The gloomy clouds and chilly wind had no effect on the excitement and anticipation for this year’s event. Upon arrival, there was an indescribable feeling of happiness as old friends in the downhill family re-united. Smiles painted on everyone’s faces as hugs and handshakes were exchanged. For us it was topped with pride as we saw a lot of our Jo’Burg downhill friends that had been skating with us since we started. It is very difficult to describe the unity that is shared in the downhill family.

After registration and tech inspection were completed, marshals were prepped and placed in in anticipation for the 1st practice runs. The first rider was sent down around noon.

The Houwteq hill looks like a straight forward hill but soon enough the riders learnt she is a little scarier than she looks. The course starts with a long right hand bend, always longer than you think it is. There’s a long straight section after the corner  with a hay bale chicane halfway down. At the exit of the chicane the gradient increases to it’s steepest just before the daunting tight right hand bend before reaching the finish line. If that wasn’t enough to scare you, add the intense tail wind down the straight to the mix and you have an epic downhill course. Only the riders can tell you the fear and excitement this hill brings on.

Qualifying got underway around 4pm, the organizers were faced with a daunting task to make sure all the riders got 2 timed runs before sunset. With 39 Open Stand Up, 15 Junior Stand Up, 4 Women Stand Up, 5 Street Luge and 5 Classic Luge, this was not an easy task. The timing system worked really well and all the riders got to set their times efficiently with very few crashes taking place. See qualifying times below.

The evening was spent at the Back 2 Basics camp site close to the hill. Everyone was still buzzing on a high from their qualifying runs. As things settled in, tired bodies were warmed by the camp fire and everyone was introduced to a new game called “NINJA.” Once the rules were clearly explained, the next 3 hours turned into the ultimate ninja face-off. Great entertainment to add to the epic weekend. Once all the excitement died down, everyone retired to their wind chilled dorms. Some riders fell in to deeper sleeps than others so much so that the snoring started to sound like a mental dupstep party. So with intermittent sleep, the campsite became alive again around 6:30am.

Sunday morning, upon arrival, we were welcomed with sunny skies and no wind, a true reflection to the temperamental Western Cape weather. Nevertheless, excitement doubled from the day before as riders began practice runs around 10am. The spectators started rolling in early and there was a DJ on the bottom corner keeping the crowds pumped up as they watched top class gravity racing.

Once the race heats started, the level of skating got more intense with the wind picking slightly up and competition getting hotter. Towards the last few rounds of racing, there were a few hectic crashes needing the medics to attend but no serious injuries were sustained. More than anything, emotions were affected more as riders were feeling super competitive. There were a few upsets in the racing. World Champ Mischo Erban was crashed out off the push in his quater finals heat. Number one qualifier, Oliver Nielsen was sent into bales as Stefan Rufli took the inside line on him in the last corner in their semi final heat. Matt Arderne ended up in the hay in that heat as well allowing Stefan Rufli and Richard Dweza to make it through to the semi finals. Number 2 qualifier Paul du Plessis came to the final corner miles ahead in his semi final heat but came in way too hot and ploughed straight into the hay bales. He  then went on to win the consolation finals with a steazy speed check in the final corner that made the crowd go wild.

All in all it was an epic race day and by the end of the day, the same excited feeling of unity and family was clearly evident as riders and spectators cheered the prize winners and top achievers at this year’s event.

All eyes now on this weekend’s World Cup Series Finale at Hot Heels Africa 2011.

Check out the video report of Houwteq HDX 2011 by Matt Arderne

Houwteq HDX 2011: Qualifying results

OPEN STANDUP

1 Oliver Nielsen – 57.18sec

2 Paul Du Plessis – 58sec

3 Tobjørn Sunde – 58.03sec

4 Misho Erban – 58.06sec

5 Murray Chandler – 58.55sec

6 Anton Pratt – 58.98sec

7 Glen Phillips – 59.07sec

8 Mike Upham – 59.27sec

JUNIOR STANDUP

1 Adam Lincoln-Lewis – 59.86sec

2 Nick Hook – 1min 0.75sec

3 Sam Jakins – 1min 01.15sec

4 James Jagger – 1min 02.56sec

5 Nick Jakins – 1min 2.99sec

6 Justin Brown – 1min 4.45sec

7 Damon De Pinna – 1min 5.47sec

8 Camden Lategan – 1min 5.84sec

STREET LUGE

1 Russell Naude – 1min 0.47sec

2 Glen Phillips – 1min 1.97sec

3 Andries Haasbroek – 1min 2.08sec

4 Marco Caromba – 1min 4.84sec

5 Nikki Caromba – 1min 6.13sec

CLASSIC LUGE

1 – Russell Naude – 1min 1.86sec

2 – Marco Caromba – 1min 3.06sec

3 – Andries Haasbroek – 1min 4.42sec

4 – Glen Phillips – 1min 4.67sec

5 – Nikki Caromba – 1min 6.8sec

Houwteq HDX 2011: Race results

OPEN STANDUP

1 – Tobjørn Sunde

2 – Justin Readings

3 – Richard Dweza

4 – Stefan Rufli

5 – Paul Du Plessis

6 – Alex Duss

7 – Raoul van Den Berg

8 – Terry Terblanche

JUNIOR STANDUP

1 – Adam Lincoln-Lewis

2 – Sam Jakins

3 – James Jagger

4 – Nick Hook

5 – Nick Jakins

6 – Camden Lategan

7 -Justin Brown

8 –  James Burgess

LADIES STANDUP

1- Rebekka Gemperle

2 – Tamara

3 – Anje Lindenberg

4 – Gabi Murray-Roberts

Photos by: Ultra M Photography

Whether you’re in it to win it or you’re just a longboard enthusiast make sure you get yourself to these events. SAGRA really seems to have pulled out all the stops this year and have lined up a lot of awesome sponsors. Whats more is that many of the worlds top downhill racers such as 2009 World Series Champion and 2011 World Champion Mischo Erban will be attending and the are 3 Swiss girls rumoured to be pulling in.

Forget the international guys though, it’s the SA Champs that’s still up for grabs! We’ve only had three races this year so far and with 2 more races coming up anything can happen. Glen Phillips is top of the log after being in every final this year and he was number 2 in SA last year. Can he hold his lead for 2 more races or will someone snatch the championship title from his grasp? Paul du Plessis (currently 2nd on the log) is in good form after being crowned King Of The Fort 2011 and attending part of the Euro Tour. Last years number one was also in Europe this year but since he didn’t make it to King Of The Fort he is only 12th on the log. There is still plenty of time to catch up though. Lloyd Clark (First Nature) is sitting in 3rd on the log after one podium and consistently making it to the top eight. Experienced skaters Raoul van den Berg and Anton Pratt round out the top five and there’s a few other names in the top 10 who could be surprise takers of the title. See the log here:
Downhill Skateboard Log

There’s a number of skaters who have shown some serious improvement since last year, watch out for these guys: Murray “Steam Train” Chandler, winner of the Rookie of the Year Award (sponsored by First Nature) in 2010. He’s not been able to make it to all of this years races but he’s shown good form at the ones he has attended. Gary “Beef on Wheels” Africa has the beefiest slides known to man, fears no hill and is notorious for pushing those around him out of their comfort zone. Nick “Hot Bay Bomber” Hook has two more races left in his grom career and is in good stead to take the junior title but it will be exciting to see how he fairs in the open class. Richard “Stoke Master” Dweza is always up there, he’s not so high on the log after missing KOTF but he’s got some serious skill and experience. Do some practice runs with Rich, he’ll stick with you and show you a thing or two but come to race time and he’ll leave you in his thane dust. Gerhard “Steaze Pony” Nel (First Nature and Cult Wheels Ambassador) has shown some consistent progression since his first race, Houwteq 2010, where he won the best first time racer award (sponsored by First Nature).

Let’s not forget about the luge categories! Unless we see a serious upset, Russel Naude will surely take the championship title in both categories but that’s not to say that there wont be any excitement in the Street and Classic Luge races. Luge has grown quite significantly since last year with a few of the old riders coming out of the wood work and new guys popping up everywhere. Especially in Gauteng! The luge scene there has just exploded in recent months. Keep a look out for First Natures Luge Ambassador Andries Haasbroek from Pretoria. Check out the Street and Classic Luge logs as they stand now:

Street Luge Log

Classic Luge Log

For more information on these last two races of the season, check out the events on Facbook and on the SAGRA website:

Houwteq HDX Facebook

Houwteq HDX SAGRA Website

Hot Heels Africa Facebook:

HHA SAGRA Website

If you really want to know what to expect of the hill and the event as a whole, check out these ids from last years races.

Hot Heels Africa 2010 Video

Houwteq HDX 2010 Video

Houwteq DHX 2010 – Race Recap from Matt Arderne on Vimeo.

Yet another awesome first from First Nature. Rayne Longboards will soon be available in South Africa.

Check out their epic range of longboards on their website raynelongboards.com and like their Facebook page to keep up to date with all that’s going on in the world of Rayne.

Look out for Rayne Ambassador Justin Readings at the up coming races in Cape Town.

The general public has always perceived action sports to be dangerous and un-safe and that all the athletes are gung-ho crazy people that put their life at risk for no reason. The SafeBoarding Awareness Project aims to change this perception. All the athletes that take part in all the boarding sports on the street are extremely safety conscious people. You will see these guys wearing helmets and all protective gear when they are out on the streets which is a very different picture to what you would have seen in the past. Organised sessions and traffic control are two of the ways that these guys have ensured safe riding while enjoying the daring sports they take part in.

This is how the SafeBoarding Awareness Project was initiated. creating awareness for all types of boarding on the streets. The Project aims to make drivers and the general public aware of our presence on the road and to be cautious when driving in the same area that a session is going down. It was started by the Jo’Burg Longboarders Club, a group of action sport enthusiasts from all kinds of board sports that share the need for more adrenaline.

The first initiative is the construction of a few signs and boards to put up in the area a session is happening to caution drivers of the presence of the boarders in that area so that they slow down when driving around and will be a bit more understanding when they are stopped for a few minutes to allow boarders to pass down a hill.

For the first initiative, we are raising funds for the sign boards by selling limited edition t-shirts for R200. All profit goes to the construction of these boards and towards future initiative.

Support the SafeBoarding Awareness Project, buy your very own t-shirt. If you would like to order a shirt, send us a mail to orders@firstnature.be.

For more info about this project and all the sports we are supporting, head over to the Jo’Burg Longboarders Club Facebook page.

Support the cause of SafeBoarding.

Photos by: Tim Moolman