It’s almost time for the country’s gravity racers to head to the Western Cape for the final two competitions on the SAGRA National Championship calendar. The Houwteq Downhill Extreme (HDX) is this weekend (4 and 5 December) and the grand finale of the IGSA World Cup, Hot Heels Africa will be held the following weekend (9, 10 and 11 December).
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:
For more information on these last two races of the season, check out the events on Facbook and on the 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