“We were all brave together” — Meeghan Heenop tells me about being scared out of her wits at the Surf Emporium SA Longboard Championships, but paddling out with her teammates anyway in giant waves at Jeffreys Bay Lower Point.
This is both the beauty and the beast of a surfing competition.
Sometimes you are “forced” to go out in waves that you think are far beyond you, and in the end you generally find out that you are tougher than you think.
At a competition like the SA Championships, where the Border longboard team achieved third place, there are enough eyes on you to help quickly if anything starts to go wrong.
Readers might recall last week when monster surf came through Buffalo City.
Jeffreys Bay was not spared by this storm and the waves stood up to such epic proportions that the competition was put on hold for a time.
By the time Meeghan, Neve Bowen and Anne Steiner paddled out, the waves had dropped to a more manageable state, but still looked outside of their abilities.
Keaton Stansfeld, 22, has wings on his heels.
When this young man hits the tarmac, he flies. Mind you, over rocks, rivers, sand, track, trail, mountains and streams, he does the same.
Keaton was this year’s winner at The Discovery Surfers Challenge.
As is usually the case, I was working at the Gonubie River mouth with the marathon hosts, Buffalo City Surfing, to welcome and direct the challenge athletes to the ropes and river crossing.
Keaton was the first athlete to the river, remarkably well ahead, over in a flash and gone like a rocket.
I caught up with him earlier this week to find out more about him.
Keaton hails from Johannesburg. Perhaps he finds the air at the coast moist and thick and full of oxygen and energy?
He is a provincial athlete across an outrageous nine different sports. He is humble about it, too, and almost surprised that this writer thinks his achievements are fantastic.
Dad is an all-round athlete and encouraged son to have a crack at almost everything, including badminton (green and gold representation), athletics (he has run and competed at world cross country in Kenya), hockey (been on a school trip to Malaysia/Singapore), baseball (provincial) and swimming (provincial).
He has played provincial soccer, competing in Barcelona, Spain, and played provincial cricket.
I think he was about to tell me more but I was about to fall off my chair so he stopped.
Keaton related all of this without much fanfare as if his achievements are quite normal.
Both his dad and grandmother have represented South Africa at “everything” he tells me. Sports genes completely run in the family.
Don’t think for a moment that this means school and academic work takes a back seat. Mom, also an athlete, is a principal, so school work has never been allowed to suffer.
Since about the age of 10 Keaton has always known what he wants to do, but selection was impossible, so off he went to Tuks to study a degree for town and regional planning.
After his second year at varsity, his dream came through.
Keaton has always wanted to be an air traffic controller. He finally got accepted, dropped his degree and stepped into ATC.
Full qualification takes about 12 years. This young man is not frightened of a long haul. He is in for the long run.
Currently, Keaton is working for Air Traffic and Navigation Services as assistant to the tower at King Phalo Airport here in Buffalo City. It takes about three to five years to get into the tower.
Keaton is living his dream and still running while he is about it. Doors have a habit of opening for him, and blessing and favour seem to be in front of him, beside him and behind him.
His hero athlete is Kenyan long-distance runner Eliud Kipchoge for both his decades-long athleticism and incredible mindset.
Keaton is a very mindful young man. Three priorities he impressed upon me included:
1 Be a good person;
2 Be humble; and
3 Life is more important than any medal.
Keaton likes to put God first. He follows his faith at Gonubie Baptist Church while he is here, and then family, friends, coach, physio and sport psychologist are relationships that follow out of that.
If you don’t rule your mind, your mind will rule you
I asked Keaton what words he lives by or what quotable quotes keep him focused: “Effortless is a myth. It takes years of hard work and you have to embrace the hard work because there is no way around it.
“If you don’t rule your mind, your mind will rule you. Only the disciplined ones are free in life. If you are undisciplined, you are a slave to your moods and emotions.”
Keaton has his eyes and heart set on the Olympics 2032. Possibly 5,000m or 10,000m. At the current rate of progress, I wonder if 2028 might even be a possibility?
I can’t help but think of Eric Liddell. “God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure”.
It would appear God has made Keaton Stansfeld fast too.
Indeed, I shall feel His pleasure when I see this young champion in our country’s colours at the Olympics.
Run like the wind Keaton.
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The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is that Meeghan, Neve and Anne are living their best lives, riding the challenge with the rest of the 37 members in the Border longboard team, and regardless of results in the event, exited the water victorious.
Some days your opponent is your competition and on other days, the sea is your competition. Exit the sea in one piece and you have won.
It is quite a surprise that in this event only two longboards were snapped in half. Waves of this size usually claim more equipment.
The Border team have reason to be proud of their result. Over the past few years, they have tended to field a team of 19 or 20 surfers, finishing sixth.
Between the likes of Wendy Miller, Jason Bowen and the local committee, the energy in our local longboard club has soared to 40 surfers and the team ramped home in third place behind Eastern Province and Western Province.
Canadian singer-songwriter Patrick Watson is a favourite for me.
It is difficult to categorise him but Wikipedia comments that he is a “blend of cabaret pop and classical music influences with indie rock and experimental musicianship”.
With Easter weekend about to sneak up on us (Easter Sunday is April 5), Watson is particularly appealing to me right now.
His track Adventures in your own backyard strikes a chord.
The song sets an emotional undertone of, don’t go looking too far away from home for connection because “it is right here beside you”.
But at this time I am looking at the direct physical statement of the song in geography “12 steps into your backyard. Through tall green grass, and into the world. Ain’t it feel right? Ain’t it feel nice?”
And yes it does. Right after my own heart. I love the front door of my home and heading out into the blue.
Yellow Sands, Kwelera River mouth, might just be that blue.
It is about 20 to 35 minutes drive out of town if you live in Buffalo City.
You can think of Yellow Sands as an adventure in your own backyard.
Sure there are temptations to head for Mozambique or Plett, Namibia, Cape Town or Ipanema, but what about your own backyard?
No long road trip, no airport, no customs, no exchange rates, no carousels. The adventure is right here.
The slipway surfing community at Yellows is unique and drenched in good people, good times, good food and good fun.
If not a tasty braai on the rocks, then it is a picnic basket as easy as a stop in at Crossways on the way to the break.
The family vibe on the slipway is exceptional, from eight-year-old children learning to surf on easy rollers up the river to 64-year-old geriatrics on 9.0 longboards surfing left or right breaking waves at the backline of the river mouth.
Stop off and chat to Dave Ridge (East Coast Surfboards) if you want to know anything about your board or order a new board from him.
Take a surf lesson from Wayne Monk if you want to raise your game and once the bug bites you for the area, you might want to talk to local surfer Hein Ketterer about some real estate.
Just down from the mouth at the first rocks, a left-breaking wave often rolls in off the caravan park.
Further down the rocks towards Glen Gariff, another left breaks to spread the crowd.
The name of the break is Secrets and there is a good chance you will be surfing with Olly Pascoe and his mates if you paddle out there.
If a day trip, sunrise to sunset on the slipway is not enough for you, then you might want to book in and tent, caravan or chalet at the Yellow Sands Caravan Park.
You can wake up to the rumble of waves on your doorstep and an average water temperature of about 18 degrees.
You can go to bed with the same gentle “gquma” to put you to sleep.
The on-site coffee shop at the swimming pool is a great place to unwind and a chip and a putt away you have Olivewood Golf Course, Inkwenkwezi Private Game Reserve, Chefani, Chintsa, Crawfords, Emerald Vale Brewery, Tea in the Trees, Prana Lodge, Areena Riverside Resort, Sama Sama Coffee & Smoothie Hotspot. As well as bass fishing, rock and surf fishing, deep sea fishing, horse riding, dirt biking, mountain biking, Buccaneers Beach Lodge, Queensberry Point, Queensberry Left, Glen Eden, Kwenxura River, guided botanical walks, art and estuary fishing for spotted grunter on the Kwelera River!
Are you kidding me? What more could you think of asking for?
My next favourite track from Patrick Watson is Here comes the river.
This is a tragic melodic piano lament about being overwhelmed, drowning in life while fighting to survive.
It is a description of the fight-or-flight lifestyle so many of us lead but the adventure in your own backyard is the antidote.
This is the real lure, offer and benefit of Yellow Sands and the East Coast Jikeleza.
Take a break this Easter. Have an adventure in your own backyard. You don’t need to go far.
Recently converted to longboarding, U18 Ndalo Langa has a history in shortboard surfing and he picked up on the new team vibe quickly.
“Everyone is really kind and everyone supports each other,” he said. “It feels like one big family.
“The best experience was that the waves were good and people were mellow and calm. No-one was cocky.”
His mother, Vuyo Langa, also noticed the difference in the spirit of the event.
“I absolutely enjoyed the longboard experience,” she said. “As a first time parent in longboarding, I did not find myself wondering or having to ask.
“The leaders of the team were courteous and engaging. Big ups to Wendy and Jason for being very organised.
“I found the people to be very relaxed.
“Interesting observation of the surfers — you’d swear they were not in a competition.
“They seemed to be really competing for fun and probably competing with themselves more than others.
“There was no competitive tension and generally a high spirit.”
It is hard for me to describe just how fabulous the East London Surf Lifesaving Club is. I run out of superlatives.
The club was there on Nahoon Beach before I started surfing and I started a long time ago.
What a fantastic institution it is and who can even vaguely guess how many lives have been saved due to this club?
How many guards have been trained here that now look after our beaches from Port Alfred to Port St Johns and beyond?
How many youngsters now have a solid appreciation for the ocean, team sport, winning and losing, health, vitality, opportunity and life.
I cannot say enough about the Princes, Woods, Fenns, Smiths, Tebbutts, Gallows, Rooses, Breetzkes, Malherbes and on and on.
My apologies — I have left out far too many names. It is all about family and, wow, what a legacy, what a history.
The ELSLC members have just returned from the DHL SA Masters Lifesaving Championships in Gqeberha. Approximately 300 athletes competed from 18 clubs across the length and breadth of our land.
Our home team came a credible fifth behind Fish Hoek first, Summerstrand second, Umhlanga Rocks third and Clifton fourth.
The big cherry on the top, though, was our own Joshua Fenn, the victor ludorum of the whole show. What a colossal achievement.
This writer spent some time with team captain for this ELSC SA Masters outing, Peter Fielding (age 75), showing that there is no expiry date on how much fun you are allowed to have down at the beach.
Pete competed in malibu, surf ski, swim and long run. He tells me that he became a lifesaver semi by accident.
He wanted to surf ski paddle with his late brother around Cape Point and in those days you were not allowed to enter if you did not have an SPA (surf proficiency award), so Pete joined a club and got started.
Pete has been in love with the sea since about 1970.
When he started surfing in Cape Town, there were no wetsuits, no board leashes and between him and his five buddies, they had three boards to share in total.
Freezing, broke and keen as mustard, the bug bit and never let go.
Pete ended up studying a BA at UCT, majoring in English and philosophy. He says he was a bad student and surfed too much because he took four years to get a three-year degree.
He seemed to get over the bad bit because he then secured a BSC in zoology and chemistry. Then followed some traveling, surfing and earning money catching fish on fishing boats.
He earned enough to work six months and travel six months, and save enough to study honours, master’s and a Phd!
All along Pete never lost his love for the ocean.
Pete has travelled the world over and can recount stories from all corners of the globe, in the water, under the water and next to the water.
By the time Pete got to his honours year on account of his travelling and working, he was about seven years older than his then-girlfriend, Bridgit who was in the honours class with him.
Ever the adventurer, Pete had a kombi at the time and took the entire honours class on an extended trip to the former Transkei, so much so that they all missed their graduation.
Pete has travelled the world over and can recount stories from all corners of the globe, in the water, under the water and next to the water.
Much like this writer, any time outside of the front door of the home is a good time.
I asked deputy headmaster Bridgit how she managed all Pete’s energy.
“Oh, he makes life interesting,” she said. “He is never boring.”
Pete loves his ELSLC family and is greatly pleased with the nippers, who are out and about, and away from cell phones, Xbox, computer games and the like.
Club leadership like Travis Smith, Keith and Sharon Jones and so many others in the club have his respect.
There are too many medals from this most recent SA Masters lifesaving championships to list them all, but local surfer Andre van Wyk deserves a nod, coming home with two gold medals in double ski (with Hennie Roos) and taplin, two silver medals in iron man and surfski, and one bronze medal in surf swim.
The World Masters Lifesaving Championships take place in Gqeberha in November this year.
No doubt our home club will come home with some international gold.
ELSLC is a feather in our cap.
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Ex-Gauteng-born-and-raised Meeghan has somehow always wanted to be a surfer.
In her high school years, she explained to her mother that she was going to waitress in J-Bay and become a surfer.
With a little bit of pressure from mom and dad, she ended up studying a BSc and qualifying as a dietician.
Dreams do come true and after marrying her man, Erhard, they moved to the coast to live in Gonubie, Buffalo City.
Coached into the waves by local surfer, Dr Welman Bartleman, Meeghan has found her tribe in the local longboard club.
Thanks to live heats broadcast on the internet, mom in Gauteng was able to watch her daughter surf the waves of J-Bay.
For some time, mom has perhaps been hoping that daughter and son-in-law might return to Egoli, the city of gold, but all of a sudden it is apparent there is more gold down at the sea than inland.
That which glitters is at the end of a good ride on a nine-foot longboard.
Ask Meeghan Heenop — she will confirm it.
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