A DECOMPOSING whale carcass has forced the Victorian Longboard Titles to abandon their plans to hold round 1 of the competition on Philip Island.<\/p>\n
Surfing Victoria announced that round 1 of the 2021 Victorian Longboard Titles will now be held at 13th Beach in Barwon Heads. Round 2 will still be held at Point Impossible.<\/p>\n
Surfing Victoria spokesperson Liam Robertson said it\u2019s not the first time a whale carcass has interrupted their event.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt happened once before at Ocean Grove some years ago, we were supposed to run a junior event and a whale washed up on the beach and we couldn\u2019t run the event because of the risk that it would attract shark,\u201d Robertson said.<\/p>\n
The state titles are a pathway into Australian Surf Championships that will be held in August at Port Macquarie. From there competitors can enter the world titles.<\/p>\n
Robertson said longboarding is becoming increasingly popular as a lot more people take up surfing.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany people start with a longboard, some transition to shortboards but others stick with longboarding,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Forget what you\u2019ve seen on social media, there will be no handstands, shoulder rides or dogs in sunglasses sitting on the end of the boards.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, Robertson is still expecting some fancy footwork.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an elite level event, but everyone can enter,\u201d he said.\u201cIt\u2019s a mix of modern and traditional surfing, so there will be everything from critical cutbacks to nose rides and cross steps.\u201d
\n\u201cWe expect a broad range of competitors, we have everyhing from under 18s all the way through to over 70s in both men and women.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe standard of longboarding is very high, we have a lot of Australian champions in the mix.\u201d<\/p>\n
The champions include Ben Considine, Emma Webb and Greg Brown.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very much a gathering of the entire longboard community for a weekend,\u201d Robertson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a really kind of a fun social of event.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victorian Longboard Titles Round 1 is from May 1-2 at 13th Beach on the Bellarine Peninsula Round 2 will run from May 22-23 at Point Impossible on the Surf Coast.<\/p>\n
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A DECOMPOSING whale carcass has forced the Victorian Longboard Titles to abandon their plans to hold round 1 of the competition on Philip Island. Surfing Victoria announced that round 1 of the 2021 Victorian Longboard Titles will now be held at 13th Beach in Barwon Heads. Round 2 will still be held at Point Impossible. […]<\/p>\n