by SFT | Jun 9, 2025 | Notes From The Editor
After many months of consistent updates from St Francis Today, we will be stepping away for a few weeks. Life calls elsewhere for a short while, and this means the SFT regular postings on the website and newsletter will be somewhat limited during this time. It’s just a short pause, however, a brief break, so please continue reading for more information.
Let’s be clear: We’re not switching off completely. While SFT may not be able to publish the usual (fairly) consistent flow of news, stories, and images, we will still be keeping an eye on things and quietly tracking what’s happening in and around St Francis Bay.
You’ll still find SFT on social media from time to time, chiming in with the odd post, a quick note, a tongue-in-cheek travel piece or a shared update. So if you have something important or interesting to share, feel free to tag or message us there. SFT may not always reply immediately, but we’ll be listening and monitoring, either on Facebook or Instagram, even though those two platforms give us the heebie-jeebies at times.
A short pause for breath
This is not a farewell, just a short pause for breath. SFT will be back soon, refreshed and ready, just in time for the rigours of full-blown EC winter, and with ice-cold focus and plenty to say. The heart of St Francis Today has always been about staying connected to our quirky little village and warmly eccentric community. That commitment doesn’t stop, even if we’re not physically in town for a little bit.
In the meantime, thank you for your continued support, for reading, sharing, and engaging with what we publish.
Editor – St Francis Today
Further reading/looking: Baviaanskloof Night Skies – Wild Photo Of The Day by Clive Wright Photography
by SFT | Jun 9, 2025 | Surf News, Surfing South Africa
The Rip Curl GromSearch is approaching, and with the current sardine run situation, as well as some decent swell lines on the forecast, there are a few changes on the go. Here is the latest update, along with news of the St Francis Bay Surfers heading for Durban to compete.
We would like to wish all St Francis Bay surfers the best of luck in the Rip Curl GromSearch event. Also, those competing in the Ethekwini Pro and the various events in Durban. Surfers include Slayde Shooter, Summer Harding, Rylan Jarvis, David Moussouris and others.
What
The Rip Curl GromSearch Durban is the third contest in a four-event series held at various locations along our coastline. The first event of the year took place in Cape Town. The second event was held in Port Alfred as part of the Port Alfred Easter Festival. The final event will take place at Seal Point, Cape St. Francis, in September.
Where
The Rip Curl GromSearch Durban was scheduled to take place at Scottburgh on the South Coast. It was supported by the Cutty Sark Hotel. However, the recent and ongoing sardine run prompted the contest organisers and sponsors to decide to relocate. Therefore the contest has moved to Durban for safety reasons. The event is now scheduled to take place at Dairy Beach. The forecast looks promising, with potentially good waves spilling over from Thursday into the opening period of the event window on Friday.
When
The Rip Curl GromSearch will kick off early this Friday morning. The contest is scheduled for Friday, 13th, to Sunday, 15th. Still, the event could end early. Further to this, competitors and families are advised to keep an eye on the Surfing South Africa Live Heats app for schedules and any possible changes to the schedule. The sandbanks at Dairy have been fun lately, with fun and highly contestable waves forecast for this event.
Why
The Rip Curl GromSearch series worldwide recognises the U16 division as the premier division in this series, which takes place globally. The U16 Series Winners get invited to surf in the Rip Curl GromSearch Global Finals. Here they compete against the best groms in the world. Additionally, they are housed, coached and tutored by some of the best Rip Curl professional competitors/ Surfers like Stephanie Gilmore and Molly Picklum, as evidenced by the final event in Bali last year.
Who
The top junior surfers in the country will be at this event, in Durban for a chance to win points and prize money. While the Rip Curl GromSerch Durban is part of the 2025 local GromSearch Series, it is not just about the U16 division, though. It comprises U12, U14, U16, and U18 divisions. All divisions will be competing for contest results, prizes, and rankings on the SAST. Further, the Rip Curl GromSearch contests are all premier SAST events. Thus there are 1,000 points awarded to the winners and prize money in line with all premier events.
The top seed for the Premier U16 Boys Division, Kai Stubbs from Scarborough, has had to withdraw from the event at the last minute due to an injury. So, Ben Esterhuyse and Adam Faclier, second and third on the unadjusted ratings, will be competing in the event and could capitalise on this situation.
In the U16 Girls Division, all eyes are on Leah Lepront and Emily Jenkinson, the top two surfers on unadjusted rankings.
The Rip Curl GromSearch Durban contest is a Surfing South Africa tournament supported by Sea Harvest.
Competitors, families and friends can follow live heat tracking on LiveHeats.
Read more: Matt McGillivray Gets Third In Australia – Photo(s) Of The Day
by SFT | Jun 9, 2025 | St Francis
Johannesburg, South Africa – This year’s Park Lines BMX Tournament, the official 2025 BMX Freestyle South African Championships, took place over the weekend. The event, sanctioned by Cycling South Africa and UCI, was presented by LW Mag and Dragon Energy in association with Garmin, Balwin Properties, Insta360, Fox Racing and Mongoose. Vincent Leygonie reclaimed his title in the Pro Men’s category while Jenna Byrnes defended her title in the Pro Women’s category.
Park Lines BMX Tournament at Skylab
The competition took place at the newly built SkyLab Skatepark at the Joxi-X Adventure Park in Bryanston, Johannesburg. The park offered riders a variety of obstacles and line choices to showcase their skills in their bid to impress the judges through the qualifying rounds and the finals.
Riders from all over South Africa competed in the Amateur and Pro divisions. Judges took use-of-park, amplitude, execution, trick variety and difficulty into account when scoring the riders’ runs. The Pro riders not only competed for South African rankings but also their share of the R36 500.00 prize purse. Also, Garmin Instinct 3 Smartwatches. The winner of Amateur division took home a new Mongoose BMX with the other podium finishers winning prizes from Fox Racing. The new Insta360 X5 360º action camera was up for grabs for the Best Trick award.
Through the qualifying rounds riders had two heats (45 seconds per heat for Amateurs and one minute for pros). Both runs counted towards their overall score. In the finals, again two heats, but with the best run counting as their overall score.
Amateur Division
The biggest division of the day saw new up-and-coming riders enter to compete. Also, some old faces made their return to competition. This adding to the development and growth of the sport locally. It was a treat to witness how the riders progressed throughout the day. Eight riders qualified into the finals where Park Lines’ new comers would claim the podium positions.
Cape Town’s Stefan Heynes impressed the judges with his array of tricks through the course to slot himself into 3rd place. Having learned Backflips just two days before the contest Heynes did a Backflip on the Box Jump to land his first in competition.
New to the sport of BMX Freestyle, Sinjin Caromba used his BMX Racing background to flow through the park with speed and style. He linked together transfers that no other rider in the division was doing. That paired with big 360’s, a Nac Nac and Tyre Grab over the big box earned him 2nd place.
Sinjin Carombag Eric Palmer
Sean Fulton made use of the full park and included tricks on almost every obstacle. His 360 over the box jump, Table Tops and Toboggan on the quarter pipes, Truck Driver over the big box, Turndown transfer and 360 over the spine put him ahead of his competitors to take 1st place. The win will see Fulton advance to the Pro Division next year.
Pro Division
Jenna Byrnes was the only female competing in the Pro Women’s category and still holds the record for the only female to land a Backflip in South Africa. In this year’s competition she showcased her progression by including a Backflip, Turndown, 360 and Barspin into her run to be crowned the 2025 South African champion.
The always exciting Pro Men’s category saw 15 riders competing for their chance of earningvaluable UCI points and official SA ranking by qualifying into the eight rider final.
Having qualified in 2nd place, Malcolm Peters took to the course in the finals but mistakes in both runs would see him finish in 5th place. Francois Bodenstien known for his technical tricks and use of park put in a good effort to finish in 4th place.
Francois Bodenstien © Eric Palmer
Nkosinathi Nkosi turned it up in the finals, utilising the full park with flowing and stylish runs. His tricks included a 360 Turndown over the big box, 360 Toboggan over the box, 360 over the spine, Fakie to 360 Cab and Turndown on the quarter pipe, which earned him 3rd place.
Nkosinathi Nkosi © Eric Palmer
360 Over The Box
Making a statement in his first run in the finals Morgan O’Kennedy put down a solid run makinguse of the full minute run with a 360 over the big box, Turndown over the box, Flair on the quarter pipe, 180 Barspin to 180 out on the box, Tuck No-Hander transfer, Tailwhip and Tuck No-Hander on the quarter pipes. The run scored enough points for 2nd place overall.
Looking to reclaim his South African Championship title, Vincent Leygonie went all-in in the finals. With a few mistakes in his first run it all came down to the final run of the day. Not letting the pressure get to him, Leygonie took to the course to lay down the best run of the day, landing tricks on every obstacle of the course.
The run-down of his tricks included a transfer Tuck No-Hander, Backflip Tuck No-Hander over the big box, Toboggan on the quarter pipe, Truck Driver to X-Up on the box, 360 Toboggan over the big box, Can Can on the quarter pipe, Truck Driver over the spine, Nac Nac transfer, Tailwhip on the quarter pipe, reverse 360 over the box, opposite Turndown on the quarter pipe and a Flair on the quarter pipe. The run scored the highest points of the day and saw Leygonie crowned the 2025 South African champion.
Vincent Leygonie © Eric Palmer
Insta360 Best Trick Competition
The day ended off with the Insta360 Best Trick Competition. This saw huge battle go down between Malcolm Peters and Vincent Leygonie for the bragging rights. Leygonie started it off with a CashRoll over the big box. Having landed it with a slight bobble, he spent the rest of the 30 minute jam session trying land it clean but was unsuccessful. In the closing minutes Malcom Peters landed a Backflip Double Tailwhip over the big box. It was a first for him, claiming the Best Trick of the day and the Insta360 X5 360º action camera prize.
Park Lines organiser, Ryan van der Spuy says, “This was the fifth edition of the Park Lines BMX Tournament. I’m extremely proud of what we have been able to accomplish through this tournament. Over the years we have been able to provide a platform for local riders to showcase their skills. We created the official South African Championships, crowned champions, and produced South Africa’s first Olympian in this discipline. Now we have added our very own BMX focused park (SkyLab Skatepark) to the mix. This is a permanent fixture for riders to make use of as a training facility.
Stand-out factors from this year’s event were seeing new up-and-coming riders competing. Also, witnessing the camaraderie between the riders and the community. This adding to encouragementof progression and growth of BMX Freestyle in South Africa– a core focus of what Park Lines is about.
This event wouldn’t be possible without the support of our event partners. Also, the riders that come out to compete and put it all on the line. A heart-felt thank you goes out to all of you!”
2025 Park Lines BMX Tournament Results:
Amateur:
1st Sean Fulton – 75.33 Points
2nd Sinjin Caromba – 67.00 Points
3rd Stefan Heynes – 55.66 Points
4th Patrick Wodrich – 55.33 Points
5th Jaden de Swart – 50.33 Points
6th Storm Guiranovitch – 44.33 Points
7th Justin Williamson – 41.66 Points
Pro Women:
1st Jenna Byrnes – 40.33 Points
Pro Men:
1st Vincent Leygonie – 82.00 Points
2nd Morgan O’Kennedy – 62.50 Points
3rd Nkosinathi Nkosi – 61.00 Points
4th Francois Bodenstein – 60.00 Points
5th Malcolm Peters – 54.50 Points
6th Victor Sawkins – 50.75 Points
7th Jason Hood – 49.00 Points
8th David Boyter – 42.25 Points
#ParkLines
Distributed by Truth Collective
e. craig@truthcollective.co.za
t. 082 376 4443
read more: Matt McGillivray Gets Third In Australia – Photo(s) Of The Day
by SFT | Jun 9, 2025 | St Francis, Surf News, World Surf League
Matt McGillivray Gets Third in Newcastlle. The South Africa surfs in Heat 2 of the Quarterfinals at the Burton Automotive Newcastle Surfest on June 8, 2025 at Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. (Photo by Aaron Hughes/World Surf League)
JBay surfers and former Championship Tur competitor Matt McGillivray Gets Third in Newcastle in his first Challenger Series event of the year. It bodes well for his return to the Championship Tour coming up, and a good result in Durban at the ballito Pro should see him back on tour at the elite level
Matt McGillivray Gets Third
NEWCASTLE, NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA – JUNE 8: Matthew McGillivray of South Africa after surfing in Heat 2 of the Quarterfinals at the Burton Automotive Newcastle Surfest on JUNE 8, 2025 at Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. (Photo by Hannah Anderson/World Surf League)
More photos here
Burton Automotive Newcastle SURFEST Presented by Bonsoy Men’s Final Results:
1. Jacob Willcox (AUS) 12.30
2. Kauli Vaast (FRA) 11.56
Burton Automotive Newcastle SURFEST Presented by Bonsoy Women’s Final Results:
1. Francisca Veselko (POR) 14.60
2. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 12.20
Burton Automotive Newcastle SURFEST Presented by Bonsoy Men’s Semifinal Results:
HEAT 1: Jacob Willcox (AUS) 13.16 DEF. Matthew McGillivray (RSA) 8.83
HEAT 2: Kauli Vaast (FRA) 14.60 DEF. Ryan Callinan (AUS) 12.66
Burton Automotive Newcastle SURFEST Presented by Bonsoy Women’s Semifinal Results:
HEAT 1: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 11.67 DEF. Teresa Bonvalot (POR) 10.73
HEAT 2: Francisca Veselko (POR) 15.16 DEF. Tya Zebrowski (FRA) 13.06
Burton Automotive Newcastle SURFEST Presented by Bonsoy Men’s Quarterfinal Results:
HEAT 1: Jacob Willcox (AUS) 14.50 DEF. Xavier Huxtable (AUS) 12.73
HEAT 2: Matthew McGillivray (RSA) 14.33 DEF. Winter Vincent (AUS) 6.50
HEAT 3: Ryan Callinan (AUS) 15.50 DEF. Dimitri Poulos (USA) 3.44
HEAT 4: Kauli Vaast (FRA) 14.43 DEF. Peterson Crisanto (BRA) 14.10
Burton Automotive Newcastle SURFEST Presented by Bonsoy Women’s Quarterfinal Results:
HEAT 1: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 13.50 DEF. Sophie McCulloch (AUS) 12.17
HEAT 2: Teresa Bonvalot (POR) 13.10 DEF. Amuro Tsuzuki (JPN) 9.26
HEAT 3: Francisca Veselko (POR) 12.17 DEF. Kirra Pinkerton (USA) 6.90
HEAT 4: Tya Zebrowski (FRA) 16.04 DEF. Yolanda Hopkins (POR) 14.34 |
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Next Stop on 2025 Challenger Series
The Ballito Pro Presented by O’Neill opens on June 30 and closes on July 6, 2025. |
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