Surfers Summer Harding and Slayde Shooter are two young surf club members from Cape St Francis. Both competed in the Rip Curl GromSearch Durban recently. The event was held at the New Pier in Durban with great waves to be had.
Summer placed second in the U12 Girls and third in the U14 Girls divisions. Slayde placed fourth in the Premier U16 Boys division.
Both surfers are members of the Seal Point Boardriders Club.
All photos were taken by Dave Lindemann
Full contest results can be found here
– Nate Tayler and Emily Jenkinson Win Premier U16
– Kai Hall and Louise Lepront win the U18 divisions
– Challenging conditions at New Pier for finals day.
– The next Rip Curl GromSearch event at Seal Point
Nate Tayler (Ballito) and Emily Jenkinson (Kommetjie) emerged victorious in the Premier U16 Girls and Boys Divisions after star performances in their respective final heats.
In the boys, a huge last-minute clutch aerial move saw Tayler get the nod from the judges and regain the lead he held earlier on from Loghann Tilsley (Strand). Ben Esterhuyse (CT) and Slayde Shooter (Cape St Francis) were third and fourth.
Emily Jenkinson (Kom) was surfing with intent in the Premier U16 Girls division, but Max Kauffman (Westbrook) was chasing her heels for the win. At the final siren, Jenkinson just staved Kauffman off by just over a point for the win, with Leah Lepront (Scottburgh) and Camilla Heuer (EL) in third and fourth, respectively. With the Nate Tayler and Emily Jenkinson Wins, the series rating has shuffled.
The U18 Division was also intense, with both finals being full-on affairs. In the Boys, it was Kai Hall (Durban) keeping Loghann Tilsley at bay until the final hooter for the win, with Nate Tayler and Clayton Turrell (South Coast) in the minor positions.
There were a couple of hard decisions to be made before this event commenced when the sardines descended on the primary event site, Scottburgh, on the KZN South Coast.
“We were monitoring the situation closely, but the sardines are unpredictable, and after consulting with relevant scientists and the sardine-run monitoring team, as well as with sponsor Rip Curl, we decided to move to New Pier for safety reasons, ” said Surfing South Africa Vice President Anne Wright.
“It was the right decision. The waves were excellent on the opening day, very good on day two and still pretty decent for the finals day.”
In the always-exciting U12 and U14 divisions, it was great to see some fresh faces emerging from the divisions that indicate our future champions. These divisions are incredibly competitive, and while the groms might be best of friends on land, when they hit the water, it’s a war out there.
Standouts in the U12 girls were Ella Van Der Made and Summer Harding (Cape St Francis). Ethan Schermbrucker (Kom) ruled the U12 Boys, with Tom Pearson (Southbroom) as the runner-up.
Coco Clark (Ballito) won the Girls U14 division from Ella Van De Made, while Marcello Zedde (Ballito) took out the U14 Boys title from Ethan Shermbrucker.
The Rip Curl GromSearch Series comprises four events, and this contest was the third in the series. Series winners are decided on the best three out of the four events, allowing one result as a throwaway.
The winners of the Premier U16 Boys and Girls Divisions will receive an entry into the Rip Curl GromSearch Global Finals, to be held at an as-yet undisclosed venue.
Rip Curl International will take care of them at this event. They will be housed, coached, and tutored by elite Rip Curl pro surfers and have the opportunity to compete against the best groms in the world.
The next event in the Rip Curl GromSearch Series is the final competition, scheduled to take place at Seal Point, Cape St. Francis, in September. For dates and more information, please refer to the Surfing South Africa event calendar.
U12 Girls
1. Ella van der Made
2. Summer Harding
3. Adriana Canning
4. Lila Prinsloo
U12 Boys
1. Ethan Schermbrucker
2. Tom Pearson
3. Jackson Myers
4. Johnjon Clark
U14 Girls
1. Coco Clark
2. Ella van der Made
3. Summer Harding
4. Lila Prinsloo
U14 Boys
1. Marcello Zedde
2. Ethan Schermbrucker
3. Tyler Balfour
4. Sean Tayler
U18 Girls
1. Louise Lepront
2. Emily Jenkinson
3. Keira Fletcher
4. Max Kauffman
U18 Boys
1. Kai Hall
2. Loghann Tilsley
3. Nathan Tayler
4. Clayton Turrell
1. Emily Jenkinson
2. Max Kauffman
3. Leah Lepront
4. Camilla Heuer
1. Nathan Tayler
2. Loghann Tilsley
3. Ben Esterhuyse
4. Slayde Shooter
Expression Session
Boys Best Air – Xavier Van Der Merwe
Girls Best Air – Emily Jenkinson
Boys Best Move – Rylan Jarvis
Girls Best Move – Louise Lepront
The Rip Curl GromSearch Durban contest is a Surfing South Africa tournament supported by Sea Harvest.
Please refer to LiveHeats for all results and post-event ratings.
Complimentary high-res images are available for media outlets.
–
For Rip Curl GromSearch media enquiries and photo requests:
Craig Jarvis:
e. craig@truthcollective.co.za
t. 082 376 4443
–
For Surfing South Africa enquiries or event details:
SSA General Manager Reza De Nicker:
e. reza@surfingsouthafrica.co.za
t. 079 373 1964
Ends./
About Surfing South Africa
Surfing South Africa is the official National Federation for Surfing in South Africa. SSA is a member of the South African Confederation of Sport and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) and is recognised as the governing body by the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture.
Surfing South Africa is responsible for developing the sport, hosting National tournaments, sanctioning International events, and selecting National teams in all SSA disciplines. SSA is a member of the African Surfing Confederation (ASC) and the International Surfing Association (ISA), the sport’s World governing body.
Read more: Cape St Francis Waterspout – Photo By Local Resident Christelle Van Wyk
Reaching your financial goals isn’t always straightforward. The journey is often filled with uncertainty and doubt. With an overwhelming number of investment choices, unpredictable markets, and ever-changing personal circumstances, even the most financially savvy person can feel stuck. It’s easy to get swept up in the noise—opinions from the media, friends, or even that guy on YouTube—and end up more confused than before.
In our experience, clients usually aren’t stuck because they don’t have access to good answers. They’re stuck because they’re asking the wrong questions.
We regularly see people get caught up in questions like:
These are natural questions—but not helpful ones. They’re often rooted in fear, urgency, or the desire for control. And they can trigger behaviours like chasing performance, selling at the wrong time, or second-guessing long-term plans. It’s no wonder so many investors feel anxious and uncertain.
What we’ve found is that real clarity comes from shifting the conversation entirely.
Instead of chasing the next answer, we encourage our clients to pause and ask:
These kinds of questions put you back in the driver’s seat—not reacting to headlines, but making decisions that are aligned with your values, your needs, and your future.
Previous Columns:
Recent Comments