In the sport of competition waveski surfing I suppose I would almost be considered an ‘old timer’. But the sport is well worth the journey and even though it is essentially an individual sport, it is also a valuable team sport. Juniors are few and far between in today’s waveski surfing scene but maybe revisiting the old days of ‘Team Spirit’ may help the growth of the sport.

In the early days there were a number of teams that traveled to the waveski competitions:Kyll, Raider, Shane, Dart and Deeslash with Neil Decker. Raider was probably the most successful in terms of results and team spirit. Selection for a team was based on your performance and prospect for future results and was settled over the phone or by hand shake. It was always a thrill to get an offer. Team dynamics were great – team mates were always helpful and competitive with a drive to win but not be too cocky. There was always some conflict but it was limited. There were very good financial and support benefits with travel costs and encouragement from your team mates. There was also an element of team rivalry, particularly between the Raider and Dart team.

Back in the mid 80’s I was a proud junior in a number of teams. I started with Matt Hunter and thanks to his mother, Sue, we traveled to our first Open- the Les Purcel Classic in North Queensland. Somehow we kicked arse and with Matt joined the sponsored ‘Kyll Team’ – a brand of waveski around at that stage. In amongst it all the team of the ‘Coffs Harbour Wave Ski Club’ was very strong in all divisions – even in the days before Rees Duncan Jnr was surfing. Interclub competitions were very regular and promoted this strong team support - valuable for juniors in any sport.

After very regular and classical competitions such as the Dee Why Open, Newcastle Open and winning a Junior Australian Title in North Queensland I negotiated a position in the ‘team of all teams’ the “Raider” team- a team in fierce competition with the Dart Team. Yes, Christo was the head and was and is always an idol - he could ride a plank of wood to a similar skill level. The financial rewards within the team for a Junior were very encouraging (ie. $1000 for a major comp win and up to $5000 for a title).

A couple of years of very regular weekend trips to Sydney, Wollongong, and the Sunshine Coast were to follow. I had quite a number of victories over Christo at Dee Why and Wollongong etc. I even historically wouldbeat Rees and Khane (when they were still in nappies). Other classical events were a heroic ‘cyclonic’ Aussie title at Phillip Island and then the finale of the World Title in Hawaii. That’s when eyes were opened; the strong Australian Team was met by a South African Team that meant business by any means they could fathom. Yes, I was a little bitter about meeting two South African juniors in a heat who showed me another way to be a team, at my detriment.

Well, they were the ‘Good Days’ of Australian Waveski Surfing. As we all know, Waveski Surfing is still a very enjoyable sport and due to the size of waveski’s and the negative stigma of being a ‘Goatie’, the sport is slow to cycle into another stage of pride and prestige.

Maybe we will see future ‘Waveski Surfing’ coaching clinics on Sydney and Gold Coast beaches. The sport still has one great advantage; almost anyone at any age or nationality can at least sit and enjoy the ‘Surfing Experience’. Another growth requirement for the sport is sponsorship of Juniors, which is essential to the affordability of the sport to the young.

I have always enjoyed the sport and the waveski surfing competition scene and do clearly see a stage where Australian Waveski Surfing resurgence will be huge and juniors will once again be proud to be part of this great sport.