Mitchell battles gnarly conditions to win NZ open wakeski title

Champion Waveskier: Dave Mitchell of Queenstown claimed the top spot at the waveski championships over the weekend. He is pictured in action in the 2021 champs at Whales.Picture by Paul Rickard

Many-times champion Dave Mitchell battled the gnarliest Gisborne sea conditions he can remember as he won his umpteenth New Zealand open waveski surfing title at the weekend.

Contesting titles goes all the way back to when he rose to No.2 in the world as a teen. Much of his 35-year-career success has occurred in Gisborne. He last won the open title back to back here in 2017 and 2018.

Now in grandmaster ranks, the Queenstown water sportsman won age-group and open titles in unruly, exhausting surf dished up at the city beach on Sunday.

Describing the challenge to get out the back and be in the right place as “like a lottery”, Mitchell said these were some of the hardest conditions he had competed in.

It was down to a small handful of top competitors to subdue the wild waves. Mitchell narrowly beat Justin Parry of Auckland into second place with defending open champ Napier’s Nigel Bryant third. Brian Howard of Auckland was fourth.

There was little separating the top three, all champions in their time. Scoring manoeuvres demanded every bit of experience and agility they could muster.

Mitchell had to win the repechage to reach the final.

Parry and Bryant fought out the masters final, where Bryant put on a master class, then Mitchell did likewise in the grandmasters to beat Howard, Gary Storms and Vince Gardner.

Mitchell does not chase international honours these days.

Work, family and inland location mean the annual New Zealand titles trip is his time to break out the waveski. Otherwise it’s his other water sports, like stand-up surfing or hitting the lake on his latest “new challenge”, a wind-powered foiling board,

But those new New Zealand titles will be defended here next year.