Ruakaka gives clubs variety, says veteran

Long-time boatie and media hound for Surf Lifesaving New Zealand Grant Morrison said Ruakaka beach was a perfect spot to hold the annual SLSNZ Northern Region District Championships.
He was responding to claims the event was too far for many to travel.
"It's a long way from the Northern Region's centre of population [Auckland] but the combination of a very supportive Ruakaka Club and this wonderful beach makes up for that," he said.

 The weekend's competition was the fifth consecutive year Ruakaka has hosted the event, and the opportunity to mix and mingle with Northland surf lifesavers, was reason enough to travel north, Morrison said.

 "Northland surf lifesavers tend to be more balanced between lifesaving and surf sports, whereas the heavyweight clubs at events like this, such as Mairangi Bay, Red Beach and Orewa, are focused on the surf sport side of things, as they are not dangerous beaches, and dominate the sand events.

 "On the other hand, Piha and Muriwai, now strong at surf sports, used to be too busy saving lives at those dangerous beaches to compete," he said.
 Morrison knows his stuff - he has lived and breathed SLS for most of his life. The father of NZ representative Danny Morrison, who was in action at the weekend's district championships, has been covering the sport for newspapers and radio since 1968, and before that raced surf boats.
He is a life member of Mairangi Bay SLS Club.

While the surf boats were contesting the final round of the Trillion Series at Auckland, around 400 surf athletes from Raglan to the Far North hit the sand and water at Ruakaka for their last blowout before competing for national honours at the NZ Championships at Ohope Beach, Whakatane on March 12-14.

Northern Region clubs will feature strongly at the nationals, where  about 1000 surf athletes will battle out the various events.
Host club Ruakaka had several teams entered in the inflatable rescue boat races on Saturday, and performed well.
The under-21 mixed team of Brittany Price, Kyle Taylor and Dom Wells placed second in the division, as did the women's team of Briar Taylor, Liana Bennett and Amanda Gentil.
And Bennett and Gentil backed up with Kayla Gentil to win the women's tube rescue race before Bennett and Amanda Gentil joined up with Jodie Wells to place second in the assemble rescue.
The IRB Nationals will be held separately, on March 26-28, at Waipu Cove.