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An Extra Special Day!

The Surfing Association of Trinidad and Tobago(SATT) and the Caribbean Kids and Families Therapy Organisation(CKFTO), both non-profit organizations, provided a Surf Experience for Special Needs Kids and their siblings on the 5th of September at Las Cuevas Beach. The aim of this therapeutic experience is to empower the special needs children in a safe, fun and challenging activity while nurturing their relationship with their siblings and parents.

CKFTO’s mission is to provide professional and empathetic therapeutic services to all Caribbean children ages birth to twenty-one with special needs; to provide support and empowerment to families of children with special needs and to educate and involve the community ofTrinidad and Tobago in creating an open and caring society for all persons with special needs.

The Surfing Association is proud to have been involved in this experience and all of our certified instructors and several surfing and non-surfing members assisted in making this a truly 'special' day for all concerned.

We feel proud to be a part of something that is greater than the association, it's intitiatives, and the sum of it's parts. This event will surely become annual event, and perhaps a more frequent event. Everyone who made it possible, sponsors, volunteers, family, friends, and surfers alike do not need a pat on the back because they can be comforted by the overwhelming joy expressed on the faces of every child present on this special day.

"Gone are the days of surfing's negative stereotypes, today surfing ambassadores have only positives to pass on to our communities. We are here to share the joy of wave riding and beach culture. We are here to share the joy and love of all the ocean has to offer." Keith Lewis

SPECIAL THANKS TO THE NON-MEMBERS WHO VOLUNTEERED AND THE SPONSORS WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE SMILES.....REPUBLIC BANK, BLUE WATERS, SOLO, BRYDENS, BUDGET MARINE, SCOTIABANK, FLAVORITE, HOLIDAY FOODS, BRYDEN PI, TRIDIUM, CANTREX AND A COUPLE PRIVATE CONTRIBUTORS.

"THANKS TO ALL THE SURFERS AND HELPERS WHO GAVE OF THEMSELVES TO MAKE THIS A TRULY SPECIAL DAY FOR THESE KIDS AND THEIR PARENTS......MANY OF THESE FAMILIES ENDURE HARDSHIPS WE CANT IMAGINE AND THE BLISS I WITNESSED ON THEIR FACES AND IN THE SHOUTS AND SCREAMS OF PURE JOY WILL REMAIN WITH ME FOREVER.....WE COULDNT GET THE KIDS OUT OF THE WATER ONCE WE STARTED AND ONE CHILD DIDNT TOUCH WATER FOR ALMOST 2 YEARS BEFORE YESTERDAY...IT TOOK HIM AN HOUR TO REACH THEWATERS EDGE AND AFTER THAT HE WAS SPLASHING AND ROLLING IN THE SURF......" Warren Rostant

Check out all of Nic Marsans great photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicpic2009/sets/72157622144430861/

As expected, RedBull was well represented with their Pinzi Vehicle making its way up and down the beach. The surfer voluntere's got to have a little fun of their own. Check out the video by Ravin Ramkissoon..

ADDRESS TO MEMBERSHIP & REQUEST FOR FEEDBACK.

To all members, I have issued an address to the membership. It can be found at the following url:

http://caribbeanwaterman.com/surfingtnt/SATT%20UPDATE.htm

Please take time to read and understand the current state of your sport in your country. We also invite you to offer feedback to the executive of the association by filling out the form at:

http://souljahs.org/surfingtnt/feedback.php

We look forward to hearing from you.

Best Regards,
Keith.

TEAM USA WINS THE BILLABONG ISA WORLD SURFING GAMES

Pictured: The USA Team that made history today at Playa Hermosa. Pic: Watts/ISA

FINAL Team Results:
GOLD - United States – 14910 points
SILVER - France – 13280 points
BRONZE - Australia - 10996 points
COPPER - Hawaii – 10856 points

INDIVIDUAL FINAL RESULTS
Open Men
Gold: Jeremy Flores (FRA)
Silver: Cory Lopez (USA)
Bronze: Gabriel VIllarán (PER)
Copper: Ben Bourgeois (USA)

Open Women
Gold: Courtney Conlogue (USA)
Silver: Rosanne Hodge (RSA)
Copper: Sage Erickson (USA)
Bronze: Pauline Ado (FRA)

Longboard
Gold: Antoine Delpero (FRA)
Silver: Harley Ingleby (AUS)
Copper: Ben Skinner (GBR)
Bronze: Tony Silvagni (USA)

GOOD EFFORT BY WEST INDIAN SURFERS...

The last two days of the ISA World Surfing Games saw some good action from the Caribbean contingent; however a bout of bad luck meant that none of the island boys made it to the fourth day of competition. On Sunday, Stephan Corbin (BAR) opened the day by winning his heat with a combined 2 wave score of 10.40. Soon after Johnathan Reece (BAR), Christopher Clarke (BAR), and Shane Simmonds (JAM) got second place in their heats, advancing into the Repercharge Round 2. Che Lovelace (TNT) finished a close 3^rd in his heat due to a very questionable call on the judge’s part.

On Monday, these Four Open Surfers contested in their Repercharge heats in slightly small, tougher conditions. Although none of these surfers advance, they all surfed quite well and young Shane Simmonds from Jamaica put up a valiant effort, surfing very fluid and powerfully on the small waves. He was dropped in on during his heat; however the interference call did not help his cause in passing through to the next round.

Still in the event are our Caribbean brothers from Puerto Rico, and our neighbors Venezuela, along with many other National Teams fighting for valuable team points! Keep up with the rest of the event as it unfolds at www.billabongpro.com ! Look out for longboarding from Trinidad and Barbados beginning tomorrow with a building swell. Should be very challenging and exciting.

TOUGH FIRST DAY @ BILLABONG WORLD SURFING GAMES 2009

The Caribbean Watermen who are representing the West Indian nations of Jamaica, Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago came up against intense competition on the first day of the World Surfing Games 2009. In the Open Men’s Division it was Che Lovelace who broke the ice, facing off with local Costa Rican hero Gilbert Brown. Brown was on fire and destroyed every wave that came his way to the delight of a large crowd of supporters present on the beach. In the end he had the 4 highest scores of the heat, and Lovelace was unable to get two solid scores to progress in the main event. Lovelace will surf again in the Repo charge Round 1 tomorrow.

Shane Simmonds of Jamaica, Simon Coles and Stephan Corbin of Barbados, and Keith Lewis of Trinidad were among the West Indian surfers who were able to beat opponents in their heat and get a third place finish. However, none of the surfers from these three countries were able to progress in the main round. They will all battle in the Repo Charge Round 1 tomorrow in a bid to advance further in the competition. Today’s highlights were WCT surfers like Jeremy Flores of France (pictured) absolutely destroying the waves, and the sell-out crowd in the thousands that came out to support the local hero’s.

The Costa Rican team did not disappoint, having all four of their open male surfers advance to the next round, either in first or second place in their heat. Look out for more great surfing action tomorrow on www.billabongpro.com !

SATT Blessed with Epic Nationals for 2009!

The SATT National Surfing Championships 2009 took place over the weekend and with the dedicated support of RedBull Energy Drink it turned out to be a very successful event! King Neptune really provided increadible surf once again this year, with suprisingly "going-off" conditions all morning on the second day. When the chartes were calling for a reduction in size, the surf actually got slightly bigger, cleaner and more lined up.

Che Lovelace banking a turn to Masters Victory.

Champions were crowned in the U14, U18, Mens, Masters, and Grand Masters categories, with tight competition among the athletes in each category. In the U18 it was Oneal Coa reclaiming his title from 2007, that he lost last year to Dario Jordan. In the U14 it was Local Boy Jamie Phillips that took top honors.

In the Grand Masters (45+) it was Andrew "Quincy" Cabral that put 4 of his old time rivals under pressure and came out victorious, whereas in the Masters Division (35-45yrs) Che Lovelace managed to defend his title from last year. Finally, in the Open Mens division, it was SATT President Keith Lewis that fought through the Repo-Charge rounds of the event and created an unexpected upset in the final heat of the day, taking the National Championship from Chris Dennis who was a close second.

Chris Dennis boosts a 2-hand grab rail air in the Final of Open Mens.

There was a great turnout at the beach and the weather really cooperated all weekend. Beach goers and surfing supports enjoyed great music and visual stimulation provided by the RedBull Pinzi Vehicle, as many of them cooked up and limed while enjoying the highest quality local surfing action.

The current National Team and Local Head Judge John Torrey will be travelling to Costa Rica next month (aug 1-9th), along with teams from Jamaica and Barbados, to represesnt the Caribbean at the ISA World Surfing Games 2009. Look out for our guys matching up with the hottest surfers from around the world, which will be streamed live at www.isasurf.org !

Keith Lewis, winner of Open Mens, with a front side off the lip.

U-14 BOYS

1. JAMIE PHILLIPS

2. IAN SCHEWDEN

3. ISAIAH ALEONG-BAKSH

4. MATTHEW MILNE

U-18 BOYS

1. ONEAL COA

2. IAN SCHEWDEN

3. JAMIE PHILLIPS

4. CRAIG DE FREITAS

MASTERS 35-45

1. CHE LOVELACE

2. MIKEY PHILLIPS

3. ALAN DAVIS

4. SHERRARD SPIERS

GRAND MASTERS 45+

1. ANDREW CABRAL

2. ANDREW MILLARSURFING TnT

3. JOHN TORRY

4. LARRY COELHO

OPEN MEN

1. KEITH LEWIS

2. CHRIS DENNIS

3. CHE LOVELACE

4. JESSE JARVIS

SATT Head Judge JOHN TORRY chosen to Judge at World Surfing Games 2009!

After review by the ISA Technical and Executive Committees, the ISA has informed the SATT that our Head Judge John Torry has been selected as a member of the judging panel for the 2009 Billabong ISA World Surfing Games to be held in Playa Hermosa, Jaco, Costa Rica from August 1^st – August 8^th, 2009.

This is his second role as a Judge of a World Games Event as he judged in the ISA World Masters last year in Peru. For more information on the event see the official event invitation at:

http://isasurf.org/events_WSG09.php

Chris Dennis Makes It 3 In A Row!

Chris Dennis is now completely dominating the SATT National Team Trials circuit! This Sunday he successfully won his third event in a row at Beach Break, Sans Souci. He has claimed his spot on the National Team to represent Trinidad and Tobago at the World Surfing Games in Costa Rica this August!

The National Team Qualifiers are as follows:

1) Chris Dennis
2) Jason Apparicio
3) Che Lovelace
4) Alan Davis

Alternates:
1) Shane Hennaman
2) Shawn Rostant


RESULTS Trials #4

OPEN MEN

HEAT 1
1. SHANE HENNEMAN
2. ANDREW AWAI
3. ANDRE STEUART
4. KEWAN LANDRETH-SMITH

HEAT 2
1. SHAUN ROSTANT
2. MIKEY PHILLIPS
3. CHAD HAMELSMITH
4. MICHELINE FERREIRA

HEAT 3
1. SIMON CABRAL
2. ALAN DAVIS
3. DOMINIC PERCY
4. SEAN MORUF

HEAT 4
1. JASON APPARICIO
2. CHRIS DENNIS
3. CHE LOVELACE
4. KENDELL FRANCIS
5. BRYAN RAMCHARRAN

SEMI 1
1. CHRIS DENNIS
2. SHANE HENNEMAN
3. ALAN DAVIS
4. SEAN ROSTANT

SEMI 2
1. JASON APPARICIO
2. CHE LOVELACE
3. ANDREW AWAI
4. SIMON CABRAL
5. MIKEY PHILLIPS

FINAL
1. CHRIS DENNIS
2. JASON APPARICIO
3. CHE LOVELACE
4. ANDREW AWAI
5. SHANE HENNEMAN

Chris Dennis Wins Again!

Chris Dennis in winning form at World Surfing Games 2008.

This sunday Trinidad and Tobago's National Surfing Champion 2008, Christopher Dennis, continued his winning form by securing his second victory in a row at SATT National Team Trails #3, held at Beach Break, Sans Souci.

Replicating the form of on-fire ASP surfer Joel Parkinson, who also won his last two events back-to-back, Chris has all but fully secured a birth on his country's National Team for the second year in a row and is likely to be representing the Red, Black and White come July 31st in Hermosa, Costa Rica at the World Surfing Games 2009!

Conditions at Beach Break, Sans Souci once again turned on for the field of competition, proving why it's considered the most consistent surf spot in the twin island state. Both Juniors and Open surfers had an opportunity to compete in their divisions.  The results were as follows:

OPEN MEN

ROUND 1
HT 1
1. Che Lovelace
2. Sean Rostant
3. Sherrard Spiers
4. Simon Cabral

HT 2
1. Jason Apparicio
2. Shane Henneman
3. Kendell Francis
4. Kiwan Landreth-Smith

HT 3
1. Chris Dennis
2. Mikey Phillips
3. Kevin Seetai
4. Simeon Cupid

HT 4
1. Alan Davis
2. Bryan Ramcharan
3. Ryan Chin
4. Tristan Richardson

SEMI 1
1. Chris Dennis
2. Che Lovelace
3. Bryan Ramcharan
4. Shane Henneman

SEMI 2
1. Alan Davis
2. Jason Apparicio
3. Sean Rostant
4. Mikey Phillips

FINAL
1. Chris Dennis
2. Jason Apparicio
3. Alan Davis
4. Che Lovelace

JUNIORS MEN

HT 1
1. Jamie Phillips
2. Stefan Lue Chin
3. Craig DeFreitas
4. Findley Howard-Stevens

HT 2
1. Dario Jordan
2. Christian Chin
3. Matthew Milne

FINAL
1. Dario Jordan
2. Christian Chin
3. Stefan Lue Chin
4. Jamie Phillips

NEXT TRIALS ON 17TH MAY 2009

Local Youths recipients of the 2009 ISA Individual Scholarships!

** Our very own Junior Rippers Dario Jordan and James Philips to recieve Scholarships. Special thanks to SATT secretary Warren Rostant for long hours putting their applications together and making this happen on behalf of the SATT!

Salinas, Ecuador, April 1st, 2009)  The International Surfing Association announced yesterday, the forty recipients of the 2009 ISA Individual Scholarship Program during an ISA Development Meeting held at the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championship in Ecuador. 

This is the third consecutive year that the ISA holds the Scholarship Program. The program started in 2007 with only five grants awarded and within one year expanded it to 20 scholarships. For 2009, the ISA increased the program by 100%, issuing 40 scholarships to Under 18 junior surfers from 22 countries.  The ISA received over 80 applications from 24 countries for this year’s program.   

Before announcing the winners, ISA President Fernando Aguerre said: “I believe the Scholarship is a huge step forward by the ISA in areas of the world where we can never do enough.  Together, we are supporting the dreams and hopes of good students who are also good surfers. We went from five to 40 scholarships in three years and we´re hoping to reach 100 in a couple of years.”

After careful review by the Scholarship Selection Committee, the ISA announced the following surfers as ISA Surfing Ambassadors in every corner of the world. The recipients are inspirational human beings, great surfers and students who want to succeed in surfing and school.

The ISA is able to provide scholarships due to the generous support from Quiksilver Foundation, Billabong, Reef Redemption, and Global Surf Industries, Inc. 

 

2009 ISA Scholarship Recipients  

Brian Masmut –Argentina  Martín Carricart –Argentina  Joaquín Castanon –Argentina  Dominic Reisch –Australia  Amiya Doyle - Australia Ametza Nicholls –Barbados  Jade Niccols –Barbados  Jordan Heaselgrave –Barbados  Victor Bernardo –Brazil  Isaac Norman –Canada  Tomás Villegas –Chile  Camilo Hernández –Chile  Manuel Mesen –Costa Rica  Alberto Muñoz –Costa Rica  Carlos Muñoz –Costa Rica  Roberto Rodriguez –Ecuador  Brandon García –Guatemala  Freddy Morales –Guatemala Henry Rivera -Guatemala Garren Pryce –Jamaica  Leon McKenzie –Jamaica  Nao Omura –Japan  Arashi Kato –Japan  Aman Ashraf –Maldives  Itzel García –Mexico  Jayda Martin Fitzharris – New Zealand  Joaquín del Castillo – Perú  Juninho Urcia – Perú Miguel Tudela – Perú Pedro Alcobia –Portugal  Christian Rivera –Puerto Rico  Brandon Benjamin –South Africa  Bright Ntuli –South Africa  Khaye Ngcobo – South Africa Lucía Martino –Spain  Darío Jordan –Trinidad  James Philips – Trinidad  Federico Longo –Uruguay  Christian Arballo –USA  Demi Boelsteri –USA

Chris Dennis wins SATT National Team Trials Number 2!

The climax of this event took place in the semi-final when we witnessed an awesome showdown between past National Champ and winner of Trials number one Che Lovelace, and Current National Champ Chris Dennis.

After being eliminated in the same stage of the first trials earlier this year, by Che, Chis was not about to let a reoccurence take place.  The two surfers rode set waves back to back with explosive action and kept raising the bar.  So much so, that the final was almost an anti-climax!

 

In the end, it was Chris who took top honors and is poised to secure his place on the National Team once again.  Che too, is in a good position to secure his position on the team.

Womens

1. Kathy-Ann Smith

2. Micheline Ferreira

Open Men

 

ROUND 1

Heat 1 

1. Keith Lewis

2. Bryan Ramcharran

3. Jamie Phillips

4. Craig deFreitas

Heat 2

1. Kendell Francis

2. Shawn Rostant

3. Glen Ferreira

4. Chad Hamel-Smith

5. Christian Chin

Heat 3 

1. Chris Dennis

2. Andrew Awai

3. Dario Jordan

4. Alan Fitt

5. Shane Spiers

Heat 4 

1. Che Lovelace

2. Shane Henneman

3. Stefan Lue Chin

4. Ryan Chin

SEMI-FINAL 1

1. Keith Lewis

2. Shane Henneman

3. Andrew Awai

4. Kendell Francis

SEMI-FINAL 2 

1. Chris Dennis

2. Che Lovelace

3. Shawn Rostant

4. Bryan Ramcharran

FINAL

1. Chris dennis

2. Che Lovelace

3. Keith Lewis

4. Shane Henneman

Che Lovelace Wins Open and Masters!

When Che Lovelace heard that the World Surfing Games were to be held in Warm, Sunny Costa Rica this year, 2009, he made clear his intentions that he was going to be part of the SATT National Team.  You see, Che was the standout surfer on the SATT Masters National Surf Team that competed at the World Masters in Peru last year.

Needless to say, the water was frigid and the wetsuits were restricting.  Compounding that, it had been several years since Che had competed in a heat, much less an event of that magnitude.  But old habits die hard, and Che has a good habit of schooling the school when it comes to competitive surfing.  Affectionately know among the groms as Che "Slater", the old guy lived up to is reputation this sunday and held a class on how to deconstruct your competition, both young an old.

This is not the first time Che has won multiple divisions of an SATT event, having won both Juniors and Open at Nationals many years back, and you can rest assured it won't be the last so long as he continues to compete at the national level.  All in all, the first event for the year for the SATT was a great success and the waves were amazing in Sans Souci for the entire day.  Oh Yeah, and Che is now well on his way to cementing his spot on the National Team for the WSG 2009 in the Warm, Sick surf of Hermosa Beach, Costa Rica!

Stay Tunes for the official results of the days action soon to be available here and at surfingtt.org .

Masters

1st - Che Lovelace
2nd - Alan Davis
3rd - Mikey (Bully) Phillips
4th - Sherrard Spiers


Women

1st - Micheline Ferreira
2nd - Shadik Day
3rd - Chrissanna Harewood


Men

Heat 1 Rd 1
1st - Chris Dennis
2nd - Che Lovelace
3rd - Darren Farfan
4th - Mark D.V.

Heat 2 Rd 1
1st - Shaun Rostant
2nd - Mikey Phillips
3rd - Shane Henneman
4th - Tristan Richardson

Heat 3 Rd 1
1st - Andrew Awai
2nd - Jason Apparicio
3rd - Kevin See Tai
4th - Chad HamelSmith

Heat 4 Rd 1
1st - Alan Davis
2nd - Brian Ramcharan
3rd - Stefan Lue Chin
4th - Josh Lewis

Semi 1
1st - Brian Ramcharan
2nd - Mikey Philips
3rd - Chris Dennis
4th - Andrew Awai

Semi 2
1st - Jason Apparicio
2nd - Che Lovelace
3rd - Shaun Rostant
4th - Alan Davis

Final
1st - Che Lovelace
2nd - Jason Apparicio
3rd - Brian Ramcharan
4th - Mikey Phillips

BodyBoard

1st - Kyle Gonsalves
2nd - Daniel De Gannes
3rd - Tristan Richardson

Official SATT ranking to be post ASAP.

This Sunday's contest is also the first official surfing event for the CARIBBEAN WATERMAN CHALLENGE 2009!

SATT KICKS OFF 2009 WITH FIRST TEAM TRIALS!

Happy New Year to all.....the SATT had a very busy 2008 and will be kicking off 2009 with Surfer of the Year/National Team Trials- Event 1 on Sunday January 25th. Open Men, Women, Bodyboard, Longboard and Masters categories will be contested on the day. The event is open to all members who have paid their membership fees for 2009. If you have not already done so, payment can be made on the day. The event will begin at 9am sharp. Registration will open at 8am and close off at 9am so be punctual. Members can register after 9am, but would not be allowed to compete on the day. The location for the first event will be announced at a later date.

The 2008 World Surfing Games was a great learning experience and this year we would like to improve our ranking. The only way to do so is to have a better prepared team, physically and mentally. The first 4 events on the SATT 09 calender will be used to select the surfers for the National Team Training Program. The final team will be selected from these surfers based on their overall performance, committment and attitude during the Training Program.

The 2009 AGM is scheduled for Tuesday 17th of February at a time and place to be announced. Please mark this day on your calendar and do your best to attend. We need your support and input to help develop and improve our sport in T&T.
Best wishes to all for 2009!

PS...CONGRATULATIONS TO 2008 SURFER OF THE YEAR JASON APPARICIO !