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