1th of Jan at 12.30pm i reached my destination New Plymouth this is where the 2007 New Zealand Nationals was to be held……however the Nationals didn’t actually start until the 17th of jan for the girls as there were a group of NZ juniors attending the pro junior in OZ, this gave me a good 5 days to settle in and surf the different surf breaks Taranaki had to offer…..which was basically any road that lead to the beach you were sure to get a wave in and a quality one at that! There are so many great set ups around Taranaki coast lines a lot of rocks and reef which aid in the quality!
You had to make sure you had a plenty of gas in the car though because it is a bit of a hike to the different breaks! All worth it tho, Yes there was swell, not huge but plenty to have some fun on!

17th jan the girls competition was held at Stent Road, swell was up and also the wind, offshore……I opted to take my board that had more foam and boxier rails to help with speed into the wave as it looked a bit difficult………..I ended up choosing well, and found two beauty waves to give me the score to win my heat knocking out two top seeds Misha Davis and Jess Welsh…so i made it to the semi finals…..

Semi Finals were held the next day at Stent road again…..swell was still there but i really wish that i had decided to take my more maneuverable board out this time…..I got one great wave where i rode it from way out on the point right into the shore but was stuck for time as i needed to get another good scoring wave……I knew it would be close still but i just lucked out this time….coming third in the heat where the top two get through into the finals…….

A disappointing 5th place for me, I guess top 5 doesn’t sound too bad its just that i knew i could have got it! and i expect so much of myself!

After the nationals I flew to the South Island back to my home in Kaikoura……..so great to be home such an amazing place….I went straight out for a surf at my local and it was a fun size and shape to, such a great feeling! yah Stoked again! and ready to take on the next comp!

I’ll be going back to Oz on the 28th so will let you know the haps over there!

Heres a pic of me and Soph together in the naki:

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