Tybee Surfers Compete in Puerto Rico! Celebrate International Surfing Day, June 20th on The Tybee Times Online

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Tybee’s team of surfers participated in four days of stiff competition in Puerto Rico this April, and rose to the occasion!

Jimmy Manning placed 5th in Legends Shortboard, and Josh Richardson placed 3rd in Menehune (14 and under) Longboard. Everyone enjoyed the competition and many are already excited about next year, not to mention another season of surfing Tybee this summer.

Congratulations to all our Tybee surfers and welcome home!

DAY 1, April 22nd:

The Eastern Surfing Association's Mid-Atlantic Regional Championship Surfing Contest got underway on Wednesday, April 22, at Surfers Beach, Aguadilla Puerto Rico. As in many ESA contests up and down the east coast, our own District Director Jeff Mosley, served as the primary contest announcer and was assisted by a Spanish-speaking announcer throughout the day. Both he and wife Tara continue to serve the ESA in numerous ways. Many Tybee Times readers might remember that Jeff and Tara were awarded the 2008 "Doc Couture Award" by the ESA, which is the organization's most prestigious award for service to the ESA.

Following are the results of our Georgia District competitors who surfed in their divisions during this first day of competition:

Ben Thompson and Ryan Trenary made it into the Men's Division quarterfinals. Alex Arnold placed second in the Grandmasters semifinals and advanced into the semi-main heat. Jonny Thompson made it into the Grandmasters semifinals. Jimmy Manning placed second in the Legends semifinals and will surf on Thursday morning in the Legends finals. Montee Coursey advanced through the Senior Men's quarterfinals and into the semifinals. Jimmy Manning and Alex Arnold made it into the Legends Longboard quarterfinals.

On Thursday, along with Jimmy Manning's Legend Finals, the Open competition will begin with Ryan Trenary, Ben Thompson, and Josh Richardson representing the Georgia District in the Mid-Atlantic Regionals Open championship.

DAY 2, April 23rd:

Update of Day 2 of competition at the Eastern Surfing Association Mid-Atlantic Regional Championship, being held at Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. This morning, the swells were small at the primary competition site, Surfer's Beach, at Aguadilla, so the contest administrators were under pressure most of the day regarding how to configure some re-organizing of events in such a way as to keep the contest as close to schedule as possible. The result was that all scheduled longboard heats for the day were moved into the morning.

Following those competitions, a two hour "hold" was put on the contest in order for the administrators to evaluate the wave conditions at other secondary sites. Early in the afternoon, it was decided to move the opening and second rounds of the Open competition to a secondary site, Jobo's Beach. No other heats scheduled for this second day were held, but will probably resume first thing on Friday morning. So, Jimmy Manning's Finals in the Legends shortboard division did not take place today, but will probably take place on Friday. By the end of the opening and second rounds of the Open competition (which ended right at dark according to our GA District Director Jeff Mosley), our three Georgia Open-division surfers, Ryan Trenary, Ben Thompson, and Josh Richardson, unfortunately had been eliminated.

Currently scheduled for tomorrow (Friday, Day 3 of the Regionals) will be Jimmy Manning's Legends Finals, the opening rounds of Boys Shortboard and Menehune Longboard for Josh Richardson, the opening rounds of Junior Men's shortboard for Leland Lively, and the opening rounds of Women's shortboard and Women's Longboard for Jennifer Wittendorf.

DAY 3, April 24th:

On Friday, the third day of the Eastern Surfing Association Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, many of the younger members of the Georgia District saw action within their age divisions. Also, because of the wave conditions yesterday that required a change of venues and some re-scheduling, our own Jimmy Manning surfed in the Finals of the Legends Shortboard competition.

The results of all the finals will not be revealed until the contest's awards ceremony that will not take place til all competition is completed on Saturday afternoon or evening. We can tell you that Jimmy surfed well against the best surfers in that age division from all along the east coast, and he will be bringing home some "hardware."

Jennifer Wittendorf, our only female competitor, saw her first action on Friday, and made into the semi-finals of Womens Longboard, and into the semi-main of Womens shortboard. Josh Richardson made it into the quarterfinals of the Boys shortboard. Leland Lively made it into the quarterfinals of the Junior Mens shortboard. In the Menehune Longboard event, Josh Richardson placed second in the quarterfinals, second in the semifinals, and will be surfing on Saturday in the Menehune Longboard Finals. So we know that Josh will also be bringing home some "hardware" from the ESA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships from Puerto Rico.

Joey Wilson has been photographing much of the ESA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championship action for a number of clients and surf publications. He has sent along a few photos of our GA surfers for the Tybee Times Online News Update (below).

Leland Lively

Jonny Thompson

Ben Thompson

DAY 4, April 25th:

The fourth and final day of the Eastern Surfing Association Mid-Atlantic Region Championship wrapped up late Saturday afternoon at Surfer's Beach in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. Earlier in the day, Josh Richardson surfed in the Finals of the Menehune Longboard, a competition that became one of the featured events following yesterdays semi-finals that had the entire crowd at the beach still talking. Soon after the last event and tabulations, the results of all the Finals were revealed and awards were presented. In the Legends Division, our own Jimmy Manning took 5th place in the Regional Championship. In the Menehune Longboard, our own Josh Richardson placed 3rd in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

Jimmy Manning places 5th in Legends Shortboard

Josh Richardson - 3rd Place Winner in the Menehune Longboard Competition, 2009

Congratulations to Jimmy and Josh (our most senior, and youngest competitors) and to all our

Georgia District Surfers for representing their district so well in the first Mid-Atlantic Regional

Championship to ever be held in Puerto Rico.

We look forward to seeing you all during our local 2009 season at Tybee Island.

Joseph P. Richardson, Ph.D., is Professor Emeritus of Marine Sciences Coastal Environmental Analysis, LLC; http://ceasurf.com