Gerroa man the grand master of Australian wavesailing

JOEL RITCHIE

LOCAL surfers Michael “George” Westra and Warren Holder snared podium finishes at the Australian Wavesailing Titles.

Westra, from Lake South, won the blue-ribbon open men’s division while Holder, from Gerroa, won the grand masters (over 45) competition and finished second in the masters division.

The duo also helped NSW win the overall teams’ title at the event, held at Marrawah, Tasmania.

While the Tassie triumph was Westra’s first national crown, Holder is a prolific champion, having won many championships in a number of divisions.

Westra had to survive six 15-minute, one-on-one heats with judges rating each competitors’ three highest-scoring waves to determine a winner.

He said winning the championship was the biggest thing in his 15-year career, which includes second in the opens at the 2006 titles.

“The conditions were extremely good – the winds were up to 45 knots and waves were about ten feet high,” he said.

Holder won the grand masters division two years after winning the masters title at the same event.

This year’s title adds to Holder’s five masters (over 35 titles).

Holder had to sail nine consecutive heats to snare his impressive finishes.

“I was out for 15 minutes, back on the beach for three minutes, than back in the water,” he said.