Kneel Ous Gather

KNEEL POINT? The iconic lighthouse juts out from the promontory they call Seal Point.

Well, some kneelos may metaphorically kneel before their princely principle Gigs Cilliers, the man-shrek with a silky Durbanite accent who put this show on the road a number of years ago. Hundreds!

It all began in 2017 with the first Kneelo Gathering in Elands Bay. Next came Vic Bay in 2018, followed by Mdumbi in 2019. Covid-19 of course scuppered the jol in 2020, but the get-together was resurrected last weekend in Seal Point.

On the poster artwork, Seal Point is crossed out, replaced by Kneel Point, a quip suggested to poster artist Tyler Pike by Gigs, who is not unaccustomed to humerous gags. After all, his dad is the famous caricaturist and cartoonist Lencel Cilliers, who nicknamed his son Giggles. Disclosure: Tyler is my son, and a participant in the Gathering. Lencel even penned a toon to wish the guys luck (right).

DRONING ON: Something about a low centre of gravity to make your turn even tighter.

There may have been fewer kneelos at Cape St Francis this year due to the carnage created by Covid-19, but the stoke and bonhomie was not subdued.

Gigs arrived at Seals to small waves and a weekend forecast that were a pale shadow of where he had just been: fresh off an insane run of 6-10 foot east swell in Durban. He said the waves were Good Wave good, a pointed reference to the tough calls Quiksilver Goodwave contest director Jason Ribbink had to make back in the day. As forecaster for the event during its lifespan, as well as the 10 years I helped the Red Bull Big Wave Africa, I have seen controversial reactions to decisions, mostly when people thought the event should have run when it did not.

With an impish glint in his eyes, Gigs said he drove Jason to distraction in Durban during the swell asking him daily if he thought the waves were Good Wave good. Bru, are the waves Good Wave good?

LUMINOSITY: Ballies on day glo boards blurring the speed lines. What on ocean is going on?

Well, judging from the epicness of many photos, which can be deceiving and precisely the reason decisions not to run become controversial, it would seem that it was easily Good Wave good for at least three of the six days of pumping swell that pummelled the piers along the beachfront.

And of course, in further serendipity, the house that Gigs hired at Seals with a perfect view of the point for a group of the kneelos was called, you guessed it, Good Waves. This was Kneel Point HQ for the weekend, a place to gather to watch the surf, suit up, and afterwards, to congegrate for obligatory banter and beer.

The waves were definitely not good, but they were fun. The locals were understanding and gracious about the invasion by the kneel ous. It wasn't firing 4-6ft in a 16 second SE swell, which could have been more complicated. Everything worked out not just good, but really kiff.

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