Two Decades Later

OUT OF THE BLUE: Gigs celebrates with the other finalists in the KSUSA titles. Photo Facebook

The 2018 US Kneeboard Titles and Festival returned to Huntington Beach, California last Friday 16 February to celebrate the 15th year of Kneeboard Surfing USA.

Gigs entered the event prior to travelling to the States because he knew he was going there and thought "why not", without thinking that he would end up winning the open division. The cool part of the story was that Gigs knew that "these dudes rip in small waves" aka California style, so he made some board changes, lost some weight and focused for a month beforehand.

There is a strong historic link between the former world kneelo champion and the Americans. "I won the NNSA events here in 1986 at the height of apartheid when SA did a secret challenge tour of the USA".

SUPER SLASH: You're never too old to rip apart some waves. Photo Amanda Taylor

He would then return under the new rainbow nation's flag to win the world championships in 1996. He hadn't been back to Huntington since then and "22 years later I came back to totally relive the experience."

"Saffa Bill Sharp runs the local surf school and gave up his day to coach me and just like 1996, we found success in the soft California peaks."

Gigs is a multiple world title holder, having also win various other kneeboard trophies in the 1990s.

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