Big wave win for Clarecastle’s Conroy

Ireland’s first Big Wave Invitational surf contest demonstrating tow-in surfing and organised by The Irish Surf Rescue Club (ISRC) was held at Mullaghmore Head, Sligo in 20-30ft surf on Sunday.

Clarecastle native Peter Conroy figured prominently taking second place in the open section and first in the Irish division.
He is a member of the West Coast Surf club in Lahinch and the Irish Surf Rescue club.
“This was the first ever tow competition in Ireland. A jet ski is needed to pull you to the same speed as the wave. When you match the speed of the wave, you let go the rope and surf the wave then,” Peter explained this week.
“It is new to Ireland in the last few years. There are only about 10 to 15 teams in Ireland,” according to Peter who lives in Miltown Malbay. He works with the fire service in Dublin and commutes every couple of days.
“The idea of the competition is to promote the use of jet skis in an organised fashion. We want to show them as a tool for sport. We use them for rescue and the RNLI and the Irish Water safety are noticing that,” according to Peter.
Peter’s tow partner is Glyn Ovans from Wales. “He is an instructor in jet ski rescue and I invited him over some years ago to train us. We use the jet ski for safety events like the Lahinch swim,” he added.
The conditions for Sunday’s event were spectacular with crowds gathering along the headland from early morning in anticipation of an exciting display of big wave surfing.
Hundreds of people watched 22 of Ireland’s and Europe’s best big wave surfers take on the ‘beautiful beasts’ of Mullaghmore reef throughout the day over three rounds lasting one hour each.
It was a tough call for the Irish Surfing Association (ISA) judges to decide the winning teams and awards at the end of the day. The criteria was based not only on those who rode the biggest waves, but also those who displayed the most skill and commitment.
In the end the winning open team went to international surfers Eric Ribiere and Benjamin Sanchis. The winning team in the Irish Division went to Clare’s Peter Conroy and his tow partner Glyn Ovens from Wales.

Results
1st Open: Benjamin Sanchis and Eric Ribiere (France).
2nd Open: Peter Conroy and Gyln Ovens (Ireland and Wales).
3rd Open: Alister Mennie and Andrew Cotton (N Ireland and UK).
4th Open: Gabe Davies and Richie Fitzgerlad (UL and Ireland).
1st Irish Division: Peter Conroy and Gyln Ovens.