Pegasus Post: October 25, 2016

PEGASUS POST Tuesday October 25 2016 3
News
In Brief
BREAKTHROUGH BAND
Shirley Boys’ High School band
Nomad has been named as a
finalist in a category in this year’s
Vodafone New Zealand Music
Awards. They are one of four
bands up for breakthrough artist
of the year. Nomad is the only
band outside of Auckland to be
nominated for the award.
NOW AND THEN: North Beach Surf Life Saving Club’s surf boat crew from 1981 (right) have got back together to compete in
two big events next year.
Former champs back in training
• By Fraser Walker-Pearce
IT ONLY took a few beers at
a 60th birthday for a former
North Beach surf boat crew to
decide they wanted to repeat
their 1981 national title glory.
And the very next morning
North Beach Surf Life Saving
Club member Dave Pipe and
his former crew members,
brother Steve Pipe, Terry Kreft,
Rob Lindsay and Ron Vette,
were out training.
At Dave Pipe’s 60th birthday
celebrations recently, the team
decided they will continue
training “every now and then”
to get back to form in time for
the Surf Lifesaving Nationals to
be held on New Brighton Beach
in March. They are also racing
for glory in the World Master
Games held in Auckland the
following month.
Mr Pipe said the skills of surf
boating never really left them
though.
“You don’t lose that drive, it
was just natural. The only thing
they lacked was they didn’t
have the puff, the cardio, that
they used to have,” he said.
Ron Vette lives in Woodend,
while the others will have
to travel from Nelson and
Waikato for the odd training
session.
Surf boating is a surf
lifesaving sport where a team
of four rowers, plus a sweep
who steers the boat, start on the
beach and race other teams and
clubs to the finish line. There
are long-course and shortcourse
races.
Pipe still remembers the
team’s gold medal-winning race
at the 1981 national champs
and the hint of luck that got
them across the line.
“The wave we caught into
the beach in that 1981 final
was tiny, but as we approached
the line, it rose up and we got
dumped across the line – it was
extremely close but we pipped
Whangamata at the post,” he
said.
Pipe remembers the 1981
team as unbeatable in their day.
“I still remember we had 51
races that year and we won 49
of them,” he said.
SENSORY GARDEN
Work has begun on New Brighton’s
sensory garden. A digger was on
the site last Wednesday and the
garden is expected to open at
Rawhiti Domain on November 6.
It will be wheelchair accessible so
that anyone can take full advantage
of the edible plants with differing
textures and smells.
MEMBERSHIP ON RISE
Wainoni’s Te Wero Gymnastics
club has seen another surge in
membership numbers. The club
was opened in May this year and
by September had 90 members. It
now has 130. The club aims to have
150 members by Christmas.
ROAD REPAIRS
Estuary Rd in New Brighton will
be out of action for about a week
and a half while SCIRT repairs
damaged sections of the road. In
the coming days, a road crew will
compact and seal the road. Detours
will be in place during this time.
HELPING US,
HELPS THE
COMMUNITY
Drop off or buy
2 family stores in your community
30 Main North Rd,
Ph 352 4581
520 Cranford St,
Ph 352 0515
quality fresh meaTs
Now open
all day Saturday
7.30am to 5.00pm
BUTCHERY
Open Monday-friday 7.30am-6.00pm
Saturday 7.30am-5.00pm
101 Stanmore Rd, Linwood - Ph: 389 8065
Book with a
friend and
receive
50% off
a cut and
blow wave
Conditions apply, please
mention ad at time of
booking
www.aheadinhair.co.nz
1/569 Barbadoes St. P: 366 2819