2011_SLSNZ_SurfRescueMag

14
THE INTERRVIEW
Lisa Carrington
interview continued...
SR: Tell us about the difference between, say, a K1
200m race and the ski race final at the nationals?
It’s more about mongrel in the ski race! You don’t
necessarily have to have the best technique on a surf
ski but in a K1, technique is king. We don’t have chop
and we don’t have waves in kayaking and it’s just you
and your boat in the water – it’s all about efficiency. In
surf, you can just go out and smash it without the best
technique and still get through, plus there are a lot more
tactics in surf, with things like getting around the cans
and knowing the right wave to chase.
SR: What about life outside sport? Are you still
studying in Auckland?
Yeah, but I’ve put them on hold for the moment.
I haven’t studied during the last semester and I’m not
sure if I’ll do summer school and I probably won’t pick
it up until after next year. I’ve got one more year to go in
a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in politics and Maori. I’m
not sure where it’s going to take me but I’m just finding
it really interesting and I really enjoy it. That makes it a
lot more achievable when you’re combining it with sport
because otherwise it would just get put to one side and
never finished.
SR: Are you pretty comfortable being a role model
for aspiring Maori athletes?
Dad is from Gisborne with Ngati Porou heritage
and it’s something that can be lost through the
generations so it is important for me to get back to my
roots, acknowledge it and learn about it. I definitely
don’t mind being a Maori role model – I’m really proud
of that.
SR: We realise the Olympics are going to be a
huge focus for the next nine months but will you
still find time to jump back on a ski?
Yeah, I think so, but we’ll see. I’ll do the odd race
I think but I couldn’t put it in writing. You never know.
I was just at home a couple of weeks back and went
for a paddle which was really nice but being based in
Auckland where my weeks are so hectic, it does get a
bit of tiring.
SR: I guess it can be pretty full-on having to be so
disciplined and training so hard?
Kiwi kayakers
hunt Olympic glory
New Zealand surf lifesavers have a proud record of
sitting down and going fast at Olympic Games. Now
a quartet of Kiwis are set to continue in the footsteps of
the likes of Ian and Steven Ferguson, Grant Bramwell,
Alan Thompson and Paul MacDonald.
Lisa Carrington (Mount surf club) started
proceedings with her brilliant K1 200m world
championship win in Hungary in August, setting
her up as a medal contender in London next
year. Carrington and Erin Taylor (Red Beach)
then qualified in the K2 500m, finishing ninth
in the final. Within a month, the flatwater pair
had been joined by a couple of canoe slalom
specialists, also with links to Mount Maunganui.
Luuka Jones qualified for her second Olympics
at the world slalom champonships in Slovakia
by finishing as the 14th-fastest nation in the
K1 women’s division. She’s been a member
of Mount Maunganui for the past two seasons
and raced at the 2010 national championships
in Ohope.
The 23-year-old finished last in Beijing after a
frantic last-ditch qualifier but her performances
in Slovakia – with a raw time that would’ve
been good enough for seventh – have given her
confidence.
“My raw time showed the improvements I’ve
been making and a jump up in speed,” Jones
said. “While it would have been a great end to
the season to get through to the finals, I know
that I’m fast enough and can take some really
positive things from this race. The hard training is
paying off.
Joining her will be fellow Tauranga-born paddler
Mike Dawson, a former Mount clubbie who
trains with the club’s Squad X whenever he’s
back from overseas.
Dawson finished 16th in the K1 semifinals in
Slovakia, good enough to qualify as the 11thbest
nation, capping a remarkable year for the
25-year-old, who funded much of his European
campaign through prize money won in various
extreme races.
He won the multi-discipline freeriding world title
at the Teva Outdoor Games in Italy earlier this
year and has featured prominently in extreme
races in the United States over the past three
years. He also finished second in the world
extreme kayaking championships, behind fellow
Kiwi Sam Sutton.
“I’m stoked – it’s been a huge season and I’m
really ecstatic with 2011,” Dawson said. “I’m
looking forward to getting back to the Mount
for summer, doing a bit of ski paddling and then
really getting stuck into my Olympic buildup.”
Yes it is, but I’ve been doing it since I left school.
You start off by making heaps of sacrifices but eventually
they don’t become sacrifices, it’s just what I do.
You create your whole life around kayaking and training
so everything you do won’t compromise that. We also
have really good people around us that keep us wellrounded,
which is really important.
SR: Awesome Lisa – thanks heaps for your time
and good luck!
Thank you!
TWO IN A ROW: LUUKA JONES WILL COMPETE AT HER
SECOND OLYMPICS IN LONDON. PHOTO: JAMIE TROUGHTON/
DSCRIBE JOURNALISM
WATER WIZARD: MIKE DAWSON MIXES WHITEWATER SLALOM
WITH EXTREME PADDLING. PHOTO: PETER BRICHTA