Round 2 is done and dusted. This round, we received some of the craziest entries we’ve seen in a long time. The surfers threw the kitchen sink at it and pushed each other. Every round is challenging for the judges to pick a winner, but this one seemed just that much harder.

Firstly, the public had their say. With thousands of votes over five days, it came down to three surfers. In the end, Luke Slijpen (Round 1 Winner) took the public vote, followed closely by Tide-Lee Ireland and Murray Armstrong.

The judges then debated amongst themselves and eventually decided on who they thought was the best.

This description is what Monster had to say:

“We thought the first month had some quality entries, but the surfers raised the bar in month two! The SA Surfing scene is alive and kicking. There are so many amazing clips that it’s hard to name them all, but the one that stopped us dead in our tracks was the backdoor bazooka from James Ribbink. Just getting a wave like that in Hawaii is Clutch, let alone making it over the ledge, the behind-the-peak drop, holding the rail, having the lip miss guillotining him by millimetres, and riding that monster clean gets our vote. Luke Slijpen’s Backdoor bomb was a close second, and coming out after the spit is always a sign of how deep one can get in a barrel, but the sheer size of Jame’s wave is what tipped the scale in his favour.

On the local hero side, riding a backhand barrel no handed shows skill and wave size; Murray Armstrong’s mastery of both gets our respect.

Looking into the final month ahead, where are the air’s at? Show us what you got, Mzansi.”

The Zigzag team deliberated amongst themselves and finally came to a decision. Zag Publisher Andy Davis said this:

“We wanted to announce the winners a few days ago, but it was so hard to decide that we decided to sit with it for a few days. At Zag, we couldn’t look past James Ribbink’s Backdoor bomb! That was so heavy, and his late take-off made for a dramatic watch. The most eye-catching entry of the round is our winner.

For the local hero, we agree with Monster. Only a few guys can ride a backside tube without grabbing a rail. However, Murray Armstrong took the risk and earned the reward of a stand-up barrel and the Local Hero prize!”

Monster Clutch 2023 Murrary Armstrong Entry #54

The last judge to vote was Monster team rider, Matt Bromley:

“I think James Ribbink’s Hawaii back door barrel is mental. That’s my winner. The late drop, sneaking under the hood into a deep cavern and then getting spat out. That was very impressive.

My local hero is Murray Armstrong with that deep grab rail pit. Big barrel and well-ridden.”

So, in the end, it was James Ribbink’s backdoor bomb and Murray Armstrong’s no-grab pit that took out the win!

Monster Clutch 2023 James Ribbink Entry #53

Final Vote Tally:

• James Ribbink #53 – 3 Votes
• Luke Slijpen #57 – 1 Vote

Local Hero

• Murray Armstrong #54 – 2 Votes
• Murray Armstrong #55 – 1 Vote

We’re now into the last month of competition. We’re expecting big things… So make sure to send in your entries!

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