CHAIRPERSON'S INTERIM REPORT

April � July 1998

Dear Member
My first quarter as chairperson proved to be a very busy, but also very rewarding. I�ve set certain goals for myself and the committee, which were communicated to all members in my "open" letter dated 5 May 1998. I�m thrilled to report that certain of these goals have already been achieved, or are at least in full swing. Let�s look at some of our achievements thus far:
Firstly, communication channels with SAWA and Border WSA had been re-established. The East Cape Waveski challenge is on track again, and BWSA has already confirmed their eagerness and commitment by forwarding three possible venue�s and dates, namely: August in East London, October in Port Alfred and November in Port Elizabeth. Marius du Plessis will confirm and clarify the dates and communicate it to you in due course.
Although a full team could not be staged, EPWA did enter a eight-man squad to partake at the recent SA Closed Champs in Swakopmund. We were the smallest team, but were proud to return with one SA title (Mike Fourie - Seniors), and a second place (Ronnie Ackerman - Masters). Those that did make the trip will surely remember the 5000 km return journey as one of the highlights in their waveski careers. Many stories will still be told about it in the years to come. More about that later when we all sit round a braai fire. (Marius and Kevin captured the trip on video - we will organize a get together for all to see).
Our membership numbers have also shown some positive movement. Not only did my objective to attract some of the "old faces" show some positive reaction , but did also drew in some new faces. Welcome back to Louis Botha, Kevin Flack and Mike Fourie, but also howzit and welcome to George "watch out for that rock!" Ives. Hopefully this is only the beginning of an influx of old and new members! Mike did not only rejoin EPWA but, as already mentioned, secured the Seniors title for us after Lester won it last year. Hopefully that trophy will become part of EPWA�s furniture for the next couple of years. I believe Craig Seale will also join the "experienced and matured division" next year! (He-he! � WebMaster.).
A concern for me is the reluctance of members to pay subscription fees timeously. More effort and stricter measures to collect moneys will be enforced in future. We cannot administer an association properly if we are uncertain how many members we really have, and without the necessary funds.
Hopefully you all noticed my efforts to make waveski more aware to the public paying off as a result of various articles and a team photo published in local newspapers, as well as radio coverage on Radio Algoa and Radio Kingfisher, with the help of Stanford Slabbert. Ronnie Ackerman appeared as a special guest on 25th June �98 on Radio Kingfisher�s sport hour. Stanford Slabbert, Watersport 2000 co-ordinator, is currently seeking sponsorship for EP to host the 1998 SA Open. I�ve also approached the Town Council of Jeffrey�s Bay to host a waveski competition at Point. Their response was positive, and they requested us to supply them with details (dates, etc.), so watch your newsletters for updates. Hopefully we will be able to stage an event there soon.
I must congratulate Gert Roux with the excellent job he has done in setting up an EP Waveski web-site on the internet. (Thanks, Noddy, but it�s far from complete - Webmaster) Now we are communicating globally, and with the excellent record we maintained in the past with regard to the number of world title�s, etc. that EPWA has produced, we have a lot to offer.
I wish to congratulate Marius du Plessis for being appointed as SAWA�s Competition Manager. He surely did a great job at last year�s SA�s, which made the decision to select him so much easier. We should all regard ourselves privileged to have such a dedicated person in our mist. Good luck Marius, and I am sure all members of EP Waveski will be right behind you when support is needed.
During the recent SAWA Executive Meeting, I also suggested that a new "weighted average" points system be used to determine the selection of the national squad. This system has been approved and accepted, and proved to be more fair than the system previously used that resulted in some controversial selections. It is definitely an improvement on the old system of calculation and can be refined still further. This is another positive contribution to the sport that EPWA can feel proud of. This is a good example that we must not only criticize, but come up with solutions for problems so that all can benefit.
Ronnie Ackerman and Johan Momberg were selected for the 1998 national squad. Well done, especially to Johan who finally secured his place amongst the top-guns of waveski in SA after a few controversial decisions against him in the past. Johan is officially overall number three seed in SA for 1998. Ronnie is most probably the most capped national squad member in the history of the sport.
An area that still needs to be well established, is the development of waveski in the Eastern Cape. Levi Barnard has put a lot of effort in trying to obtain funds for such a program. This is a thankless job, and I pledge all members to give their support when needed. Unfortunately, as experienced in all provinces, the NSC does not appear to give their needed support to smaller sports where financial assistance and administrative support are needed the most. The current economic climate in the Eastern Cape Region is also not helping the situation. We have done our bit and it is unfortunate that external factors have the predominant influence in this regard. We will endeavour! A special thanks to Ronnie Ackerman in this regard, for addressing primary school pupils to make them more aware of waveski surfing. This is a great example of his commitment to the sport and an encouragement to the rest of us.
I�m sure all will agree that we did achieve quite a lot in the last couple of months. A good foundation has been laid and we need to keep continuity in our efforts. The committee is bargaining on all your support for the rest of 1998. I would like to thank all the committee members for their support and commitment shown, especially Marius du Plessis. Stanford Slabbert�s influence and efforts had a great impact on the publicity of the sport, and 90% of the credit for our achievements should go to him.

Thank you.
Noddy

since 10 September 1998

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