Bula – Welcome!
On behalf of the WTF (Way To Fiji) KZN members of SUP Team South Africa – a very BIG thank you to everyone that stepped up and selflessly supported us in our efforts to raise funds at our Fundraiser event held at S43, Durban, on Thursday 8th September 2016.
We received an absolutely outstanding response to our ticket sales, which ended up in 146 people attending including our loyal local SUPérs, business men and supporters – great to see so many wives, girlfriends and partners contributing to the glamour! This type of support is truly amazing.
The evening kicked off at 17h30 with a welcoming “Springbok” shooter to get you in the mood! (this Springbok went down much better than the unfortunate Springbok game that followed over the weekend…
Registration was manned by Caraline and Les, who did a marvellous job as the Guests arrived including managing the Raffle tickets, Burger and Beer tickets and not forgetting to take the Mula! Lande & Jenna as well as Malec & Chantel – worked the room punting additional much needed raffle tickets too, (who could resist the charms!) thanks guys!
The atmosphere was festive and you could feel the excitement building in the air, two beautiful F.one and Naish SUP boards hanging from the ceiling and a massive table filled with prizes to be auctioned and raffled during the course of the evening including the massive ‘’one of a kind’’ long-board care of Brandon Ribbink (could not have been easy letting that icon go to the highest bidder!)
Burgers and Beers were being served and some really good “Home brewed’’ Craft beers from the in-house S43 Brewery. A generous prize was an S43 tour for 10 and as much beer as you can drink…. This was snapped up fairly quickly!
The main draw card kicking off the evening was Twig Baker and Brandon Ribbink both legends of the Sea… Twig of course being a World Champ big wave rider and Brandon a World Champ paddle boarder (both these men have an incredible pedigree going back many, many years and needed little introduction.)
The Question and Answer between Twig and Brandon was very enlightening, Brandon with a hidden talent for interviewing put forward some entertaining and pertinent questions and Twig proved to be an entertaining and insightful respondent, giving the audience a real feel for life on the circuit of the legendary Big Wave spots around the World. The crowd was riveted (Albeit a few party revellers at the back who engaged in deep meaningful raucousness!
As our very talented DJ spilled out the tunes the vibe was almost ready for the start of the Big AUCTION and raffles, this is what everyone had been waiting for.
Deon hit that MIC like no other, he has definitely found a new talent, some bidders found themselves at the end of some very pointed looks and cajoling as Deon squeezed every last cent out of those deep pockets, well done Deon
‘’exceptional’’ is an understatement! Sharon was hard pressed to run after those lucky, successful bidders to record their details before recollection of bids was lost in the revelry, great job! (anybody needing Deon over the following few days needed a pen and paper as the voice was long spent from the exertion of the night!) Thank goodness, he can rest until our Prize giving at the end of November.
A really great and successful evening was had, we raised R14 600 on our door takings, R66 400 on our Auction and around R10 000 on our raffle tickets. Take a bow one and all!
Special mention please to-
· The ‘engine room’ behind the scenes crew of volunteers, not already mentioned above – you are all absolute stars!
· The individuals and corporates who donated amazing lucky draws and raffles – incredible and diverse gems were won on the night and we sincerely hope the bidders who dug deep are more than happy with their winnings.
· Black-Coffee donated their time, energy and state of the art equipment to ensure a professional and eye-opening experience for all.
· James the DJ once again kept the crowd energised and impromptu dance moves were the order of the day!
· The S43 crew of bar tenders and waitrons were on the ball and ensured glasses were kept full and the burgers went down a treat indeed.
· Brand House for the Springboks at the door, setting the mood!
· Lastly, to everybody that endured the push and pull from yours truly, Manager of Team S.A, your patience resulted in a resounding success!
Thanks again and keep an eye out for further updates as we progress towards the grand departure for Fiji – with this kind of support behind the Team Medals are sure to follow!
Vinaka!
Ange Whittle | Team Manager
