PAUL HUNT
“The ‘Bench’ is by far the south coast’s most famous reef break but it is really fickle; I shudder to think how many times I’ve set off on the pilgrimage there and not even sailed! Adding to its elusiveness is the live firing range at Lulworth, so for 5 days a week it’s a no go area. It’s so hard to get all the stars aligning, but finally for the first time in two years for me they did!
It just about looked windy enough to launch from the slipway; any lighter wind and you have to walk out over the rocks and swim out at the ‘Ledges’! That normally involves getting pounded a few times. I took a 4.5 Blade and the 82 litre Fanatic Grip set up as a ‘tri fin’. It was a tough call, as I fancied taking my Stubby, I would have loved to try it at the ‘Bench’!
To make it upwind I made long runs, and tried to make the most of the gusts. I knew it was slack water so there was no current to contend with. It took about half an hour, which for the ‘Bench’ is a pretty good run. The wave has a heavy section for sure, but you always seem to get spat out into deep water. Jamie took a few hammerings trying 360’s, but he survived ok. The ‘Bench’ also boils as it first rears up and that I was finding really hard to read as it happens so fast! It is always amazing to sail on the ‘Bench’ as it is such a rarity. I have scored it better, but this was up there.
For me, Ross stole the show! He just has this lazy style that looks so effortless (in a good way!). The rest of us were all sailing out together and got the grandstand view of him hitting the set wave of the session, a proper size wave over mast high. Jamie nearly made a massive 360 towards the end also and I had a bird’s eye view of that one. Nic was doing really well for a guy that has never sailed the ‘Bench’ before but I think he is a bit more of a freestyler. He ruined his ‘cred.’ by doing a one-handed ponch! I mean, this was ‘Kimmys!’, I shudder to think what would happen if you did that on the inside at Margaret River.
The scenery was epic! The Jurassic Coast really is amazing! Sailing upwind you really do get a feeling of being very small indeed. And at sunrise it is even better; I could see our intrepid explorer JC wobbling along the ridge bathed in the morning light, getting ready to shoot us and the epic views. After storm Brian’s escapades the day before there was loads of rubbish in the water – weed and dead things, I nearly kissed a dead seagull on the swim out to the wind line. By the way Jamie- a.k.a. Mini G owes me a fiver for parking I will never see!”
“It is always amazing to sail on the ‘Bench’ as it is such a rarity.”