Saturday 28 November 2009, Point, Jeffreys Bay: Friends and family gather to honour fallen friend Shorty Bronkhorst. Photos by Garth Robinson.
Andrew Lange made the journey down from Durban to be here for the paddle out, taking out Bruce Gold's Blue Bomber in honour of another old friend presently recovering from surgery.
Meanwhile on the beach a fresh crop of J-bay groms dropped their dummies in the sand, stole each others bottles and created general mayhem, helping to lift up the sombre mood of the sad local crew.
Sam du Toit took time off from her busy job at the reception of African Perfection Guest House to come and pay her respects.
Sam's brother Ludi lends Clive Barber a helping hand after Clive had an asthma attack exiting the Point keyhole, ending up on the bricks.
Surfers from J-Bay and beyond gather to listen to some words from Shorty's son Glen, and send Shorty off to the big lineup in the sky.
A hard moment for Glen in the centre, having to say goodbye to a father and a friend, a real legend of the South African and Jersey Island surfing scene.
Any petty differences were set aside and pride swallowed as men held hands with no homoeroticism of any short... hopefully.
Andrew Lange takes one in on the Blue Bomber, that thing weighs a ton, you don't really want to get in its way.
Lisa and Gary Drimie take a family wave to the beach. Gary delivered a poignant speech about Shorty before the paddle out.
Jared Aufrichtig and Shorty's nephew Paul Bennewith share a ride. The waves were a bit messy but fun with warm water and every wave a legal family wave.
Mikey Meyer retrieves the Ludi du Toit's Yamaha branded old classic from the hungry rocks. Quite a fair bit of blood was shed this day, all for a good cause.
Shooting the shit while cruising back up the beach, locals Deon Lategan and Mike Ginsberg crack another joke.
A determined Clive Barber went through a helluva paddle to pay his respects, taking gas on the bricks but still smiling afterwards.
The two sparky's of town, Trevor Brown and Vaughn Morris, both good mates of Shorty and electricians by trade
