The award was among a quartet of achievements at the week-long event at Piha Beach.
The 16-year-old King’s High School pupil gained extra satisfaction after being selected to win the award, rather than winning it in the standard points-based style of judging, he said.
The teenager finished third in the New Zealand men’s open competition on the final day of the competition on Saturday. Billy Stairmand broke a 30-year record in securing his sixth title in the open men’s division.
Fellow Dunedin surfer JC Susan just missed the semifinals of the open men’s competition. He finished third in his quarterfinal, but only the first two went through to the next round. The final day of the championships was a busy one for Brown. Before he took his shot at the open national title he surfed to defend his national under-18 boys title. Brown’s open men’s opponents were staying fresh on the beach while he was competing.
"By the final of the open I was so tired."
The teenager claimed the silver medal in that competition behind Mount Maunganui’s Jonas Tawharu.
One thing on the surfer’s side were the conditions he faced during the weeklong tournament because they were similar to what he gets at home.
"Piha is big and rugged, a bit like Dunedin."
Brown capped his weekend by winning the national surfing president’s scholarship, awarded to an up-and-coming surfer from the national championships. The prize means Brown can extend his experience in Fiji on the reef breaks around Tavarua and Namotu.
"In New Zealand we don’t have a lot of rocky, reef breaks like they do in Fiji."
The criteria for the scholarship were not just performance-based, Brown’s attitude in and out of the water was also a contributing factor. Brown’s next target with be the upcoming Grom series , a national programme of events for junior surfers. The series is an ideal opportunity for the surfer to show his form before the naming of the New Zealand junior team later this year.
"I will be doing a lot of them. The goal again is to qualify for the New Zealand [junior] team."
‘‘That would be awesome."
The nationals come at a perfect time each year for Brown, as they are in the school holidays.
Once the year’s first term begins, he plans to balance surfing and school work successfully.
"I’ll hopefully do well in school, especially year 13, my last year."
"I have managed to do it pretty well mostly, with surfing every day, pretty much."
- Jonny Turner
