Pier a ‘shoulder of support for 20 years’

SHARK Rock Pier juts out from Hobie Beach like a long-legged lady dipping her toes in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean – not much different from the millions of people who have done the same over the years. But few realize that without the pier the beach would not be what many know and love it to be.

Throwing its long legs into the ocean, Shark Rock Pier is at once beach architect and city icon. The concrete monolith at 137m, is the reason that today Hobie Beach is amongst the city’s most popular swimming beaches – after its construction saw more sand trapped on the rocky shore, which then gave birth to the sandy expanse known as Hobie Beach, in prime position for urban sun worshippers and water babies.

“I simply cannot imagine the city without Hobie Beach and the pier,” said Mandlakazi Skefile, Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism’s chief executive. “We all have a great memory of spending time on the pier – whether it was a romantic walk with your first love, or cheering on a loved one during the Ironman, or taking a lone walk to clear your head, or making it part of a daily running routine, Shark Rock Pier has been the centerpiece of many major events, personal and city since it was built in 1990.”

The only pier in Nelson Mandela Bay, it has become the “sun” the beachfront revolves around – big events are hosted on its shoulder, flags adorn it, people adore it and throngs walk its girth – clutching ice-creams and a desire to be suspended above the watery depths that define the Bay.

Shark Rock Pier was built by the municipality in 1990 to stop sand erosion and to build up the beach. Before the construction summer’s strong South Easterly winds would wash all the sand that had accumulated in winter away. The pier was successful, building what today is known as Hobie Beach.

“In my mind the pier is like a shoulder of support that the city has been leaning on for over 20 years now – and that’s what makes it an icon,” added Skefile. “Ironman, Splash Festival, summer season and our everyday enjoyment of our beautiful beachfront all feature Shark Rock Pier in the backdrop. It’s a thing of memories.”

The pier was voted into the Top Ten city icons by the public in a poll run by Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism between September and December 2011. The other icons are: the Donkin Reserve, Red Location Museum, The Boardwalk, St Georges Park, the Campanile, No 7 Castle Hill, Nelson Mandela Bay stadium, Addo Elphant National Park’s Big Seven and the city’s beaches.