Bluebird I emerged from the melee in second place, ahead of Manly and Capri but trailing Old Bar. Frontal cupped his hands around his mouth and screamed support, his voice cracking; he seemed more concerned that Bluebird beat the hated neighbour Capri than win the race. Halfway to the shore, Old Bar caught a crumbling wave that slung them further into the lead. Bluebird was left behind this wave and slightly ahead of the one behind, which was caught by Capri. Sixty or seventy metres from the sand, Old Bar held a handy lead while Bluebird was fighting to hold second place ahead of a fast-closing Capri and Manly.

Accounts of what happened next would differ. There were no television cameras, and phone footage from the beach was fragmentary. The Bluebird sweep would allege that his boat had right of way ahead of Capri, while Capri would claim they were stopped from passing by one of the Bluebird rowers pulling his oar from the water and smacking a Capri rower in the jaw.

The Bluebird and Capri boats came together with a crack that splintered the breeze. Rather than bounce off and stroke for home, as usually happened in these close battles, both crews became primarily interested in belting each other. It appeared to Kelly that Daniel was the first to leap from his boat and board the enemy’s, brandishing his oar like a pirate. But she couldn’t be sure. With their swimmers stuffed up their cracks, all the rowers looked much the same. Teenage boys were jumping from boat to boat and using their oars as weapons. A larger wave overturned both surf boats. Then Manly careered into the middle and all three crews went under. Spectators turned away from the beach sprints and the girls’ reel towards the surfboat chaos and let out alarmed cries. Old Bar hit the shore, crew abandoning boat and sprinting for the finish line. Maroubra went into second place and Windang into third, while the Bluebird, Capri and Manly boats were hull-side up, the rowers a jumble of froth.

The beach was dune-to-shore in lifesavers, but a strange paralysis set in. The confusion was overwhelming. Frontal was one of the first to move. He shouted Daniel’s name, ran to the water and porpoised out between the oncoming surfboats. Soon others were following him. It was unclear how many of the boys from the Capri, Manly and Bluebird crews had surfaced. Anyone who knew about surf boat races—and anyone who didn’t—saw the peril. Rowers could be knocked unconscious. Capri and Bluebird were still brawling. Witnesses and combatants would say that the worst injuries were not from oars or boats hitting the crews, but from testicles twisted under the water.