Bradley Hofmeister
Staff Writer
The sound of the waves crashing on the shore, the frigid winter water temperatures, and patterns in the waves were all thoughts racing through the contestants’ minds as they quickly paddle out for their heat.
On Saturday, the South Bay Boardriders surf club held a surfing event at 26th street in Manhattan Beach. This contest is part of the South Bay Surf Series, a six-event surf contest for the South Bay community for all ages. Everyone in attendance received a complimentary t-shirt and goodies, while the finalists of the event won prizes including money, a surfboard, and a wetsuit.
“The waves were super fun, even though there was some tide changes throughout the day,” said sophomore Beck Cherry. “It was very cold in the morning but it eventually warmed up throughout the day as the sun came out.”
Photos: E.T Surf contest in Manhattan Beach.
To balance different skill levels, surfing styles, and ages, the South Bay Surf Series organizes several different groups for contestants to enter based upon self-assessment and prior contest performances. Within these groups, surfers are put into a 30 minute heat with six other surfers, and when time is up the top three of the heat move on to the next round.
“I have been apart of the South Bay Boardriders for years now so competing in these contests has become almost a routine,” said senior Cody Purcell. “I feel this really helps though as I have learned what to expect and how the judges tend to score.”
One of the contest’s main events, the Open Men’s Division, is available to surfers of all ages and is participated in by many Mira Costa students. The contest’s competitiveness draws surfers from all over the South Bay providing surfers a place to show their best moves.
Video: Local long boarder Cash Cherry surfs at the South Bay Boardriders contest at 26th street Manhattan Beach on Saturday January 24th. The South bay Boardriders events are meant for local surfers of all ages to compete and catch a few waves.
“South Bay Boardriders contests are always a good time and E.T and the other sponsors did a great job with everything today,” Cherry said. “Unfortunately I wasn’t able to make it to the finals of the Open Men’s Division but nevertheless I had a fun day and can’t wait for the next contest.”
The South Bay Boardriders contests depend on sponsors and local community volunteers to keep the events running smoothly and provide a safe and fun experience for all the surfers who participate. This particular contest was held by two main sponsors, E.T Surf and Chilli Surfboards, who generously provided board demos and prizes for the winners of some of the events.
Website: The South Bay Boardriders website.
“The different local surf shops and sponsors that continually come out and host these events are what truly make the contests so memorable and fun to be apart of,” said Purcell. “E.T Surf and Chilli surfboards are two of my favorites and it was a very enjoyable contest today.”
The South Bay Boardriders club is dedicated to bringing the community together and fostering a fun surfing environment for everyone of all ages and skill to have fun and to be safe in the ocean. With their South Bay Surf Series they have also been able to really get into the competitive side of surfing, holding events that often feature Mira Costa athletes.
“The Boardriders contests are always super fun and you can tell everyone is just kicking back relaxing in between heats and having a good time,” contest judge Dean Johnson said. “In general though, the waves are consistently pretty good, there’s always good people, and it never fails to be a fun time down here in the South Bay .”
Video: Sophomore Beck Cherry surfs at the E.T Board riders surf contest at 26th street in Manhattan Beach on Saturday January 24th. Cherry received an impressive score of 6.8 on this wave which was enough to qualify him to the next round.
Leave a Reply