Entries are now open for Boardmasters Open mens and women’s events and the Longboard events.
The shortboard events are QS1000 so vitally important for our UK and Irish competitors as the only QS in our part of the world. They also get to surf against some of the worlds best young surfers on their way up the ladder.
The longboard events always feature the worlds elite loggers with Ben Skinner, Adam Griffiths leading the UKs talented crew against the a packed field.
Past winners here include the who’s who of European professional surfing as well as international athletes coming to enjoy a piece of the British summer vibes.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the first International pro surfing event at Fistral with the biggest ever Boadmasters festival lineup at Watergate.
The Premier of Queensland, Annastacia Palaszczuk, announced that the Queensland government will work on draft laws to protect the Gold Coast World Surfing Reserve.
Palaszczuk asked Minister of Sport Mick de Brenni to look into legal protection before the opening of the 6th Global Wave Conference.
Burleigh, Kirra and Currumbin were announced as Australian National Surfing Reserves in 2012 and as the 8th World Surfing Reserve in March 2016.
“What I’ve been hearing from people is that they would like a bit more security around the reserve. My government is now going to actively look at legislating regarding the surfing reserve here in Queensland. I don’t want to see it disturbed in 20, 30, 40, or 50 years’ time. I want to make sure that this area of the coast is absolutely protected as a surf reserve.”” said Annastacia Palaszczuk.
The 10th World Surfing Reserve will be dedicated in Noosa, on February 21, a public ceremony taking place at the national park.
“A recurring question has been asked by many: Will the Premiere extend legal protection to both World Surfing Reserves in Queensland?” asks Save the Waves Coalition.
Lukas Skinner, part of a really strong wave of UK groms.
Glassing Monkey UK sponsor National Junior Surf Series, Clash of the Groms. All events will be held at the home of British Surfing, Fistral beach.
The Series will comprise of four UK Pro Surf Association (UKPSA) events:
Glassing Monkey Clash Of The Groms 4th April
Seawings UK COTG 2nd 3rd May,
Soul COTG 12th and 13th June and
Glassing Monkey UK Schools Surf Championships the Decider 13th 14th July
Each event will attract the best young surfers from across the UK to compete in up to eight divisions: Under 12 Girls, Under 12 Boys, Under 14 Girls, Under 14 Boys, Under 16 Girls, Under 16 Boys, Under 18 Girls and Under 18 Boys.
The tour will aim to promote progressive surfing with the Judging criteria focusing on quality of manoeuvres. The tabulation will count the best two waves with highest scoring wave doubled.
Dave Reed Director of UKPSA said “I would like to thank Glassing Monkey UK for supporting the development of the future surf stars. With surfing this year being included in the Olympics and the development of wavepool technology we need to help develop the future athletes in the sport.
Jack Hughes Glassing Monkey UK said “Opening in Newquay gives us a great opportunity to be a part of the UKPSA COTG and we are excited and privileged to be a part of such an important stage in a young surfer’s journey. We are looking forward to seeing what 2020 will bring for British surfing heading into a new era of competitive surfing”
Details of each event and the series can be found at www.ukprosurf.com
Da Kine have unleashed (see what i dd here) the new Kaimana leash. Looking pretty cool and tagged as “The ultimate fusion of strength, comfort, and ingenuity, delivering the freedom of a leash-less feel.” It’ll hit retailers the spring.
“The Kaimana embodies 40+ years of heavy wave surf innovation developed with a highly technical design, the Kaimana delivers supreme comfort, less drag, and unmatched strength in an extremely lightweight package. The Kaimana provides a leash-less feel, so that whether you’re world tour champ or paddling out for the first time, you can focus on the ocean and leave everything else behind.”
Key features: – Zero Distraction ankle cuff –
Silicone ankle grips –
Dura Cord w/ speed pockets (10-20% less drag) –
Infinite Flex 360 degree leash ends –
Thin Line Rail Saver System
National ocean conservation charity Surfers Against Sewage (SAS),with support from Iceland Foods Charitable Foundation and Sharp’s Atlantic Pale Ale, is organising the biggest beach clean weekend of the year as part of its annual Big Spring Beach Clean. Up to 50,000 volunteers are expected to take action to tackle the scourge of ocean plastic pollution over the weekend.
The charity is calling for volunteers to register their beach, river and urban clean events at www.sas.org.uk
Plastic pollution evidence will also be submitted to the government to support ambitious and progressive policy and legislative interventions to stop plastic pollution at source. An ambitious deposit return scheme, extended producer responsibility, single-use plastic bans, and a more ambitious plastic bag charge should all be introduced as soon as possible.
Surfers Against Sewage has been at the forefront of the global beach clean movement for over a decade, organising over 7,507 events, mobilising a quarter of a million volunteers who have together removed a staggering 534,012.59 kg of plastic pollution from our beaches. Volunteers will collect vital plastic pollution data as part of the Plastic Pollution Brand Audit. Last year, the results revealed that Coca Cola and PepsiCo were responsible for 25% of plastic pollutionrecorded by volunteers. This important citizen science project will be published to ensure that businesses are changing their attitudes, systems, products and behaviours to better protect the ocean and wider environment. The charity is calling for more urgent action from manufacturers to reduce their single-use plastic packaging addiction.
Jack Middleton, Community Manager at Surfers Against Sewage says “Tens of thousands of volunteers joining us at beaches and rivers is a huge indication of the public’s feelings towards the growing scale of the plastic pollution crisis. It also highlights the urgency of the radical action required to protect our ocean from their products. The data our volunteers collect will help inform and drive change by those who still put profits before the planet.”
Richard Walker, Trustee of the Iceland Foods Charitable Foundation said “Iceland Foods Charitable Foundation and Surfers Against Sewage share a common passion for tackling the scourge of plastic head on, and we know that this is an issue that resonates with an ever-growing number of people. Our Iceland stores are at the heart of high streets up and down the country and we recruit our store colleagues locally, making us a true community retailer. We are delighted to be backing SAS in encouraging individuals and organisations throughout the UK to help make a difference to the quality of their local environment through The Big Spring Beach Clean.”
James Nicholls, Marketing Controller at Sharp’s Brewery says “Being based a couple of miles from the sea in North Cornwall, our coastal environment is deeply important to us. We have a long history of supporting the Blue Flag and community beach cleans and the whole team at Sharp’s are over the moon to now be supporting SAS on their Big Spring Beach Clean, an initiative we’ve long admired”.
To register for guidance on leading your own clean, head to www.sas.org.uk or by email [email protected]. All Clean Leaders will receive a Big Spring Beach Clean equipment pack and a step-by-step guide to organizing their clean, along with support and guidance from the SAS Team in organising their event. Participants in the Brand Audit will also receive a limited edition Hydro Flask bottle.
We would like to thank the Iceland Foods Charitable Foundation and Sharp’s Brewery and Community Partners: Canoe Foundation, Surfing England, British Canoeing, British Mountaineering Council, The Wave Project, South West Coast Path Association and the Outdoor Swimming Society.
