Feat. The Offspring.

Think you’re pretty smart, surfer boy? Ok, what is the oldest and longest continually run professional surf contest in the world? WRONG! It is not, in fact, the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach that takes place every easter in Torquay, Australia but rather the 60-year-and-counting East Coast Surfing Championships which calls Virginia Beach, United States of America.

And the ECSC just yesterday received a tax payer shot in the arm with VB’s city council voting to pitch $750,000 and this years festivities set to take place August 21 – 28.

“It’s a dream come true,” Dee Nachnani, owner of Coastal Edge surf shop, told The Virginian-Pilot after being told of the cash infusion.

“I’m overwhelmed,” added Tony Pellino, chairman of the event. “This is just an amazing opportunity for the city.”

But imagine with me, if you will, a whole new crop of east coast American surfers being supported, financially, by their local governments. Imagine how they will flourish not having to worry about “jobs” or “work” and instead focusing on rail and air games. Imagine a red, white and blue challenge to Brazil’s utter dominance.

Oh say can you see?

In any case, some of the money might be going to secure musical acts for the week as opposed to professional surfer development. Shows during the week of revelry used to be free but now tickets will be sold and the tax payer will recoup 25% of the revenue.

The Offspring have been locked as performers with others to be announced soon.

The Offspring were my least favorite group from surfing’s golden era of pop-punk.

Which was yours?

Also, with this news, is flim-flam World Surf League CEO Erik Logan going to go on a tour of American municipalities and sing and dance for dollars?

Everything coming up anti-depressive.

I woke up this morning to the news that the Corona Open J-Bay did not run whilst I slept and assumed it was because World Surf League Senior Vice President of Tours, Head of Competition Jessi Miley-Dyer is en route and will be arriving shortly.

Whew.

Other things to feel good about:

It appears those pesky “transit visa” issues that kept Australia’s Tyler Wright from traveling to, and competing in, Brazil have been resolved. Wright, currently number 10, is safely in South Africa and fans of professional surfing at its highest level are breathing sighs of relief while also expressing gratitude toward Wright’s travel agent. Any person who has ever left his/her/them country of origin knows how sticky immigration, customs etc. can be and even with nearly a year advance notice those paperworks just sneak right up.

The two-time world champion will have some work to do in order to claw into the conversation. The top five female surfers at the end of the year will join the top five male surfers at Lower Trestles for a one day winner-take-all banger. Wright will have to leapfrog Courtney Conlogue, Gabriela Bryan, Isabella Nichols, Tatiana Weson-Webb and Brisa Hennessy to punch her ticket. A tall order but if anyone is up for the challenge, it is Wright.

Lastly, Kelly Slater will be participating. The eleven-time world champion sat out the last two events in El Salvador and Brazil nursing an injury that necessitated surfing large barrels and causing social media storms. He is healed now, though, in time for a run of swell headed for J-Bay that World Surf League CEO Erik Logan thinks might create “one of the greatest events in history.”

Everything coming up anti-depressive.