The City of Huntington Beach celebrated the 50th year of the HB Surf Contest with good waves and strong community support. The contest ran October 15 and 16, narrowly avoiding thunderstorms, and saw 150 surfers throughout the competition. The HB Surf Contest returned after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic and oil spill that took place in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
The waves were good and everyone was stoked to be back in the water south of the HB Pier. This contest is full of tradition and is known as a “locals only” competition, as surfers must live within the Huntington Beach Union High School District to compete.
It is one of the only surf contests that allows participants to surf on either a short or a long board in the same division/heat. This rule sticks to tradition, as there was no differentiation between board sizes in surf contests 50 years ago. Multiple generations of families have competed in this contest over the years, with divisions starting at nine years and younger and ending with 65 years over. The contest crowns an overall champion after the winners of all 10 divisions must surf against each other in a “Super Heat” at the end. This year’s winner was Chance Hallford of the Masters Division.
The contest was organized by the Community & Library Services Department with the support of local HB businesses Huntington Surf & Sport (HSS) and Dukes. HSS provided the awards, giveaways, and contest t-shirts, and Dukes provided lunch on the beach. Aaron and Taylor Pai, owners of HSS, surprised Recreation Supervisor (and Contest Director) John Valinsky with a special award that recognized the City of Huntington Beach on their 50th year running the contest. The special award consisted of a commemorative trophy and three leis that represented each of the three decades that the City has been partnering with HSS for this contest. Valinsky has been coordinating the contest for 11 years and HSS has sponsored the event for 34 years.
Pictured is the award presentation.
Back row, pictured left to right: Ryan Clancy (Dukes General Manager) John Valinsky (City of Huntington Beach Recreation Supervisor), and Aaron and Taylor Pai (Owners Huntington Surf & Sport). Front row: Finn and Jones Pai.
