The Jesus Surf Series

Things in the UK have suddenly got an awful lot busier regarding surfing events since the COVID restrictions opened up again. In fact, because of the postponement of the original Jesus surf classic due to lack of waves, it meant that Christian Surfers UK volunteers had the enormous task of running two different surfing events on consecutive weekends.

The volunteers, however, were up to the challenge! So here’s a brief summary of what went down.

The Jesus surf series has been split into two different events because the surf classic got so big that we could no longer hold it in one weekend, so 13 years ago we divided the event in two and took the longboard component out to its own separate event.

We traditionally held the Jesus Surf Classic at Croyde Bay, North Devon and this year was celebrating its 29th anniversary a phenomenal fact, and is still one of the longest running and largest events in the UK surfing calendar.

The forecast for this year was really incredibly challenging and contest director Phil Williams, with a core team, consulted, and prayed and eventually made a set of decisions which we believe was guided by God and turned out to be very fruitful. Since there was likely to be a big storm on Sunday, we had to postpone the under 12’s under 14’s and under 16 divisions (always very popular) and turn the event into a one-day event with the five older categories being run.

Even then the forecast on Saturday was for powerful winds and continuous rain for the entire day, however the winds showed it could be slight cross offshore which gave us the chance to run an event in pretty good surf conditions. So how did it all work out? 

Well, it didn’t rain as much as it was supposed to and although there were some torrential hours of rain, the judges did an amazing job on the scaffold tower and by the end of the day champions were crowned and the presentation took place to an excited crowd outside the main marquee which had provided cover for the duration of the event.

As well as the surf competition, there were surf movies on the big screen TV, a barbecue running all day, fresh cakes and coffee being served and live music from various bands in the North Devon area. A great partnership between Christian Surfers and the local churches.

A message of hope and faith was shared as part of the presentation, and that night the volunteer team met for a meal together and enjoyed fellowship inside the marquee which was a lovely end to the day. Sunday turned out to be horrendous weather so the backdown was completed and everybody went their merry way.

The following weekend the forecast surf conditions for the 13th Jesus longboard classic were completely different, the weather was looking fair and there was a solid 4-6 foot offshore swell on the Saturday giving perfect conditions for a record number of long boarders (over 90 registered) in the six categories throughout the weekend.

The event was held at Polzeath where we partner with the Tubestation which is a surfer friendly church which has close links with Christian Surfers UK. They provide amazing hospitality and an incredible venue for the weekend. After a busy day of competition on the Saturday there was a further opportunity to have community together listening to Brendon Prince share about the long paddle i.e. the first person to stand up paddle board around the whole of the UK (141 days and 3900 km) an amazing feat by a man of faith aiming to highlight water safety around the UK. https://thelongpaddle.co.uk/ 

Sunday is always special as we start off at 9 am with the surfers blessing a cultural relevant way of sharing our faith with the surfers who like to attend, and due to the great weather it was held outdoors, a very powerful message was shared which seemed to hit the spot with so many people specially in these days of challenging mental health.

Sunday’s conditions were not as good but still very manageable and around 4:30 pm the presentation was held, champions crowned, thanks given, and all those involved consider it one of the best Jesus longboard Championships yet.

So, the Jesus surf series in 2021 were weekends of huge contrast, but the constants being God was in control, there were waves for the event, and we were blessed with a fantastic bunch of competitors and a hugely supportive team of volunteers. Next year is a key year for CSUK with the 30th Jesus’ surf classic so plans are already underway of how we can make it even more special.

Contest director Phil Williams continued to give thanks regarding the amazing team that enable these events take place, 2022 we think will be an exciting year for the Jesus surf series. www.christiansurfers.co.uk