Category Archives: East Florida

Upcoming Oakley Surf Shop Challenge

This weekend my buddy is going to be down at New Smyrna Beach shreddin the gnar and getting some clips. He’ll be hard at work at the Oakley Surf Shop Challenge, a surf shop surf contest hosted every year by Surfer Magazine and Oakley Sunglasses. This year is no different according to my friend Myles who works for the companies hosting this contest. If you’re headed to Smyrna this week, check it out. If you see a guy named Myles with black spiky afro like hair, and a big head say hello. Say hey dude! He was saying the forecast is looking pretty good. The website Swellinfo.com is showing the surf at knee high and choppy for Wednesday, so I’m thinking it’s going to be flat like pancake. We’ll see. Hopefully some surf fills in for the surfers. Myles said they’re expecting to run on Wednesday, so tune in. I think they’ll have live heats through the contest Website, and hopefully I can get some cool pictures for you.

Getting Out and Having Fun: Social Media From Friends

I’ve decided to start adding social media content from people in the community.  It’s easy enough to to snag images from the web that people are already posting. It’s also a fun way for you to keep up with some of the cool content people are posting in a summarized way. I might also add my comments here about the stuff people are posting.

First I’m going to start with Captain Brandon Fraley’s post about scalloping.  This is actually really cool to hear that Pasco county is now allowing people to scallop. I’ve heard that even as far south as Pinellas in the anclote area we have scallops, although scalloping is not allowed here.  Pasco county borders Pinellas and it’s just a hop, skip and a jump north of Honeymoon Island and Clearwater Beach, our local surf spot. Brandon wrote:

fisheye_sportfishingFirst time in a long time that #scallop season has been open in Pasco County, got our limit and had a great time with @huntergibson243 @marlin365 @got_one_sportfishing now time to get shuckin #gulfofmexico #scallopseason #florida #fisheyesportfishing #ltcustomrods

Captain Brandon Fraley Fisheye Sportfishing Scalloping trip


Landon Perrino posted a thoughtful picture of Tanner Jones wishing him the best with his injury. What I heard from Landon, something you’ll see in the comments, Tanner actually broke his collar bone while trying a board transfer. Injuries are no fun, especially as we gear up for the peak of the hurricane season and the start of winter.
Landon wrote:

landonperrino Wish @tannerj0nes the best of luck with his injury hope you make it to Cali
Tanner Jones collarbone injury


The skim sisters Maddy and Lilly were hanging out on the east coast at a legendary skim spot, Vilano Beach.  There was a pretty rad skim contest going down there.  They were hanging out with the legendary and most gnarly skimboarder who does the gnarliest spin tricks, and originated from the gulf, John Akerman. They were having a blast on the east coast. Skim Sisters & John Akerman wrote:

skim_sistersLilly got 2nd in girls 14 and under Maddy got 3rd in the womens division! So happy to see everyone again. Vilano is one of the best experiences… thank you again Steve @rdsskimco for everything. We love the competition and Vilano more than words can explain . #zapskimboards #represent #joogsquad

jaakermanRight place right time this morning. @codycoleman #surfing #florida #hurricanechris

Skim Sisters Maddy and Lilly in Vilano John Akerman by Cody Coleman Hurricane Chris


 

That’s all for now!

Surf Contest at Sebastion Inlet State Park


One of the newest additions to the QS north American circuit should run tomorrow. Are you thinking about giving professional surfing a go? This contest is a great way to get qs points, particularly if your a girl. It’s a Mens 1500, and most notably, the winning female will load up with 6000 QS points! It’s also going to be hard to overlook the 55 thousand dollar women’s prize purse. This is a big one!

Shark Attack in Jacksonville, Florida Yesterday While Surfing Hurricane Maria

The poles is an iconic surf spot in Jacksonville, Florida known for its hollow barrels, and protected jetty just a thousand yards away. Bordered by the Mayport naval station this spot sits just on the edge of a no beach entry zone. Yesterday, while Hurricane Maria was weakening, at the time down to 80mph winds on Monday, the surf from the overnight 105mph strength winds was filling in at the coast. Surfers eager to score thumping barrels with air winds at the Mayport poles were out in the lineup searching for a few gems. Unfortunately, we’re in the time of year when shark attacks are most frequent. The month of September poses the highest risk of being attacked by a shark since waters are warmest and fish species flourish along the coast. Yesterday at the poles a surfer was attacked by a shark while in the water during this epic Hurricane Maria surf. This is an unfortunate, but not completely shocking incident. Surf report/shark attack image by the long time Jacksonville, Mayport Poles surf reporter: 911surfreport.com.

jacksonville-shark-attack-poles-911surfreport

The Gnarly Charley Surf Series July Contest

The Gnarly Charley Surf Series is a series of surf events for kids.  It’s held on the beaches of the east coast, primarily Florida.  It’s a mentorship and grooming contest series for kids who want to learn to surf in competitions, and it’s an opportunity for kids to be around good role models and other kids.  The contests run from summer through mid-fall. The full schedule of events can be found on the surf series website.