Long Beach celebrates a decade of Surf Week

New York Surf Week, presented by NYSEA, returned to Long Beach July 10 to 14 for its tenth year with an array of surfing and skating competitions, a movie night, a summer party, charity events and a memorial paddle out.

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Professional big-wave surfer Will Skudin, co-owner of Skudin Surf, started Surf Week in memory of his late friend, George “Geeza” Geiser, a revered local surfer who died in 2009. The event included a memorial paddle-out to honor Geiser on July 13.

The week’s main events included the second annual Lady Liberty Classic, a women’s surfing competition for all ages and the NYSEA Jr Pro, a co-ed competition for people under age 20.

Symcha Sachs, 14, a Rockaway Beach resident, took home first place in the Lady Liberty competition and also netted the $750 purse for winning the competition. Sachs had stiff competition with Morgan Iglay and Brooke Baldassare coming in second and third place, while Audrey Iglay came in fourth place.

Long Beach’s Kyle Caracciolo, 17, also netted $750 for his victory in the NYSEA Jr Pro competition. Jake Demateo and CJ Mangio respectively nabbed the second and third place prizes, while Owen O’Donnell placed in fourth.

Both Sachs and Caracciolo are products of the Skudin Surf camp.

Also on July 13, the Surf Week crowd shifted to Pop’s Seafood Shack and Grill in Island Park for the NYSEA’s Summer party, which had half-pipe for skateboarders.

Surf Week kicked off with the third annual Adaptive All-Stars Surf Competition on July 10, where athletes with challenges competed for the New York State championships. The event was hosted by Surf for All, a local nonprofit dedicated to teaching individuals with disabilities and special needs how to surf.

The nonprofit also hosted a surf outing for the School of Henry Viscardi the next day. The outing was in memory of Connor Troy, a local boy who had a neurological disease that inhibited his ability to walk,among other medical issues.

Shortly after the surf outing, fans were treated to a movie night that featured the screenings of two movies at the Bridgeview Yacht Club in Island Park, “If Two By Sea – The Story Of CJ & Damien Hobgood,” and “Empire Next Vol. 1: Waco.” Professional surf legends CJ and Damien Hobgood alongside, Director Justin Purser were in attendance for the screenings.

This year’s events — sponsored by Sierra Nevada, Yeti, Chameleon, Dragon, Clif, Skudin Surf and Surf for All — featured a “vending village” throughout the weekend on the boardwalk at Riverside boulevard, offering food and products from the sponsors as well as clothing and accessories from local vendors.

The jam packed weekend came to an end with third annual Bowl and Street Bash skating competitions at the Long Beach Recreation Center. The kids competition kicked off the July 14 events with several skating competitions. The big winner of the night was Kenny Gonzalez, of the Bronx, who took home $250 for the first place prize for the adult Skate Bowl competition.