Just Surf

Menehune Surf Fest offers off-season fun for experienced surfers, unintimidating venue for newbies

By Andrea Swayne

Hundreds of young surfers take part each year surfing multiple events in amateur surf series like the Western Surfing Association Championship Tour and the National Scholastic Surfing Association Open and Explorer tours. Multiple weekends are spent collecting points to qualify for end-of-season championship contests and divisional season titles, so when a “just for fun” contest like the Menehune Surf Fest comes around, many jump at the chance to relax, surf and enjoy the moment without having to think about points or rankings.

The 7th Annual WSA Menehune Surf Fest, July 15 at Goldenwest Street in Huntington Beach, was created as a stand-alone summer event for WSA members as well as an opportunity to attract new competitors for the fall start of each new season.

With its creation, came the addition of the first ever push-in assisted divisions, where beginning surfers ages 8 and under can get a feel for contest surfing with the support of an in-water coach for guidance and an extra push into waves they may not yet be strong enough to chase down on their own.

With such young surfers in the lineup, the competition provides some unforgettable moments and a preview of the up-and-coming surf stars of tomorrow.

For older kids, up to age 16, the contest also provides an unintimidating venue for first time contestants.

Since many experienced surfers enjoy entering this event, two new free divisions were added especially for first-timers. The Boys Premier and Girls Premier divisions offered a straight-to-finals heat for those making their debut into the world of amateur surfing.

Veteran WSA surfers from San Clemente, like Dane Matson and Kei Kobayashi were standouts in the main divisions, winning the U9 Push-in and Boys 12-14 Shortboard divisions, respectively.

Making their first appearance in WSA competition were San Clemente’s Samantha Sibley, who took fifth in Girls Premier and Lexi Morgan with a fifth place finish in Girls 9-11 Shortboard, second place in Girls 13-16 Longboard and sixth in Girls Premier.

RESULTS:

BOYS & GIRLS U9 SB PUSH-IN:

1. Dane Matson, San Clemente

2. Bryce Wettstein, Encinitas

3. Lylah Collins, Costa Mesa

4. Kadin Naber, Huntington Beach

5. Bryce Pinkerton, San Clemente

6. Callahan Corn, Del Mar

BOYS U9 SB:

1. Noah Steinmetz, Huntington Beach

2. Callahan Corn, Del Mar

3. Matthew Hahn, Torrance

4. Dane Matson, San Clemente

5. Eland Hansler, San Clemente

BOYS 9-11 SB:

1. Dylan Hord; Huntington Beach

2. Zach McCormick, Encinitas

3. Noah Hohenester, San Clemente

4. Kade Matson, San Clemente

5. Lucas Viljoen, Long Beach

6. Jabe Swierkocki, Ventura

BOYS 12-14 SB:

1. Kei Kobayashi, San Clemente

2. Conner Dand, San Clemente

3. Ryan Salazar, Huntington Beach

4. Noah Hohenester, San Clemente

5. Nick Melanson, San Clemente

6. Drew Hemnes, San Clemente

BOYS 15-16 SB:

1. Tyler Killeen, Surfside

2. William Peckett, Tahiti

3. Brighton Reinhardt, Dana Point

4. Conner Dand, San Clemente

5. Kyle Knoke, Westminster

6. Nathan Young, Fountain Valley

BOYS U13 LB:

1. Dylan Hord, Huntington Beach

2. Chad Apodaca, Huntington Beach

BOYS PREMIER (first WSA contest):

1. Braeden Steele, Oceanside

2. Mason Lucero, Huntington Beach

GIRLS U9 SB:

1. Bryce Wettstein, Encinitas

2. Lylah Collins, Costa Mesa

3. Lauren Anderson, Long Beach

GIRLS 9-11 SB:

1. Kirra Pinkerton, San Clemente

2. Sidney Tisdel, Carlsbad

3. Kaliana Ashkarian, San Marcos

4. Kaelene Debie, Paramount

5. Lexi Morgan, San Clemente

6. Paris Bailey, Huntington Beach

GIRLS 12-14 SB:

1. Maya Saulino, San Marcos

2. Tori Carlos, Huntington Beach

3. Franchesca Bessa, Huntington Beach

4. Marina Praet, Orange

GIRLS 15-16 SB:

1. Bailey Nagy, Hawaii

2. Tori Carlos, Huntington Beach

3. Janelle Ferris, Westminster

4. Maddie Gumbrecht, Huntington Beach

GIRLS U13 LB:

1. Kaliana Ashkarian, San Marcos

2. Lexi Morgan, San Clemente

GIRLS 13-16 LB:

1. Meg Roh, Dana Point

2. Kyla Kelley, San Clemente

GIRLS PREMIER (first WSA contest):

1. Maddie Gumbrecht, Huntington Beach

2. Franchesca Bessa, Huntington Beach

3. Kaelene Debie, Paramount

4. Sidney Tisdel, Carlsbad

5. Samantha Sibley, San Clemente

6. Lexi Morgan, San Clemente.