DID SOMEONE SAY "WAVES?"

Tired of doing a drive-by on the beach every morning, only to find a whole lot of calm seas and non-action going on? That ll changes this weekend with four -- yes, four -- surfing-related events that you may want to get in on:

1) The Surfrider Foundation (www.surfrider.org) and Greenpeace are getting together to demand action on global climate change. How? By lining up human beings at John U. Lloyd State Park, so that, when photographed from a helicopter, it looks like "a human map of Florida with the southern tip literally submerged in the ocean, while a hurricane approaches from the Atlantic. In the Gulf side of the image, text will read: 'Wanted: Climate Heroes.'"

[I will try to upload a picture here just as soon as I can!]

Surfrider members are being asked to create the “submerged portion of Florida” for the image. This requires 40-50 people to be in the water for an hour or more. They are also invited to bring boards. You have to email miami@surfrider.org for details and to RSVP.


2) The Eastern Surfing Association is holding a surf contest at Villas By The Seas in Lauderdale By The Sea, with divisions from 11 and under to 65+. The contest window starts at 8 a.m. Saturday, and will go through the day Sunday if needed.

As is unfortunately the case with surfing contests, a lack waves may cancel the event, so call the contest hotline at 954–359-9994 or 954-680-SURF to see if the show goes on. The newly-formed Broward chapter of the Surfrider Foundation is holding a beach cleanup in conjunction with the event. For more info, see http://surfesa.org

3) For those of you interested in a little road trip, checkout the annual "King of the Peak" surf contest up in Sebastian, started by Mr. Eight Time World Champion Surfer himself, Kelly Slater. It allows regular joes (and bettys) to compete against pro surfers.
http://www.quiksilver.com/events/detail.aspx?evntid=117

Kelly has been at the contest many of its past years, and we heard that he recently backed out of a pro tour event to attend his mom's wedding in Cocoa Beach; we also hear that his brother Sean recently opened a surf shop in the hood. Now, we're not geniuses or anything, but we do know how to put two and two and two together, so we wouldn't be surprised to see Mr. Slater will be showing up at the beach Saturday morning. (That's why we'll be hiding behind the dunes with our giant man-catching net). If you recall, last year I interviewed Slater and he told me that he and Gisele Bundchen, despite having been photographed to gether on several occasions, were "not together like that." Good news for single men and women alike. But even if Kelly is taken by now, well... here's more incentive to pack your bags and strap the boards to the roof --

http://www.surfermag.com/photos/events/kingofpeak05/index34.html

4) Now, this one isn't *directly* about surfing, but it is about maintaining a healthy coastal environment (BTW, did you see the news flash today about seafood becoming extinct by the 2040s? That is some scary stuff.) A group working on mangrove reforestation around Miami is doing something proactive (besides hitting the all-you-can-eat buffet at Red Lobster wile they can). They are recruiting volunteers to place seedlings in businesses across South Beach. A lead volunteer will be at 933 Lincoln Road (Books and Books) at 10 am on Saturday, November 4th leading a canvassing of Lincoln Road. Others will be on Nov 11th and Dec 2. They still need a team(s) to oversee and recruit volunteers for a canvassing on Nov 25th.

Adult volunteers who may want to join in at Books and Books to canvas Lincoln Road 10am to 1 pm on Nov 4th (and/or Nov 25th), see: http://www.reclamationproject.net/volunteers.htm. Or call Citizens for a Better South Florida at 305-648-0000 or email Jackie at coordinator@reclamationproject.net.