Annual surf competitions return to Folly Beach
by Jenny Peterson | Current Staff Writer
On Folly Beach, where surfing is celebrated every day, three summer surfing events will specifically celebrate women and kids on the water, drawing visitors from around the country and world.
THE FOLLY BEACH WAHINE CLASSIC
This year’s Classic is expected to bring more than 100 female surfers from across the country to The Washout on Saturday, July 31 and Sunday, Aug. 1 for a weekend of surf competition and camaraderie. The event was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and will be held later in the summer than its usual date this year.
Celebrating 20 years on Folly Beach, The Folly Beach Wahine Classic is the first all-women’s surf contest in South Carolina. It’s one of just two all-women’s surfing competitions on the East Coast, featuring surfers who fall into pro status all the way down to beginners.
“Surfing is a mostly male-dominated sport and you have support from other women in the water and there is just a lot of positive energy,” said Perng Hudson, a long-time surfer, competitor, and employee of McKevlin’s Surf Shop on Center Street.
The public is invited to come out and watch the competition on both days at the East end of Folly Beach, where multiple age divisions will compete in short board, longboard and pro divisions. Surfers will be judged on the difficulty of maneuvers while riding the wave and completing the wave until the end.
Just-for-fun events over the weekend will include a tandem event that will challenge two surfers to stand up on a board simultaneously and a stand-up paddleboard contest.
A “push-n-surf” contest for ages 8 and under will allow an adult to push a young competitor who will then attempt to stand up in the surf.
“It’s really empowering for the younger girls who get to see their moms out there and other strong women,” said Nicole Elko, director of the Folly Beach Wahine Classic, and a competitor who has two daughters. “The Washout is traditionally kind of an intimidating place to surf, especially for women and beginners, because it’s the historic surf break and where the waves are really the best, so it’s just a real treat for us to have a weekend just to have it to ourselves.”
The contest is not just to award cash prizes to the best in each category, it also raises awareness and money for water-related non-profit organizations, including Surfer’s Healing.
Many sponsors help make the event happen. Tents will be set up with food from local restaurants and families of the surfers to cheer on the competitors.
Kate Barattini, a longtime surfer and international competitor who lives on James Island, said the Folly Beach Wahine Classic is her favorite weekend of the year.
“We are definitely seeing a heap of young girls who are scary good and they are coming here to really shine,” she said.
With “wahines” coming as far as New York to compete each year, “It’s a reunion every year, it’s like a sisterhood celebration,” Elko said. “The contest is more about being a part of the women surfing community and having the same values and enjoying the beach and loving nature.”
Barattini adds, “It’s a cool thing to see people just visiting Folly and don’t know about the competition and they see us all surfing and say, ‘What’s going on? What’s all this joy happening?’”
To learn more and to register, visit www.follywahine.org. Registration will close one week prior to the event.
SURFER’S HEALING
Professional surfers from all over the world will come to Folly Beach on Aug. 25 for the annual Surfer’s Healing Surf Camp, a special one-day camp for children and young adults with autism.
More than 200 campers are signed up for the event. The event hits capacity every year.
“There are 70 zip codes represented,” said Nancy Hussey, director of the Folly Beach camp.
Surfer’s Healing is a nationwide non-profit organization that provides a day of acceptance and fun on the water. Day-long camps are held across the world, including in Australia, Mexico and Hawaii. Its less about formal surfing lessons and more about getting individuals out on the water in an engaging and comfortable environment.
“All the volunteers are occupational therapists and have autism experience and we have doctors from MUSC there,” Hussey said.
Long foam surfboards, expert surfers as guides and special life jackets with handles provide a safe environment.
“There’s something special about the water and the movement in the water; it’s not entirely the activity of surfing, it’s about the bubbles and the motion and being out of your comfort zone,” Hussey said. “It’s the whole experience of the day.”
Hundreds of volunteers make the day possible and a meet-and-greet for the families is planned for the Folly River Park.
“Folly Beach Mayor Tim Goodwin greets each family at the walkway and they are treated as special guests,” Hussey said. “There’s no bad vibes. If we pull that off, we’ve done our jobs.”
For more information on Surfer’s Healing, visit www.surfershealingfolly.org.
D.J. MCKEVLIN GROMFEST
Kids of all ages are welcome to get their feet wet at D.J. McKevlin Gromfest, an annual kid surfing event sponsored by McKevlin’s Surf Shop and the Eastern Surfing Association. This year’s event will be held on July 17 at The Washout. The competition has divisions for ages 10 and under, 11-14 and 15-18.
A “push and surf” competition will also let adults push their young surfers into the wave.
“Gromfest is really to highlight the kids and give them a weekend to surf by themselves at The Washout with no interruption from adults,” said Perng Hudson, who is helping run the event. The long-time event has seen kids grow up and participate each year.
“One of the guys who works at McKevlin’s was 10 years old when I first met him and he’s now 20 and it was cool to watch him progress throughout the years,” she said. “Everybody still looks up to him.”
Registration costs $15 and people can sign up at McKevlin’s. The top six surfers in each competition will get a goody bag of surfer-related SWAG from the shop.
“The stoke that comes out from the kids is pretty magical,” Hudson said. “There are games like Simon Says and prizes and it’s a good old-fashioned good time.”
For more information on Gromfest call McKevlin’s at (843) 588-2247.
