We posted our 2019 Venice Surf-A-Thon Contest Coverage last month, but it lack the official result and the awards party photos, well we finally got the official Venice Surf-A-Thon results and awards party recap, directly from the VSAT official himself, Ger-i Lewis. Here it is: The 26th annual Venice Surf-A-Thon Surf contest was once again a rip roaring success!

The surf cooperated as well as the weather also! The day began with 2-4ft glassy peaks and scattered clouds with just enough coverage to keep the glare down for the judges. The contest hosted 43 men, women, and children. Ages ranged from 5 years old to 67 years old. The contest raised $1,734.00 for MLD Christian Charity School Mucas, Mindanao in the Philippine Islands. 14 competitors were granted financial hardship waivers. 9 competitors were international competitors.



Masters Division
1st Place - Eric Weis (USA)
2nd Place - Steve Shelp (USA)
3 Place - Brock Myreux (USA)

Menehunes
1st Place - Rickson Massie (USA)
2nd Place - J.Packham (USA)
3rd Place - Uchu Jin (Japan)

Jr. Women
1st Place - Stephanie Wise (USA)
2nd Place -Marly Kay (USA)
3rd Place - Mimi Sullivan (USA)

Senior Women
1st Place - Almudena Soria (Spain)
2nd Place - Nicole Lynch (USA)
3rd Place - Natsumi Ota (Japan)



Mens Division
1st Place - Cole Sweeny (USA)
2nd Place - Mariano Romero (Argentina)
3rd Place - Pablo (USA)

Jr.Mens Division
1st Place - Bradly Kay (USA)
2nd Place - Ben Cohen (USA)
3rd Place - Nathan Cosworth (USA)

Longboard Division
1st Place - Norm Antonio (USA)
2nd Place - Ari Ari (New Zealand)
3rd Place - Brock Myreux (USA)

Body Surfing
1st Place - Nathan B (USA)
2nd Place - Rick Massie (USA)
3rd Place - Mike Wood (USA)

Most Outstanding Surfer Award
Katie

Most Radical Move Award
Mimi Sullivan



The 26th Annual Venice Surf-A-Thon Surf Contest Award Show, hosted by The Sidewalk Cafe featured KOZ from Kyoto Japan singing dance hall and reggae inspired songs to the delight of the crowd. Cognitive Dissonance (former Suicidal Tendencies member) got the crown fired up and DJ Jacques kept the vibe up in between sets. Finally Col Klink closed out the show with their set of inspired and enthusiastic crowd favorites as the surfers rocked and rolled into the night.



Thank you sponsors, competitors,volunteers and participants one and all!

These Award Party Photos were shot by Heidi Lemmon, check out about 50 more party photos in this photo album:
Venice Surf-A-Thon Awards Photo Album



For all the contest surfing photos, check out contest surf photos gallery:
2019 Venice Surf-A-Thon Surf Photos Gallery

Saturday in the parking lot of Boardriders Malibu, was the first The Vintage Surfboard Collector Club Board Swap of the year. Here are some photos of the swap from @clistboards .

The 26th Annual Venice Surf-A-Thon was held on Saturday, December 14th, once again taking place at the Venice Pier. The contest is a grassroots local tradition that has evolved from a mentorship gathering for youth beset by gang violence to an inter-generational celebration of community. The contest has been a labor of love for it's founder Ger-I Lewis.

Ger-I founded the Venice Surf-A-Thon in 1993 after returning home from military service.

"I wished to do something for the children , young adults and the community in general that is fun and has a positive influence on everyone." says Ger-I. "For sure back in the day the contest was edgy as so was I! Instead of handing out trophies at the beach like most contests, I incorporated the awards party to give everyone a chance to shine. Inviting local talent as well the bikini contest was also a strategy to enhance and create a Venice culture showcase. Well times have changed and folks have mellowed, the bikini contest is no longer a part of the event as many of the original contestants are grandfathers now! The event has a generational community expectation and Surf-A-thon has taken on a family atmosphere. Many world class surfers, celebrities, have supported and donated to The Venice Surf-A-Thon including Mimi Miyagi, Peter Destafino, Perry Farrell, C.R. Stecyk, Danny Trejo, Robert Trujillo (of Metallica), Noah Budroe, Chris Ward, Tonan, Tina Cheri, DJ Muggs, Kid Frost, and Beowülf. Moreover the contest has provided a an opportunity for surfers to get a start in competition surfing."

These contest photos were shot by Six12 Media.






















Custom trophies created by Brock Mayeux were passed out to all the winners later Saturday night at the Awards Show.




So who won what? Not having attended the awards show, it was hard to track down the official results from anyone. But here's what info we did gather: Stephanie Wise got 1st for the Women with Nicole Lynchie getting 2nd, Ricksen Massie got 1st for the Groms, one of the Packham kids get 2nd. Ricksens's pops Rickie got 3rd in body Surfing. Eric Wise won 1st in something, so did Cole Sweeney (since we can tell from theese screen shots grabbed from Elisabeth Fried's Instagram Stories.

You can find 100 more surf contest photos, all full size and in high-resolution, in this photo gallery:

Venice Surf-A-Thon Photo Gallery

On Saturday, ZJ Boarding House held their annual Haunted Heats Surf Contest. As always, it took place in between Towers 26 and 27 in Ocean Park. This year we saw surfers dressed up as the Ninja Turtles in their Pizza Van, a Banana dude, a ghost, Trump and his Tower, a Tourist, Wonder Woman, a pair of Solo Cups, and more. Here are some of the 400 photos we got from the contest:






















You can find about 400 more photos from this contest, all full size and in high-resolution, in this huge photo gallery:

ZJ Boarding House Haunted Heats Photo Gallery

If you were out there, we probably got some cool surfing shots of you, go check them out!