June 24-25, 2023 - Santa Monica Pier 360: Paddle & SUP Races (and more)!

Pier 360 celebrates the best of beach life with an awesome, FREE, all ages festival! With ocean sports competitions, live music, food and drinks, interactive games, sampling by some of your favorite brands and so much more, Pier 360 offers a peek into iconic SoCal beach culture and brings together thousands of guests for a day of good vibes. Whether you're hanging with the family, competing on land or at sea or partying with your friends–Santa Monica Pier 360 Beach Festival has got it all!

Celebrating and honoring the birthplace of Southern California's iconic beach culture through competition, awareness, and entertainment.

Join us for an all-day, family friendly celebration of decades of surf, paddleboard and lifeguard history.

The pier deck will also feature hula dancing, beer and spirits garden, live music and a surf history museum celebrating the history of lifeguarding, paddleboarding, surfing, and skateboarding around the Santa Monica Pier.

Pre-register early online for the best price.



Main Event Categories:
Saturday, June 24th
One Mile Ocean Swim 250m Ocean Swim
One Mile Fun Paddle
Lifeguard Competition
Amateur SUP Sprints
Youth Activities

Sunday, June 25th
TANDM Surf Bodyboarding Contest
SM Pier 5 Mile Distance Race - 5 miles

Race Day Registration

Racers should leave ample time to park and check in at registration a minimum of an hour before their event start time. Day of registrations should allow at least 90 minutes to park and register.

For more info and to register, Click Here

Gather your friends and family and head down to the Pier for amazing entertainment including youth activities, a car show, local DJs and live music from local bands, art exhibits, and so much more! You really won’t want to miss this incredible and unique outdoor setting to unwind, all while celebrating Santa Monica.

April 20th, 3 - 9PM




WestSide Dream Car Club
PIER PARKING DECK | 4:30PM - 9:30PM




Pier Tattoo Contest
PIER PARKING DECK | 7:30PM - 7:45PM




Horny Toad
PIER PARKING DECK | 7:00PM - 9:00PM


Salsa on the Pier
EAST MERRY GO-ROUND DECK | 5:00PM-9:00PM

And much, much, more..... Click Here

Mike, aka German in Venice, vlogs about daily life in Venice Beach, and the nearby communities.

"Yesterday, you seen Logan Paul at the Wrestlemania at the Sofi Stadium. Today, he is with KSI, one of his rivals, now best friends. He’s promoting his energy drink Prime on Venice Beach, California. It’s a typical Sunday afternoon. Lots of attractions on the boardwalk, break dancers performing. I went to Muscle Beach to show you people working out. Just a great day in Venice Beach. There’s always something going on."

If you would like to support German in Venice with some gas money or you want to buy him a coffee, you are welcome to donate to his paypal account: https://paypal.me/germaninvenice

Catch Surf shredder Anneke Barrie gets dialed in with a new board and gear at the Catch Surf store in Malibu.

From Santa Monica Close Up:

"Sanitation workers donned white hazardous materials suits as part of the safety protocol for the cleanup, while LAHSA provided homeless outreach during the cleanup. To ensure the safety of all involved, Los Angeles Park Rangers were present at the site throughout the operation. The weekly cleanup activity takes place every Friday in Venice to maintain the cleanliness and hygiene of the area."

Santa Monica Close Up is a photo blog by Santa Monica based Photojournalist/Press photographer Fabian Lewkowicz. Fabian is the former staff photographer for the Santa Monica Daily Observer Press, Santa Monica Mirror, Santa Monica and the Santa Monica Corsair.

Support Santa Monica Closeup/Fabian Lewkowicz with Venmo or PayPal to help earn money to make these videos:

https://venmo.com/u/santamonicacloseup

https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/fabianlewkowicz

In 2017 photographer Pep Williams had the opportunity to photograph inmates at the Chuckawalla Valley State Prison and Ironwood State Prison in Blythe, California. In his photographs, Mr. Williams portrays these men’s lives with dignity and humanity, even in a harsh setting and in the shadow of difficult pasts, and discovered a functioning social world and individual wisdom from men he met in prison.

Mr. Williams is a fine art photographer, video director, and third-generation DogTown skateboarder from South Central Los Angeles. He has traveled globally, creating materials for his photographic exhibitions, and has photographed spreads for magazines worldwide. The series, “Behind Bars,” is on permanent display at The Autry Museum.



"Behind Bars" is on display from March 27 to May 5, 2023 at the Malibu City Gallery (23825 Stuart Ranch Rd). Free admission and open to the public Monday - Friday, from 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM.

For more info, Click Here

Come join the fun at Ben & Jerry's for a free ice cream cone 4/3 12pm-8pm.

1307 Ocean Front Walk
Los Angeles, CA 90291 For more info and for other Ben & Jerry's locations, Click Here