Sun, sea and sand. A surfer’s paradise

On Thursday October 18th, Imperial Surf Soc headed down to Newquay for our first ever competition. Friday marked the beginning of the BUCS annual surfing championships – the biggest surfing competition in Europe – and we had four surfers ready to do it justice. The long minibus journey was soon forgotten as we jumped in the sea to catch some waves and get some practice in before the first heats the following day. After showers and supper, drinking ensued, but the four entering the competition (Will Hunt, Elliot Taylor, Adam ‘Hardcore’ Harvey and Dario Mazza) packed in early to get some sleep before the big day. The rest of us (supporters and reserves) decided the night was still young and headed to the campsite bar. A few pints later, the Sambuca shots were on. Unfortunately, Serkan ‘Duncan’ Karaagac couldn’t handle this and opted for a safe vodka and coke, prompting Thom to empty all the shots into his glass. Serkan was obliged to Down It, and imminently became the first casualty of the weekend. Luckily he wasn’t wearing his ‘pulling shirt’.

The next day, the competition started at 9am and we only just made it in time. Our surfers were in the first heats, and we’d been misinformed about the start time! We arrived at Fistral Beach to final calls for Elliot, so some super-quick wetsuit changes were required. Fortunately, our surfers held their nerve and pulled off some very respectable surfing. They had 15 minutes to impress the judges; each wave they caught was marked out of 10, and their two best wave scores were added together to give a final mark out of 20. The two best surfers in each heat went through to the next round. Unfortunately, none of our team got through, despite their best efforts. Frustratingly, Will and Elliot were both third in their heats, so came very close. The competition was fierce (it is a national contest) and they didn’t get a warm-up, so for a first attempt we were not disappointed with the result. With the pressure off, we retired to the other end of the beach and had an enjoyable afternoon’s surfing, followed by complementary massages provided by the competition organisers.

The upside of not getting through to the next round was that no one had to worry about getting a good night’s sleep that evening, so we could all enjoy the nightlife in Newquay. Our stomachs lined with spagbol and Doritos, we began a customary game of Ring of Fire. After round 2, we stumbled to the camp entrance to catch the last student-packed shuttle bus into Newquay town. The official party was in Sailors Club with Nero headlining, so we followed the crowd there. Needless to say, the rest of the evening was a glorious haze of dubstep and drinking.

The effects of the previous night did not hamper Saturday’s surfing potential, with a morning trip to a beach we call ‘Thom’s Secret Spot’ and an afternoon surf at Watergate beach, all accompanied by perfect sunshine. The evening led to some unequal and controversial pizza cutting, and more alcohol consumption, with some vicious variations on the game Spoons and obligatory fines, including one for Serkan’s pick-up line ‘it’s illegal to have an ass like that’ the previous evening. The night took us to the club at the campsite, and on our return, culminated in setting the fire alarm off cooking garlic bread, decorating an unconscious Adam and Serkan with socks, and discovering someone’s regurgitated supper in the sink.

The next morning, Dario owned up to the mess in the sink, and we missed our checkout time by two hours. Slightly jaded, we packed up and made for Fistral beach to watch the finals of the competition. The waves were tiny, but the finalists still managed to pull off some inspiring moves. After the presentation, we stopped off at a pub for a much-needed Sunday roast before returning to London. All in all, it was an amazing few days, and we’ll definitely be back next year to build on this year’s result.