Locals Dominate 40th Skim Contest

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By Charlie Ware, Special to the Independent

The 40th anniversary of the Vic skim boarding competition brought fanfare and commotion, as thousands flocked to Aliso Creek Beach to watch competitors glide across the surf last weekend, Aug. 27-28.

The big winners were Austin Keen and Amber Torrealba, winning the men’s pro and women’s pro categories, respectively. Although both are natives of the east coast, both currently live in Laguna Beach.

“The Vic is the most prestigious and competitive skimboarding event in the world,” said Keen. Torrealba also said that she was “stoked.”

Pro winner Austin Keen in the 40th running of the Vic.
After finishing as runner up in 2014 and 2015, Austin Keen, a native of Tybee Island, Ga., who now lives in Dana Point, won the 40th annual Vic skimboarding world championship Sunday, Aug. 28, at Aliso Beach. Fellow locals who were also successful were Blair Conklin, Jacoburi and Sam Stinnett, and Brandon Sears, all of whom finished in the top six of the men’s pro event. Photo by Mitch Ridder.

That seems fitting since Laguna is widely considered the sport’s birthplace, where skim boarding was started in the 1920s by Laguna Beach lifeguards, according to some sources.

Things have changed drastically since the first Vic tournament. In 1975, when skimboarding was still a new term, Tex Haines and his partner Peter Prietto set out create durable, functional boards that later established Victoria Skimboards. The following year, the first skim contest was held at Aliso Creek Beach and competitors glided on wooden boards. In the early 1980s, the switch to foam cored skimboards allowed skimmers to slide farther and catch bigger waves. Modern day skimmers have either carbon fiber or plexiglass skimboards for maximum speed and durability.

The Vic’s 40-year promotion of skimboarding served to slingshot the sport across the globe, with skimmers from Japan to Brazil also running to catch the shore break.

 

Indy intern Charlie Ware is an LBHS graduate.

 

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1 COMMENT

  1. Great event!

    And thanks to efforts of the Laguna Bluebelt Coalition to work with Supervisor Bartlett and OC Parks in protecting the natural beach sand berm from vandals & illegal discharges, the Vic 2016 had another first….clean ocean water.

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