The Eastern Surfing Association will present the 42nd edition of the New England Mid-Winter Surfing Championships on February 20th at the Narragansett Town Beach in Narragansett, Rhode Island. This contest is the longest running cold water winter surfing competition in the world. The ESA ran the first one in January of 1968 at the same beach. Competitors can expect to encounter the harshest conditions of the winter, since mid-February is considered the coldest part of the season. Ocean water temperature is at freezing...32 degrees. There has been snow on the ground since the second week of December and air temperatures have been in the single digits. As long as the surf is contestable, the contest will run, regardless of the weather. In the past, the ESA has run the event in blizzards, ice storms, and frigid sub-zero conditions. One can only guess what this year's event might bring.

This is the first fully rated contest of the new ESA competition season, and will be on call for Friday night, February 19th. Interested participants can call the ESA contest hotline at 401.789.1954 after 6 PM for updates. The contest is scheduled to start with beach sign-ups from 9:30 AM to 10:30 AM on February 20th, in the beach parking lot. Entry fee is $20.00 and surfers must be members of the ESA to participate. Non-members can join the ESA on the beach.

This contest is being sponsored by the Gansett Juice Surf Shop of Narragansett, Rhode Island and the only real East Coast wetsuit company, Hyperflex Wetsuits of Millville, New Jersey. All finalists will receive a pair of Hyperflex 6mm Oven Mitt winter wetsuit mitts for their efforts. For more information regarding this contest, surfers can contact the ESA South New England District by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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