“Surfing,” the influential surfer Rell Sunn once said, is “something you’ll constantly embrace and be passionate about, and whatever it takes, you’re gonna do it, because nothing else in the world can give you that kind of self-esteem.”
An activist and role model in the surfing community, Rell Kapolioka’ehukai Sunn, whose middle name means “heart of the sea,” was an American world surfing champion in the mid-1970s who helped create both the Women’s International Surfing Association and Women’s Pro Surfing — shattering the glass ceiling for gender equality in the sport. Although Sunn’s life was cut short by breast cancer, her legacy lives on in the sport, including here on the South Fork, where the annual Rell Sunn Surf Contest will be held on Saturday at Ditch Plain Beach in Montauk, with a rain or no-wave date of July 22.
The event raises money for the East End Foundation, a nonprofit founded by Roger Feit and Alice Houseknecht to provide support for local families in need. The foundation assists in all sorts of disasters, whether someone’s “house burned down, or somebody is terminally ill, or a parent is unable to work,” Houseknecht said. Over the past 25 years, the foundation has raised close to a million dollars to help families on the East End, largely through the annual surf contest.
This year, several of Montauk’s top-ranked young surfers will compete in the event, among them Chase Lieder and Chloe Coleman, both of whom graduated from East Hampton High School in June, and Chloe’s older brother, Tucker Coleman, 20.
The contest “is very special for me and my community,” said Chloe Coleman, 18. “I have been a part of this contest since I was little and it is always the best time.”
“It just brings the whole community together. . . . It doesn’t feel like a competition,” Lieder said, adding that the day is not about winning or losing but about “being in the event with my friends and surfing.” The 17-year-old phenom from Montauk recently competed in the USA Surfing Championship and Team Trials, earning himself a spot on Team USA for next year’s International Surfing Association World Surfing Games. He is deferring from college in the fall to compete on the World Surf League men’s longboard tour and is on track to join the U.S. Olympic Team in Paris in 2024.
Tucker Coleman, who recently won the National Scholastic Surfing Association championship for men’s longboarding, echoed Lieder’s comment about the contest bringing the community together, and said that some older members of Montauk’s surfing community knew Sunn personally, so the opening ceremony will be particularly meaningful to them.
Chloe Coleman, who will attend San Diego State University in the fall, placed third in her last contest at a World Surf League event in Virginia. “Rell Sunn was a pioneer for the world of women’s surfing,” said Chloe. “She paved the way for all of the women surfers now. I am so grateful that I am fortunate enough to be a part of this contest honoring her. . . . It’s one of the only local contests, so everyone comes out with no pressure or stress, just plain old fun.”
The contest starts at 8 a.m. with an opening ceremony honoring Sunn and concludes at 5. An art auction will also be held at the event and there will be raffle items to try for as well as surfboards and T-shirts for sale. Each year the artist Alison Seiffer designs a collectible poster specifically for the contest, and those will be for sale on Saturday, too.
The contest is open to surfers of all ages, with categories for kids under 13 and for men and women 13 and over. Entry fees start at $140 for those competing in one event. There is a $50 fee for each additional event.
Surfers can register online at bit.ly/3JNYe1y through today, or in person the morning of the event. The Rell Sunn Surf Contest Benefit Facebook page will have updates. There is no charge to attend as a spectator.