Attention all groms, the Barton Lynch (BL) Blast Off video challenge is back! This epic surf coaching competition gives all groms aged 14-years and under the chance to submit their best surfing videos.
The BL Blast Off video challenge was developed by the 1988 World Surfing Champion in 2006, to encourage grommets to share their stoke for surfing with others on a global scale.
Lynch has worked with an impressive list of pro surfers from Sally Fitzgibbons to Kolohe Andino, Ella Williams, Koa Smith, Laura Enever, Wade Carmichael and Soli Bailey.
He said: “My Blast Off is an initiative to spread stoke among groms that has been running since 2006. That’s when we first ran our Sydney Blast Off in the physical event form and that quickly turned into the most stoked event on the Australian surf calendar annually, with 330 kids taking part. When we took the concept online in 2020, we automatically reached a much broader and more diverse audience and spread the Blast Off stoke around the world.
“The Blast Off community and event has long been the breeding ground for tomorrow’s champions, with many former Blast Off alumni going on to be world champs at the highest level, this is something that I am very stoked about. This is the fourth year of the video challenge and I can’t wait to see the videos from very best and most stoked under 14s surfers in the world.”
The contest is open to young surfers 14 years and under and of any skill level – it’s a four week coaching program at its core, with a championship component that will see winners decided in multiple categories and age divisions.
Video submissions can include footage shot at any time during 2023 and feature any style of surfing and on any type of board or craft. The videos can capture anything from a single wave, or a single manouvre. They can be fully edited, or submitted as is – the only stipulation is that each clip be a maximum of one minute in length.
Submissions open from October 16th through until November 17th 2023, for surfers aged 14 years and under (as of November 17th) and from anywhere around the world.
Categories open to be won as part of the BL Blast Off video challenge, alongside overall divisional winners for 14s, 12s, 10s, 8s and 6s, include:
PEOPLES CHOICE
EXPERTS CHOICE
WORST WIPE OUT
BEST TUBE
BEST AIR
BEST WAVE
OVERALL ‘BEST EDIT’ PRESENTED BY GoPro
BEST GoPro POV
As well as a new category A NEW EARTH CLEAN UP (AND GOOD WILL) allowing kids to show the great work they have done in their community by helping others or the environment.
The 2022 VIDEO CHALLENGE saw over 200 videos submitted from surfers in over 26 countries. Over 90 prize packs were awarded to kids around the world – in 2023, the event aims to connect with even more groms and families globally!
More details HERE.
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