The 26th Annual Jimmy Reilly Memorial Long board Surf Classic took place at Shipwreck Beach in Coronado Saturday. Hundreds of people gather on the beach each year.
The event started as a memorial for Jimmy Reilly, a Coronado surfer who died in a car accident. “Jimmy was a local surfer, great guy, loved to surf, helped kids, taught lots of kids how to surf,” said Coronado Surfing Association spokesperson Alec Mackenzie. “In his spirit and memory we started this in about 1983 and we’ve been doing it ever since”.
The event is the oldest continually staged long board contest in San Diego County. “We bring kids that are coming up and expose them to surfing which is a fabulous lifestyle,” said Mackenzie.
Dozens of surfers competed in men's, women's, and junior's divisions Saturday. Monies raised from the event will go to the Coronado High School and Middle School surf teams.
Over the decades the surfers have grown up, introduced the event to their families, and now the most excitement is usually found in the junior competition, and in the "masters," where the old timers show their stuff in the water.
“We’re not a Malibu or a Trestles but we have our days here and this is our home break so this is where we surf,” said Mackenzie.
