Page 4 - MidWeek West - May 31, 2023

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MAY 31, 2023
The 25th annual T&C Grom Contest — Hawai‘i’s biggest keiki surf competition — kicks off June 3-4.
BY GARY KEWLEY
Keiki Hit The Waves At T&C Grom Contest
Around 380 young wave riders between 3 and 12 years old will be hitting Queen’s Beach in Waikīkī — the legendary spot for fun in the sun (picture Duke Ka- hanamoku gliding to shore with Diamond Head in the background during the clas- sic days when surfing was just taking off worldwide).
ents were once contestants themselves. Watching their own keiki take to the waves will be a meaningful “full circle” moment for them.
brating our surfing youth. Another reason this event is special is that it’s unrat- ed. Its primary purpose is to maximize fun and learning. For many, it will be their first time surfing in this format for short, long and body-
will end up surfing in the World Championship Tour. Carissa Moore, Ezekiel “Zeke” Lau, Barron Mami- ya, Honolua Bloomfeld and the Moniz siblings all trace their contest roots to the T&C Grom Contest.
Can you believe it has been 25 years since this contest started? That means some of the contestants’ par-
changed is the stoke you see in the eyes of the kids!”
prizes are nice, too!
Mahalo to Dukes Waikīkī
It takes a lot to pull off the T&C Grom Contest but see- ing the smiles on the faces of the youngest surfers makes it all worth it.
board divisions.
For the very youngest kei-
Visit tcsurf.com or surf- newsnetwork.com and we will dial you in.
“I look forward to this event every year, it is one of my favorite ways to give back,” says T&C Surf own- er Craig Sugihara. “So much has changed over the 25 years since we started the T&C Grom Contest — more kids, more girl surfers, younger kids. What hasn’t
A young surfer catches a swell at a previous T&C Grom Contest at Queen’s Beach.
PHOTO COURTESY T&C SURF
ki surfers, there’s the Kokua Division at Baby Queen’s (the inside section of the reef). For family fun, there’s also the FreeSurf Magazine Expression Session where ‘ohana join in for some tan- dem surfing with their kids.
For both contest days, the forecast indicates a fun 1- to 2-foot swell with occasion- al 3-foot southwest swells coming in from the Tasman Sea. Perfect.
GQ, droppin’ in 4 U! local nonprofits. And the always supporting and cele- many of these newcomers gary@surfnewsnetwork.com
Plus, the contest benefits — and all the sponsors — for You never know how
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