Surf City Splash returns to Huntington Beach as Surfrider readies new chapter
The Surf City Splash returns for the first time in three years on Sunday.
People, often wearing creative costumes, will jump into the chilly ocean near the Huntington Beach Pier at high noon to kick off 2023. And the New Year’s Day dip is all for an environmentally friendly cause.
The Surf City Splash, which started 23 years ago, will benefit the nonprofit Surfrider Foundation. The event is on and rain is not currently in the forecast, though it is the night before on New Year’s Eve, and cold and windy conditions could prevail.
“Rain or shine, it’s happening,” Surfrider Foundation Huntington Beach/Seal Beach co-chair KC Fockler said with a smile. “I mean, you’re getting wet anyway if you’re coming down here.”
Surfrider has some news of its own to share.
Before the splash, the Huntington Beach Chamber of Commerce will conduct a ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially announce Surfrider’s new North Orange County chapter.
Surfrider currently has a Huntington Beach/Seal Beach chapter and a Newport Beach chapter. But these will merge, and the organization also seeks to bring its mission of protecting the ocean, waves and beaches inland.
“You get some critical mass of people, and it also gives us an opportunity to try to get some of the inland cities,” said Steve Riggs, who will serve as the North Orange County chapter treasurer. “Having a North Orange County chapter is identified much stronger than just Huntington/Seal Beach or Newport Beach. If you go to Brea or you go to Anaheim or Yorba Linda, they all have storm drains that spill out into either the Santa Ana River or the San Gabriel River. The majority of the pollution that comes down is from the inland cities, and it’s hard to get their attention because they’re not the ones that receive all the crud when it comes down the rivers.
“Just changing the name to North Orange County, I think it’s going to give us a big opportunity to get the inland cities, who are also big contributors, to maybe get a little bit more united.”
Fockler said the Huntington Beach and Newport Beach chapters adopted a mile-and-a-half stretch of the Santa Ana River last year, about 4 miles upstream from the ocean.
“We do have monthly channel cleanups, and they usually range anywhere from 900 pounds to about 1,700 pounds of trash that we get out in a single two-hour cleanup,” he said. “That’s a lot of trash.”
John Wadsworth, currently the vice-chair of the Surfrider Newport Beach chapter, will co-chair the new North Orange County chapter with Richard Busch.
Wadsworth said the Santa Ana River is easily one of the biggest contributors to marine pollution in Southern California.
“Our bread and butter are beach cleanups,” he said. “We do those really well, but those are reactive, in my opinion. If we can be more proactive, get to the inland communities and raise awareness there, get other city governments involved that are miles from the coastline, then I think we can make a real scalable impact on trying to make a dent in this issue.”
As for the Surf City Splash, those interested can register online at hbsurfcitysplash.com. There is also an online auction there that runs until Sunday afternoon.
A burrito breakfast, which costs $15, will be provided starting at 9 a.m. by Zack’s At The Pier. Fockler said Huntington Beach Mayor Tony Strickland will also speak at the event, and there’s also a costume contest.
The Surf City Splash has run into bad luck in recent years, though about 1,000 people participated the last time it was held, in January 2020.
Due to the ongoing pandemic in 2021, participants were asked to do a “solo splash” and send in their videos.
The latest iteration this past January also was officially canceled due to a big sewage spill in Long Beach, so organizers are hopeful that a good number of people will show up Sunday.
“It’s one of those things where it’s out of sight, out of mind,” Fockler said. “It’s almost like we’re starting over again. We’re hoping that the winds don’t materialize.”
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.
