Today the team have been indoors practising their CPR on adults, babies and children. They will also learn how to deal with a chocking person, and understand their duty of care as a lifeguard. We will continue along the lifeguard theme this week before moving into surf coaching, and CV building for the following weeks.

The Cross Step course is fully funded, with zero cost to the students, giving them time and a chance to achieve what they want in future employment.

America is a nation filled with dozens of diverse and attractive surf towns—some you’ve probably been to, many you’ve probably heard of, and some so obscure and protected that most of us don’t even know exist. We’ve compiled this list, primarily considering quality of life and quality of surf, but also taking into account other variables such as climate, consistency and variety of waves, cost of living, culture, availability of work, and the prevalence of sharks. After consulting, researching, and heavy debate, we narrowed the expansive list of towns down to10—our ranking of the 10 best American surf towns.

Check out the top ten here.

Elections will take place for the Executive Committee and President of the BSA to conclude on 1st March 2010.

Candidates are invited for the following positions:

The relevant job specifications for these positions are listed here, as are the Articles of Association which state the basic operational parameters.

Members of the Executive need to be willing to assume the role of company directors implicit in their fiduciary duties.

Only current full members of the BSA are allowed to stand

The Election Process:

1. A full member wishing to stand should seek the support of 10 other full-time members to support their nomination, and should indicate the role they are standing for. Membership numbers of the nominee and their supporters should be forwarded by post to the BSA office in an envelope marked – “Election Nomination”. Contact details for the nominee should be included.

2. The nomination details will be checked by the BSA office and, if in order, the nominee will be informed that their nomination is valid, and will be invited to submit a manifest/resume, with a picture, to support their election. These details will be posted on the BSA website.

3. Full-time members of the BSA will be eligible to vote for each of the positions available (one vote per position).

4. Voting will commence at midnight on Monday 22nd February 2010 and will end at midnight on Monday 1st March 2010.

5. Voting may be by letter (please mark “Election” on the envelope, or email (please put “Election” in the header) and must indicate the voter’s membership number and the votes they wish to cast.

6. Election Officer to be advised ASAP

7. Results of the election will be placed on the BSA website within two days of the end of the election.

8. The Chairperson-Elect will be responsible for convening a meeting of the new Executive on Saturday 6th March at the BSA offices in Newquay, at which point , management responsibilities will be transferred from the outgoing Executive members to the new Executive.

At the same time we have been renovating the surf school in Newquay, new flooring has gone down and we are waiting on our new wetsuits for 2010. Dragon sunglasses have stepped in to sponsor our surf coaches this season, so a big thank you to Dragon.

We have launched two new European surf holiday locations. One great budget surf holiday in Seignosse in south west France and the other luxury family surf styled guesthouse in south west Portugal.

In less than three weeks we open La Hosteria de Latas in Northern Spain for the summer, and run the first longboard coaching weekend of 2010. This year the longboard coaching weekend has benefitted from financial sponsorship from Science in Sport.

If you are heading down to Newquay this summer, then check out our friends at Coasteering Newquay.

Two 6m (20ft) walls of water crashed into the breakwater at Mavericks Beach, destroying scaffolding and sweeping dozens of people onto the rocks below.

The most serious injuries involved broken bones, emergency personnel said.

After the incident, one stretch of the beach was evacuated and the main viewing area was closed to newcomers.

Hundreds of people nevertheless remained to watch South African Chris Bertish win the $50,000 (£32,000) first prize.

‘Came out of nowhere’

The Mavericks Surf Contest is the most lucrative big-wave contest in the world, but is only held when conditions are ideal, such as on Saturday. Some of the waves were reportedly 12m (40ft) high.
Chris Bertish of South Africa rides a giant wave at Mavericks Beach (13 February 2010)
The Mavericks Surf Contest is the most lucrative big-wave contest in the world

California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Battalion Chief Scott Jalbert said firefighters had been on the way to clear parts of the beach because of the potential danger for spectators, but had arrived too late.

He said a couple of hundred people had been on the seawall at the southern tip of Mavericks Beach when the waves struck.

“Nobody was swept away into the water. They were just swept onto the beach area pretty hard,” he told the Associated Press. “It’s pretty rocky.”

“It’s a force of nature that can’t be predicted,” he added.

An injured spectator, Pamela Massette, said the massive waves “just came out of nowhere and wiped us all out”.

Check out the video http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8514718.stm

The amendments, which were widely supported by bodies such as Scottish Environment LINK, Scottish Renewables and Surfers Against Sewage, further require that, if regional planning functions are delegated to a public authority, that Ministers explain why this is the case.

Robin Harper MSP said:

“I am delighted that my fellow MSPs saw fit to pass these two amendments, which will give Scotland’s surfers, sailors and divers a clear voice for the first time in the management of our seas.

“Ensuring full representation on marine planning partnerships from different interest groups and users puts the planning process the right way round. It gets agreement between different groups up front, which ultimately creates clarity and certainty for all those who use our marine environment..”

The passing of the amendments was welcomed by Andy Cummins, Campaign Director of Surfers Against Sewage, who said:

“We estimate that the number of recreational water users in Scotland is 6% of Scotland’s total population. We are thrilled that this significant part of Scottish society will now be represented within the Regional Planning Partnerships. Recreational water users are a significant stakeholder in the marine environment, already acting as guardians of the marine environment, and their knowledge, passion, presence and perception will help these bodies protect Scottish waters for generations to come.”

The Real Ideas Organisation (RIO) has been working with Chris Thomson, Managing Director of Errant Surf and Cornwall Business Awards’ Young Business Person of the Year 2009, to set up Cross Step. Based on the success of other similar vocational schemes such as Fifteen Cornwall and RIO’s Xtra-Vert, Cross Step is a fresh project aimed at giving young Cornish people a new and accessible way to improve themselves and help get them into jobs, courses or apprenticeships.

Through practical and theory sessions, one on one training and plenty of water time, The ‘Cross Steppers’ graduate with a NARS Beach Lifeguard Award and a British Surfing Association (BSA) Award, as well as work experience and further surf coach training. On top of that, the recruits have the chance to grow marketing and presentation skills, develop their CVs and build industry contacts; fully equipping them to forge bright futures in the world of water sports.

The first ever group of Cross Step graduates were put through their paces by Chris and his team at Errant during the summer 2009 season. Thomas Jarman, aged 24, Naomi Jane Webb, aged 23, both from Falmouth and Mitch Corbett, aged 22, from Newquay, graduated with qualifications that now allow them to work anywhere in the world as surf instructors and lifeguards.

Naomi has gone on to secure a position at Falmouth Surf School and Thomas is keen to get into surf coaching and lifeguarding abroad. Mitch meanwhile is going on to be an ambassador for RIO, helping to spread the word about the organisation. In return RIO has agreed to sponsor him in surf contests over the next year.

Mitch Corbett says of the Cross Step scheme, “I am really stoked to be going on to be an ambassador for RIO as they do such great work with young people. Because of Cross Step I now have qualifications that can help me get a job and compete in surf competitions all over the world. It’s a real bonus to have proper qualifications in something I enjoy doing.”

Jodi Redgrove, founder and Project Manager Cross Step says, “We’ve had such a good outcome from the pilot Cross Step scheme because we’ve been able to tap into something that is not only relevant and exciting for young people but is also sustainable and useful. We’re hoping to build on this success and get even more young people trained up for 2010.”

The next Cross Step course starts in March and is open to all young people across Cornwall and will take place in Newquay. RIO will also be running three more course in April, May and June 2010. E-mail chris@errantsurf.com for more details.