Beach awaits surfing competition

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) - The 50th annual East Coast Surfing Championship is set to begin in just a few days, and crews are preparing to put on a festival like never before in what could end up being very windy weather for surfers.

"For the 50th [anniversary] we're going to have the absolute city built on the beach," ECSC competition director Paul West said. "Nothing like it has ever been done on the east coast, and maybe never [will] again. It's definitely not one to miss."

The event is the longest-running surfing competition in the nation.

"This is a big deal for Virginia," ECSC general manager George Alcaraz said. "This is a big deal for the east coast. This is the biggest surf event on the east coast and of course, it's the longest in the nation."

The ECSC is the second-longest continuing surfing contest in the world. Professional surfers from all over the world will be competing in Virginia Beach because the event is scheduled to follow two professional contests currently underway in Hawaii and France.

"They're gonna be able to finish in Hawaii and get here in time to surf later this week," West said.

This year's contest has earned a six-star rating, which means points earned in Virginia Beach are included in the professional surfers' world tour.

"Six star is one of the biggest rated events you can have," Alcaraz said. "And we are the biggest in the nation, other than, I think, in Hawaii."

West says the six-star rating helped increase the winnings.

"In the beginning we would just do whatever we could to find some prizes to give the winner.  This year, with a six-star event, it's a $155,000 purse," West said.