Surf and Sea festival set to create a splash

TRAMORE’S first ever annual Surf and Sea Festival was launched this week.

The September 19-21 festival is planned to become an annual event. The inaugural festival will feature a full programme, including a ladies-only surf weekend and family day.

The weekend will kick off with registration for the 80 places for the ladies surf weekend which includes two surf lessons, Pilates instruction and Indian head massage, along with entertainment and a chance to show off surfing skills with an “expression” session.

Sunday, September 21, will be filled with family activities on Tramore beach from 11am. These will include eco-walks, kite surfing and building, martial arts, beach volleyball, and more.

The festival is being held at the close of the traditional season in the seaside town.

This is no coincidence as traditionally the ladies who worked the “bathing boxes” on the beach for the season always held a festival at the close of summer on Michaelmas Day.

They celebrated by making and carrying two seaweed dolls around the town and later throwing them into the sea.

This tradition will be revived by the Surf and Sea Festival 2008 when the festival will close with a parade along the Tramore promenade with the seaweed dolls — which will then be thrown into the sea as they were nearly 100 years ago.

Festival co-ordinator Linda Tuohy said: “We are thrilled to be bringing such old and lovely traditions back to life in Tramore... It is fitting that this is also a women’s surfing weekend as in the 1920s Michaelmas Day was celebrated by ‘women of the sea’.”

* Information on the festival and tickets for the Women’s surf weekend are available from 051390944 or www.oceanics.ie.