Knee-high waves didn't put a damper on Logstradamus, a surf contest, at the Oceanfront Saturday.

Competitors wearing wacky costumes ventured into the water with their longboards, eager to give spectators a show.


"Feel the wave; be the wave," said the announcer as the first heat got under way at 5th Street.

Logstradamus is in its eighth year and was started by a small group of friends who wanted to hold an uplifting surf and music event with a food drive. It's grown into a bigger eccentric beach party with name brand sponsors and heftier charitable outreach.

This year's event, which continues Sunday, has 84 competitors and raised $2,000 for Green Run High School's marching band. Wave Riding Vehicles and Vans sponsored the festivities.

The name of the event is a play on words. Nostradamus was a 16th century astrologer who made predictions. "Log," is a term for a traditional longboard used to catch small waves. At Logstradamus, there's a wizardly atmosphere with improvised music, comedy, chanting and conch-shell blowing.

"We try to put people in a dream-like state of positivity," said Chase Pittman, 34, one of the event founders and an Old Beach resident.

Teams pick a theme for their costumes and for the motifs of temporary structures they build on the beach. One fort is a pirate ship with the cabin carved into the sand. The "lifeguards" built a surf-themed rescue tower, and in dramatic fashion, helped "save" a floundering surfer.

"We try to get people to come out of their shells," said Pittman.
