Great Lake surfing has been a carefully guarded secret for decades; times have since changed. The past few years have seen a flourishing surf community braving the harsh conditions to surf powerful wind swells in the freshwater seas of the cold north in America.
On October 18, 2014, Lake Huron had the largest surf competition the Great Lakes have ever seen—The West Shore Huron Classic presented by Billabong in Kincardine, Ontario. The conditions were nothing but epic for the Lakes, with clean overhead waves that lasted all day. More than 50 surfers from all over the world competed in mens and womens shortboard, longboard and SUP divisions. The event was well attended by an audience who braved the rain and cold winds gusting up to 70km/h. In addition to the event organisers, major sponsors included Dakine, Ripcurl, GoPole, Wax Buddy, FCS, Hyperflex and Vonzipper.
The event has set an important milestone for the surf scene on the Great Lakes, and raised the bar for many competitions to come. Our crew documented the event and captured some great moments in and out of the water.
To find out more about surfing on the Great Lakes, check out and follow us on facebook.com/surfthegreats or instragram.com/surfthegreats
Photos by Lucas Murnaghan and Nat Kuleba
The Results for the 2nd Annual West Shore Huron Classic presented by Billabong 2014
Womens Overall:
1. Ariel Amaral
2 Hannah Simmis
3. Kristen Hanna
Mens SUP:
1. Josh Gordon
2. Pablo Bonilla
3. Dan Thompson
4. Ashley Adams
5. Rob Bosman
6. Zachary Brajuha
Mens Longboard:
1. Pablo Bonilla
2. Andrew Wyton
3. Seamus Little
4. Todd Fetter
5. Adam Pettengill
6. Nick Coughlin
Mens Shortboard:
1. Aurélien Bouché-Pillon
2. Pablo Bonilla
3. John Belfort
4. Matthew Rocheford
5. Dave Edwath
6. Jimenez Leal Ossiel
The Waterman Award
Pablo Bonilla
Aloha Spirit Award
Ariel Amaral - Ladies
James Carrick - Mens
Going on to the RIP CURL PRO TOFINO for there chance to represent The Great Lakes on the ocean and there chance at a $25,000 purse:
1. Aurélien Bouché-Pillon
2. Pablo Bonilla
3. John Belfort
No Comments