Manish kumar
Post News Network
Ramchandi, Feb 8: Three days of fun and adventure at the India Surf Festival-2015 came to an end Sunday with hundreds thronging the Ramchandi beach on the last day.
Being a Sunday, several families drove down from the capital city and nearby places to witness the concluding day of the surf festival, and a host of water sports and fun activities gave the crowd more than their time’s worth.
“I heard about the festival through a friend and also read about it in newspapers. I was very keen on taking part in this festival. Earlier, I’d seen water sports only on television. This was the first time I visited any surf festival. I had an amazing time here and also got to meet a lot of like-minded people who were interested in knowing more about surfing and related activities,” says Tripti Das from Bhubaneswar, who went with her husband to participate.
The last day of the fest witnessed a line-up of competitions and workshops which were held in quick succession. Workshops on stand-up paddling and long-board surfing remained major attractions as was evident from the large number of people taking part. A grand finale of stand-up paddling and the India Surf Championship charged up the proceedings.
“I’m totally new to surfing,” said Dr Shailee Swarup, who came all the way from Kolkata for the fest.
“Despite that I was always fascinated by surfing and water sports and came down to participate in all three days of the fest. It is wonderful to meet like-minded people who’ve never done surfing or any related activity but wanted to learn just like me. The ambience here is great and there is something to appeal for everyone here,” Swarup said.
Sunita Chamling from Sikkim said she was new to beaches altogether. “We obviously don’t have beaches in Sikkim, and so we see very little of the sea. I wanted to experience water sports and so I made sure I stay here for all three days of the surf fest. I’m here with two of my friends. We had loads of fun and tried our hand at several activities. It has been a great time,” Chamling said.
Organisers of the India Surf Festival were also buoyed by the response it garnered. Sanjay Samantaray, founder of ISF, said, “The response we got in the last three days has been amazing. People from across the country and abroad descended at the fest to make it a big success.”
