Saturday morning Sept 9 brought out girl surfers and Whale Tails Tortilla Chips for the Eleventh Annual “World Famous All Girl's Surf Contest”. The event takes place every year to benefit The Big Sister League of San Diego, a private, non-profit organization serving women and girls of San Diego, California since 1942.

Terry Kraszewski , business development manager, of Whale Tails Tortilla Chips was approached by Ed and Deb Nava the event organizer for a donation. Terry said “I have known Deb and Ed for a long time and I have watched this event grow over the years. Whale Tails was proud to donate our chips to such a worthwhile event. I recall the first couple of years when only a handful of girls showed up. This years event drew over 75 competitors.” Ed Nava said “We were so pleased with turnout and donations from our sponsors. In addition to Whale Tails Tortilla Chips we received donations from Starbucks Coffee, Global Surf Industries, Surf Angel Clothing, World Famous Restaurant, HyperFlex Wetsuits, and Soul Grind Skateboards. All of the sponsors came up huge this year which enabled us to give a brand new surfboard to the winner of each division and a new wetsuit to the second place contestant. You should have seen the smiles when the girls picked up their prizes.”

Terry Kraszewski's husband, Ric, (far left) volunteered his time and expertise as a judge for the Women's division semi-finals

Even the ocean cooperated by “donating” some pretty nice surfing conditions. The first heats of the day were treated to glassy 2 to 4 foot surf that produce some memorable rides. The heats consisted of between four to six girls competing in five divisions. The divisions for this year's competition were:
 Grommets (13 years & younger)
 Beginners (girls with less than
     a year of wave riding)
 Young Women (14 to 17 yrs)  Women (18 to 29 years)
 Masters (30 years and over)

Deb Nava at the end of the day added “ I want to thank all the volunteers that worked so hard to make this year's event a success. Setting up all the equipment and then removing it from the beach is no easy task. We had a great group and the event ran smooth. I am looking forward to doing this again next year.” The Big Sister League assists women and girls in San Diego County by providing supervised transitional housing, volunteer mentor relationships, and support services. The League's programs are designed to encourage confidence, self-esteem, and independence. You can learn more about this wonderful organization at www.bigsisterleague.org