Photo By Lt.j.g. Drew Verbis | POINT MUGU, Calif. (July 27, 2025) Over 100 surfers compete at the 11th Annual Point...... read more read more
Subscribe
POINT MUGU, Calif. (July 28, 2025) – Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) opened its gates to the public, to host the 11th annual Point Mugu Surf Contest near the legendary Pelican Point surf break July 26-27, 2025.
Point Mugu is revered as one of the best wave locations on the California coast. The combination of a south facing beach and submarine canyons creates a steep, powerful, A-frame wave. It’s why the annual contest draws international surfing champions from around the globe, as it’s the only time they can surf these waters, which is normally restricted to active-duty or retired military.
“We are fortunate to be part of an incredible community,” said Capt. Daniel “DB” Brown, commanding officer, NBVC. “It’s our honor to open these private beaches, and host an event that celebrates the great culture and way of life in southern Calif.”
The preliminary heats took place on Saturday with blend of wedgy tubes and onshore rip-bowls, with a backwash gauntlet perpetually blasting through the lineup. Sunday’s final heat was held under challenging conditions, with 2-3ft. surf and swell periods ranging from 5 to 14 seconds.
"Even in challenging conditions, Point Mugu offers the best waves in southern Calif.," said Dan Alpern, master of ceremonies. "The weekend offered a variety of conditions with many barrels and aerial maneuvers performed by both professional and military contestants.”
Jake Munyon, NBVC, Fleet and Family Director agreed with Dan.
“Opening the base to the public requires a lot planning between military and civilian partners which cannot always align with the perfect Surfline forecasters and top swell-days that produce 10ft. face waves typically seen at Point Mugu.”
Alpern said many surfers thanked the base personnel for working all weekend, allowing them to enjoy this popular event.
“I appreciate the civilian and military surfers, who all value the opportunity to surf Point Mugu in any conditions," Alpern said.
Ventura county local, and three-time national champion, Cory Arrambide earned first place in the men’s open final, with fast surfs, effortless drops and several high-scoring airs.
“Thank you to the Navy for giving us this opportunity to surf Point Mugu,” said Arrambide. “I love surfing Rincon, Emma Wood and all the beaches around Ventura, but I’m always super stoked to get the opportunity to access Point Mugu.”
Renowned Santa Barbara-based surfer and artist, Demi Boelsterli took first place in the women’s open final topping tough competition from 19-year-old Ojai surfer, Jessie Engel and the lone military female competitor, Maj. Melanie Roy, assistant operations officer, I Marine Expeditionary Force.
The juniors “young gun” division delighted crowds with equally tough competition between two Ventura natives, Fynn Neth and Beckett Mechtenberg; with Neth earning the top spot by 2.4 points.
“Point Mugu was super fun,” said Neth. “I was just taking every thing I could and having a great time.”
Senior Chief Hull Maintenance Technician Louis Deforest, assigned to Commander, Pacific Fleet defended the top military division position from runner up US Coast Guard Maritime Enforcement Specialist Kuilee Murphy.
“Many of our surfers return every year we hold the event, some aging out of the junior division and being competitive in the open division, like Tanner Vodraska and Jonas Meskis, who both made the finals,” said Alpern. “Past Junior contestants have gone on to surf in the Olympics and on Pro Tours, notably Kanoa Igarashi who won the US Open of Surfing in 2017 and 2018. In the military division, Nick Barringer started surfing the event as a second-class rescue swimmer and is now a Master Chief.”
For the first time in the contest history, there was a legacy competition between Capt. Robert “Barr” Kimnach, chief staff officer, Navy Region Southwest and his son, Midshipman 4/C Jacob Kimnach.
“I was proud of Jacobs effort,” said Barr Kimnach. “He was one wave away from advancing to the next heat, but it came to me at the last second, and I got a little shampoo to beat him out. The surf is unpredictable and sometimes you get lucky. We had a blast and looking forward to coming back next year.”
Kimnach is the former commanding officer of NBVC and revised the Point Mugu Surf Contest in 2024 after a 4-year hiatus.
“Open base events support our national defense strategy by connecting our amazing community to the military and its missions,” said Kimnach. “The Point Mugu Surf Contest sets NBVC apart from other installations due to its unique focus on environmental conservation, nature resiliency, and the public outreach that draws in the entire southern Calif. surf community.”
Brown said the installation expects to continue this tradition of opening the coveted Point Mugu surf break during public events.
“I want to thank our NBVC Team and all the volunteers who made this event a success,” said Brown. “Together, this team accomplished something that will be remembered for years to come and we look forward to the next one.”
NBVC is major shore warfighting platform; providing sustained ready forces to deploy, fight, and win. Composed of three operating facilities: Point Mugu, Port Hueneme and San Nicolas Island and home of the Pacific Seabees, West Coast E-2D Hawkeyes, 3 warfare centers and 110 tenant commands.
| Date Taken: | 07.28.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 07.29.2025 14:40 |
| Story ID: | 544143 |
| Location: | POINT MUGU, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 154 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Warfare on the waves during the Point Mugu Surf Contest, by LTJG Drew Verbis, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
