Keith Noel loved to surf. He was a Mission Beach native and grew up surfing the jetty at South Mission Beach, which is how he became known as, “The Jetty Kid,” to local surfers up and down the coast.
In 1978, he converted his small house near San Jose Place into a clothing shop named Keith’s Klothes Kastle where he sold Hawaiian shirts until his death in 1995.
Noel was an inspiration during his life, and he was determined to continue to encourage young surfers after his death.
According to Noel’s fiancée, Marianne Kendall, Noel did not tell any of his friends or family of his plans for them to create a foundation to create a free surf contest for young, non-sponsored surfers. They heard his request at the reading of his will after his death, Kendall said.
“Wow, that’s a great idea.” Kendall said, who assisted in forming the South Mission Crew Foundation per Noel’s final request. Once the foundation was formed, Kendall stepped down as chief financial officer and president. The foundation is currently headed by a board, which consists of Noel’s former surfing buddies
The foundation will host the 12th annual Jetty Kid Surf Kontest Saturday, Oct. 14 from 7 a.m. through 3 p.m. at the South Mission Beach Jetty. The “kontest” is open to boys 15 and younger, and girls 16 and younger. The contest is limited to non-sponsored surfers, and thanks to Noel, there is no entry fee.
“The whole idea is to encourage the [children] that may not have been in a contest before,” Kendall said. “If they go against the really great kids they’re going to feel intimidated and they’re not going to want to do it.”
Space is limited to 16 surfers in each of the five judged divisions:
“¢ Menehuene boys ages 8-10
“¢ Boys ages 11-13
“¢ Junior boys ages 14-15
“¢ Girls ages 8-12
“¢ Junior girls ages 13-16.
Kontest favorite is the super menehuene division, where a parent accompanies into the knee-high water to help the small surfers catch a wave. The division is open to boys and girls under 7, and all children are welcome to participate.
“Some of them are on boogie-boards, some are on surfboards but they’re out there with their parents just having fun,” Kendall said. “If one of them gets a ride everybody cheers. For them it’s totally unjudged, but it’s just so much fun to watch these little guys.”
All children who pre-register for the super menehuene division will go home with a trophy. Those who register the day of the event are not guaranteed a trophy.
“Almost everybody goes home with something,” Kendall said, even if it’s just a T-shirt. Division winners go home with a new surfboard, wetsuit or board bag as well as fresh flower lei as a nod to Noel’s affinity for Hawaiian culture.
However, each contestant is also given a wristband before competition, which is then used for raffle drawings. Due to the high number of donations from local surf shops and friends, Kendall assures that nearly each competitor goes home with a prize.
Kendall said they also provide free food for all the contestants.
The Jetty Kid Surf Kontest serves contestants and their family’s free breakfast, including coffee, hot chocolate, bagels and more. Lunch includes burritos from Taco Surf and once those run out, pizza is delivered.
While the funding left behind in Noel’s will cannot last forever, Kendall and many other parents in the community wish to see it continue for years to come.
“A lot of people have approached us and said, ‘We’d like to see this going. Can we make a donation?'” Kendall said. “We put a jar out at the food table every year if anybody wants to make a donation. But the whole idea is that we don’t want people to think they have to pay anything for this. This is just a good, fun day at the beach on [Noel].”
For more information and entry forms visit www.mariannekendall.com or e-mail Kim Fox at [email protected].