Switchfoot Bro-Am 2010

This past weekend Bryan and I went to the Switchfoot Bro-Am. We first went to to this event four years ago but haven’t been able to come back until this year. The Bro-Am takes place in Encintas, the home town of the band Switchfoot, at Moonlight Beach. We got there around 7:30am during the start of the surf competition. As with most mornings at the beach it was very overcast and cold during the first few hours we were there. We watched multiple teams compete in heats. Teams included Hurley, Jedidiah, Billabong and other surf related retailers. The main heat between the guys of Switchfoot and the editors of Surfrider magazine was by far the most popular. While Bryan took a lot of photos of the other teams I grabbed the camera to shoot some closeups of the band getting ready for their heat. While all the press gathered around the Switchfoot guys I couldn’t help feeling like paparazzi. Although we didn’t stay for the whole event this year there was still lots to see. There are many vendors on the beach selling food, band memorabilia and giving out free samples. The best part is that there is a concert that goes on most of the day which includes many different artists with Switchfoot being the main performer at the end of the day.

Besides the fact that this event is put on for the local charity Standup For Kids, this is a family event for the guys of Switchfoot. I saw the whole Switchfoot clan gathered around cheering for the guys, from wives to kids to grandparents and local friends. It just shows how down to earth these guys are and that they have never forgotten where they came from, after all Moonlight Beach is the place they grew up surfing at when they were kids.