Churchstow resident Ben Howey has again been selected for the Surf England surf team which will head to El Salvador in mid-April for the ISA World Longboard Games. As the event is non funded, he and the team are crowdfunding. Ben, who is 35, said: “I’ve been surfing forever, joining the Nippers aged just five. I grew up surfing in Bantham.” Since school days he have travelled around the world in search of the best waves, experiencing the cultures and lifestyles as he went.

“With the right boards under my feet I enjoy surfing all types of waves, from the two-foot point breaks of Java on my Blender to overhead in Hawaii on my own model.  “Fast forward and I won the Single Fin event at the British Longboard Tour last year. There were two events, one in Newquay and the other at Saunton Sands in North Devon.” Surfing England picked Ben for a team of just two men and two women. Ben has taken part in two ISA World Longboard games in China in 2018 and France in 2019 where he came 5th in Biarritz, the town where surfing first arrived in the country in 1956. This year’s event at Surf City El Salvador will be taking place between April 18 and 25. Ben remarked: “It’s going to be hot with temperatures in the early 30s and the water the same. “The waves are very different wherever you go in the world. “There’ll be right-hand point breaks for long rides.” If you would like to help Ben and take part in a raffle you can e-mail him at: [email protected]