Walden Surfboards Donates Custom Board To Annual Cancer Event

VENTURA, Calif. (August 19, 2010) – On Sunday Aug. 22, the beach near Scripps Pier in La Jolla, Calif., will be overflowing with surfers and surf legends – and Walden Surfboards founder and surf icon Steve Walden will be there.

Recently, Walden Surfboards announced it will be donating a one-of-a-kind, custom surfboard to the 17th annual Luau & Longboard Invitational, a cancer research charity event. The annual Moores UCSD Cancer Center Luau & Longboard Invitational surfs for a cure to raise awareness and funds for cancer research.

Since 1993, the event has raised more than $4.7 million for the Cancer Center by bringing together some of the most respected men and women in surfing history with business leaders, scientists, local politicians and national celebrities. It’s one of the world’s most successful surfing fundraisers and has an international reputation for celebrating the “aloha” spirit in the fight against cancer.

“The UCSD Luau & Longboard Invitational is the event I look forward to every year,” says Steve Walden. “I’m honored to be included as a surf legend, but what really means the most to me is that over the years I’ve been able to donate a one-of-a-kind Walden board that has helped raise so much money for such a worthy cause.”

Walden Surfboards celebrates its 45th anniversary this year and has a long history of giving back to help fight against cancer. In addition to participating in the Luau & Longboard Invitational for 12 years, master surfboard shaper Steve Walden partnered with the Lance Armstrong Foundation to shape and design a yellow, limited edition “Livestrong” longboard signed by Armstrong that auctioned for $27,500. In 2008, Walden donated one of his signature limited edition longboards signed by 55 surfing legends that raised $17,000 for cancer research. Over the last five years, Waldens’ surfboards have been the highest auctioned boards at the event.

Steve Walden is known as the “Father of the Modern Longboard” for his innovative surfboard designs like the Magic Model. More than 40 other surf legends such as Shaun Tomson, Mickey Munoz, Skip Frye and Rusty Preisendorfer, will be joining Walden at the Luau & Longboard Invitational. At the event, each company-sponsored team of four is paired up with a longboard surf legend to compete in the surfing contest.

The contest is FREE and open to the public to watch. During the contest, autographs will be available from the surf legends and live surf music will be performed. The Luau will be held on the campus of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and will include a tropical buffet, live music and live and silent auctions.

For more information about how to donate and get involved check: http://www.longboardluau.org/index.html

For more information about Walden Surfboards visit: http://waldensurfboards.com/

About Walden Surfboards
Based in Ventura, Calif., Walden Surfboard’s founder, owner and surf icon Steve Walden has been designing high performance surfboards and pushing the envelope of surfboard innovation and technology for 45 years. Known as the “Father of the Modern Longboard,” Walden’s decades of creative surfboard design have been revolutionary in the surf industry. From long to shortboards, fishes, epoxy, foam, custom, limited edition, Wahine (women’s specific) and SUP boards, Walden produces a wide range of boards for all types of surf. For more information check www.waldensurfboards.com or contact Keith Cozzens at keith@verdepr.com or 970.259.3555.