The traditional Surf Opening is leaving Lake Neusiedl and for the first time this year will be held at multiple locations across Austria. 35 locations are already participating, announced organizer Gerhard Polak to the APA. More can still join. The goal is to excite visitors about surfing - not just in Neusiedl or Podersdorf, but everywhere it is possible, Polak stated.

Surf Opening Also in Vienna

The Surf Opening will take place from April 30 to May 4. The largest event including a party will likely be the one at the Vienna City Beach Club on the New Danube in Vienna. In addition to other locations in the federal capital, there are also locations in Lower Austria, Upper Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Tyrol, and Carinthia, where the start of the surfing season will be celebrated, for example, at Lake Wörthersee. From the old home of the Surf Opening, Burgenland, only the wakeboard park in Klingenbach (Eisenstadt-Umgebung district) is participating for now.

Each event will offer whatever is possible at the respective location, from wind and kite surfing to skimboarding and stand-up paddling, to wing foiling and upstream surfing. While entertainment and parties were the focus of the Surf Opening in the past, Polak now wants to focus on getting people into water sports for the long term. Several smaller events are advantageous in that interested people can get to know the community in their area.

Locations Can Apply

Using facilities that already exist is certainly more sustainable and affordable than creating infrastructure from scratch at one location, emphasized Polak. In the future, existing businesses should be involved instead of "building artificial worlds somewhere that are gone two weeks later," he stated. In its previous form, the Surf Opening was no longer contemporary or financially viable in his view.

The exact program is to be finalized by the end of February. Locations that still want to participate can apply via email at [email protected]. The requirement is that entry is free to keep the offerings as accessible as possible, according to Polak.

(APA/Red)

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