The Fluid Skim Invasion is headed to Navarre Beach in Pensacola, Florida  on Saturday and Sunday. The two-day event is expected to draw up to 80 competitors in the amateur division and about 10 professionals.

The Pensacola News Journal wrote an article about the competition. You can check it out here. Otherwise, I’ll go ahead and post a few excerpts.

Count Chris Wiley, of Pensacola, as one, who will be showing off his spins and other moves in the amateur competition. The 22-year-old skimboarder has been practicing hard lately, spending time on the beach to perfect his skills. He’s also encouraged by the interest in the sport, and how it is growing in the area.

“Four years ago, when I started skimming, it was only a few of us,” said Wiley, a salesperson in the skimming department at Waterboyz in Pensacola. “Now, lots of people are doing it,” —— people from other beach areas such as Panama City, and Gulf Shores, he said.

If you’re planning to attend, you won’t be disappointed, because, “it is really fun to watch,” Wiley says, especially of the more seasoned skimmers.

Morgan Just of Dana Point, Calif., ranked among the top five professional skimmers in the world, is among those coming to the event.

“He is amazing to watch and gives a good show on what the sport is,” Hastings said.

This event is going to be a lot of fun. If you live in the area or only a couple hours drive away, you really need to plan a day around it and check everything out on Saturday or Sunday.

A lot of skimboarders aren’t exposed to sloped beaches, thus making wave riding rather difficult. If you have a sloped beach, the waves are more likely to crash right on the shore. Flat beaches are bound to have 10-15 feet (or more) of flat, glassy water before you can even reach a wave. It’s hard as hell running throw the flat land and gaining speed. You can skim much further and faster on a slopped beach.

Here’s an example of what I mean by flat beach skimming.

So what do you do if you only have access to a flat beach? Well, you can still skimboard on it, you just need to improvise and work on new tricks. Instead of riding waves, you can do spins and ollies. You can also try to skim for distance and hop little waves that may come up the beach.

If you have any other suggestions or tips, please leave a comment.

One of the basic tricks for beginners (at least those with no fear) is doing a flip off your board. Most of us have done flips into pools, and doing a flip off your skimboard is really no different.

The trick is to head into a wave straight on. Pop the board at the top of the wave and jump off. use your arms to swing the motion of your body. You can choose to do a front flip or a backflip. I think backflips are a bit easier. Don’t be scared though, landing in water doesn’t hurt! Just don’t try this in only 1′ deep water.

Here’s a video if you need to see what to do

The eight annual Senseless Skimfest at 26th Ave. Beach in Santa Cruz, CA was held last weekend. Legendary George Bryan was among the 55 entries. From the pictures and videos I’ve seen of Santa Cruz, it doesn’t look like the ideal skim spot, but Santa Cruz skimmer Ryan Parola, who organized the event said “We couldn’t ask for any more.” The big turn out proves people like to skim in Santa Cruz.

Mercury news wrote up a nice summary article of the competition. You can read it here. Adam Loero took home first place and winnings of $450. Not bad for an afternoon’s work.

This competition got a lot of press because they held their first all-female event ever. “It’s awesome,” Gollbach said. “There are a lot more female skimmers out there these days, and a lot more girls stepping up and charging. It’s fun to have some competition.”

Many of the top skimmers at the Skimfest, along with a slew of other talented riders, will return to 26th Ave. for the region’s premier skimboarding contest, the O’Neill Skimbash, on Sept. 20-21. The Skimbash is the penultimate stop of the 2008 United Skim Tour, the world’s only international professional skimboard tour.

Some of the best skimboarding beaches are along the West Coast of the United States, and for anyone who lives out there or has skimmed out there, then you know how damn cold that water is. See I live in Florida and out beaches hit like 80 degrees or warmer. We never need wetsuits. I remember skimbording on New Years Day once, and didn’t even need a wetsuit.

Keeping your body warm while skimboarding is very important, and now that I think about it… wearing a wetsuit could act as protective gear for noobs. You won’t tear up your knees or wrists if you have a wetsuit on and you fall on some hard sand or shells.

I’ve never worn one, so I’m trying to find out if wearing a wetsuit while skimboarding hinders your ability to run and move. Do you have the same manuverablity as if you were just wearing board shorts?