Your Weekend Guide to Chennai’s Covelong Classic: Surf, Music and Fitness Fest

A lot is happening with ECR in Chennai this month. In form of Chess Olympiad The frenzy continues unabated, with the seaside fishing town of Kovalam quietly concentrating on surfing, music, fitness and food as the popular covelong classic returns this weekend. With a loyal following since its inception in 2013, the enthusiasm is evident since the festival announced its line-up, It’s a delightful mix: local champions with surfers from Sri Lanka and Maldives, indie music acts, alternative fitness workshops, obstacle courses and food stalls as Kovalam is known for.

Thankfully, the weather forecast has been favorable so far, says Arun Vasu, President, Surfing Federation of India, Managing Partner – Surf Turf and Managing Director of TT Group. “The difference this year is that we’re running two back-to-back events just for surfing. We wanted different conditions to try to level up the surfers a little bit.” And so, in the last two days, the Mahabs Point Break Challenge got underway, which saw the participation of over 100 surfers. “We had the usual line-up of Opens (17 and up), Groms (16 and below) for both men and women. In Kovalam, including these two events, we are working to encourage children 12 years and below. for a competition.” There will be a six-kilometer run in stand-up paddle for men and women, and a technical race, called Arun, is a course.

Apart from this, surfers from all over the world will be seen in an International Open. In the open category, some names that need attention are: Ramesh Budhiyal of Karnataka, Chini Banaras from Goa, Ajesh Ali from Tamil Nadu, and Satish Saravanan (both from Kovalam). Previous national champions like Appu, Santhosh and Shekhar Pachai from Kovalam will fight a good fight for the current crop, says Arun.

While the contests themselves would make for a nice weekend watch running from 7 a.m. on all three days, two stages are being set up for indie music acts that will be active through August 6 and 7. Whereas the smaller platform is called surf. The Turf Stage, located behind the Surf Turf Building, will host performances from 11 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. The main stage, called the Beach Stage, will open from 5 p.m. onwards.

Around 15 stalls will be operated by the local community. photo credit: special arrangement

Apart from music, there will be fitness, dance and yoga workshops till Saturday and Sunday. “In the eight years we ran it, we added surfing, music and yoga. But we think the approach to fitness has changed so much, with so many fitness programs that have come out recently. The idea is to mix it up,” Arun This time apart from Yoga, Silambam, Parkour, Animal Flow, Gymnastics and Dance Fitness will be on offer.

Alternative fitness workshops are being offered this year. photo credit: special arrangement

As far as the stalls are concerned, 15 of them on the beach are run by the local community, serving food and local handicrafts. In addition, stalls from Chennai’s popular restaurants and Cloud Kitchens, and a flea market brimming with art, wares and swimwear will illuminate the place. “The Kovalam panchayat has received a lot of support,” says Arun, adding, “This is the first time that SDAT (Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu) has come up as a large-scale sponsor. And, we are trying to bring the World Surf League next year,” concluded Arun.

Admission is free to the festival being held at Surf Turf, Kovalam from 5th to 7th August. Details @surfturfindia on Instagram.

The Indie Music Act will have two phases. photo credit: special arrangement