Blake Johnston, a local of Cronulla, has smashed the record for the longest surf session, but he intends to continue surfing for the remainder of the day.
The former professional surfer plans to surf for a whopping 40 hours in order to raise money for child mental health programs.
A large crowd gathered at Sydney’s Cronulla beach to watch Johnston take on the challenge; as of Friday morning, he had already surfed 525 waves.
A South African surfer held the previous record, which was 30 hours, 11 minutes, at that time.
Johnston characterized himself as “quite fried” in an interview with Daily Mark News Breakfast just moments after setting the world record at 7:11am (AEDT).
Later on Friday afternoon, Johnston hopes to reach the 40-hour milestone.
He aimed to earn an additional $50,000 but as of Friday morning had already raised more than $200,000 for the Chumpy Pullin foundation and juvenile mental health projects.
The 40-year-old former long-distance runner and pro surfer faces the dangers of blindness, infected ears, dehydration, lack of sleep, cold, and drowning, but he claimed he was ready for the arduous endeavor.
“I figured I could handle it easily. I can run for forty hours, he declared.
Nevertheless, by doing things this way, I may interact with others, engage the neighborhood, and influence the course of history.
Johnston’s father committed suicide ten years ago, which inspired him to raise awareness about young people’s mental health and suicide prevention.
The father of two reflected on his own struggles and said he wanted to inspire the children he currently trains in surfing and give them useful resources and encouragement to get through difficult times.
Ellidy Pullin, the wife of Alex “Chumpy” Pullin, who created the foundation after her husband drowned on the Gold Coast in 2020 at the age of 32 while competing as a snowboarder at the Olympics and on the world stage, was by his side on the sand.
Watching Johnston, she claimed, gave her “goosebumps” all morning.
She said, “I just know that Chumpy is out there, and he would be right there with Blaky, cheering him on, and both of them have that Viking spirit about them.
“Chump’s motto was always all-in, and at the Chumpy Pullin Foundation, that’s what we stand for.
Blake is currently actually carrying on Chumpy’s legacy and embodying him.
