The Outer Banks is known as one of the top surfing destinations on the East Coast, so it may be surprising that this is the first year that Cape Hatteras Secondary School has had a surf team.
35 students have already joined the surf club this year, which includes 25 high school and 10 middle school participants.
Mr. Tiderman, surf club sponsor, started surfing at a young age. Mr. Tiderman taught surf lessons for two years before he moved to the Outer Banks to work at Cape Hatteras as a high school science teacher. He has had a strong background in surfing since his youth when he lived in Florida. His passion began to further when he moved to Wilmington to attend the University of North Carolina Wilmington where he earned his degree in Marine Biology.
I had the chance to sit down with Mr. Clayton Tiderman to talk about future goals with the new surf team. One of the biggest competitions that the team would like to compete in is the National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA.) The NSSA is a nonprofit organization that encourages surfers with interest in the sport to learn and develop the skills of surfing while competing in quality events.
Alongside of these competitions, Mr. Tiderman would also like to encourage other local schools to start a surf team and compete against one another.
The team is open to any student that would like to join, even those with little surfing experience. We hope to watch this growing program turn into something incredible.
