Africa’s Guinness World Records #4

World’s most surfers riding the same wave

South Africa is surrounded by beautiful stretches of coastline and beach. In total, it occupies a coastline stretching over 2, 500 kilometres. Starting from the border of Namibia on the West coast, continuing all the way till the border of Mozambique in the North East. South Africa is a great location for water-lovers who enjoy being at the sea.

A famous spot for professional as well as recreational surfers is Muizenberg Beach. This is a 35 minutes drive from Cape Town centre and one of the most visited suburbs of Cape Town. Although the water can be a chilly, the waves are still powerful and ready to ride at any time of the year.  According to the local surfers, the highest waves are during the winter months (June – August). This is when the wind is minimal and the waves are at their best. The perfect wave conditions are due to swells being pushed in by storms above the ocean between Cape Town and the Antarctic.

With such a great wave conditions and beautiful weather, Muizenberg is THE dream spot for surfers. There are occasionally surf competitions and events organized that attract many visitors. Since Cape Town is known for its surfing conditions, Kahuna promotions decided to set a new world record by letting the most surfers possible riding on the same wave. The event happened on the 4th of October 2009 and attracted many participants. In total, the event had 443 passionate surfers registered of all ages.  Kahuna managed to get over 110 surfers riding on the exact same wave, and henceforth accomplished to break the record. Unfortunately, not all participants were counted since each surfer had to ride the same wave for at least five seconds before they were considered to be counted.

During the event, the entire beach was packed with people to support the breaking of the record. Various activities and fundraising initiatives were organized at the beach to keep the audience entertained. The Guinness Record was organized in collaboration with the Earthwave Beach Festival, in order to raise awareness about the rapid rate of climate change.

It was the second time Cape Town set the Guinness World Record for having the most surfers riding the same wave. However, the first attempt in 2006 was beaten by Brazil in 2008. Yet, the perfect weather conditions, big group of participants, and smaller waves of 0.5-1 meters high was enough to bring the record back to Cape Town in 2009. Well done!

Besides surfing, Muizenberg  is also a great beach for swimming and other recreational activities. Due to its flat and wide coastline, the water is generally calm and warmer than the other beaches in Cape Town. It is a great ‘laid-back’ town and also a perfect destination to spend your holiday with friends or family.  When visiting Muizenberg, it is a must to take a photo with the colorful houses that line the beach, with the surrounding mountain ranges in the background. A stunning photo to take home as a souvenir.

Not as warm as Muizenberg, Clifton and Llandudno beach are two beautiful beaches with dazzling turquoise ocean and dramatic boulders. From here, you can continue your road onto the famous Garden Route. Starting just outside of Cape Town, the route continues all the way up to Plettenberg Bay in the east. A 300km journey awaits you with many photographic, breathtaking, and unforgettable moments. Once you drive more inland you will find beautiful lagoons, rolling hills, and the mountain ranges of Outeniqua and Tsitsikamma. Over here, you have arrived at the Guinness World Record of Highest Bridge Bungy! If you are interested to get some extra adrenaline besides all the peaceful landscapes and coastlines, our previous blog post tells you more about bungee jumping at Bloukrans.

Interested to travel along the African coastline? Check out some of our tours: