Why you’re likely to see Gold Coast corporates surfing at dawn

GOLD Coast corporate types are beginning to take over parking lots at surf breaks which were once the domain of vagrants and drop outs.

GOLD Coast corporate types are beginning to take over parking lots at surf breaks which were once the domain of vagrants and drop outs.

Luxury SUVs packed with surfboards are flocking to beaches each morning because some of the Glitter Strip’s most powerful people say a dawn patrol surf has ­become a vital daily ritual.

“You get a lot more done,” said Jeff Pilkington, the director of Bespoke Interior Solutions, which supplies interior design and art to trendy ­developments.

The surfing corporate types. Lifestylepanel CEO Ben Westaway, Wyndham’s Natalie McCarthy and CEO Barry Robinson, and Bespoke Interior Solutions Managing Director Jeff Pilkington. Picture Glenn Hampson.

“We have a plastic surgeon who’ll come down and surf with us, and a couple of property developers,” he said.

Mr Pilkington said surfing gave him added focus throughout the day.

“You have a lot more clarity because you clear your head, then you have a coffee at 5am rather a scotch at 5pm.

The same principles he uses riding waves can be applied in business, according to Wyndham Vacation Resorts managing director Barry Robinson.

“The environment’s always changing, and you can’t ever get complacent so surfing keeps me on edge,” said Mr Robinson. “There’s never one consistent wave, every one is different, even on a good day.

“The tide, wind, people around you are always different which I really relate back to business.”

Mr Robinson, the director of the South-East Asia and Pacific Rim for Wyndham, said he was sometimes able to mix both his passions.

“It seems to be coincidental wherever I buy resorts there’s surf breaks,” he said.

“I do have a few board placements in different locations.

“We’ve got resorts down in (surf towns) Philip Island, at Bells Beach down in Torquay and we’ve got a property down at Margaret River too.”

Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific are holding a corporate surf fundraiser at the end of the month. Getting ready are Lifestylepanel CEO Ben Westaway, Wyndhams Natalie McCarthy and CEO Barry Robinson, and Bespoke Interior Solutions Managing Director Jeff Pilkington. Picture Glenn Hampson

Ben Westaway, CEO and managing director for Lifestylepanel, which supplies entertainment services to hotels, said surf was a great reason to live on the Gold Coast.

“Get in the water at 5am, surf for an hour and a half, have a coffee at 7am, get changed and go to work. That’s what’s great about the Gold Coast,” he said.

Next Friday corporate boardriders from companies like Hawaiian Airlines, Scoot and Multiplex will step up from their casual morning sessions and compete in the Wyndham Resorts Corporate Surf Challenge.

The charity event aims to raise money for research into facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), a complex and progressive muscle wasting disease.

The competition will be held at Duranbah and judged by officials from Surfing Queensland.

Originally published as Why you’re likely to see Gold Coast corporates surfing at dawn