Paddle out to pay tribute to club hero, bodyboarder Stevie Lloyd
GOLD Coast bodyboarders have been rocked by the death of Stevie Lloyd, remembered by friends as a passionate grassroots supporter of the sport.
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GOLD Coast bodyboarders have been rocked by the death of Stevie Lloyd, who has been remembered by friends as a passionate grassroots supporter of the sport.
More than 100 boardriders are expected to paddle out at Burleigh this weekend to pay tribute to the North Bodyboarding club president who died suddenly on Sunday morning. He was believed to be in his early 30s.
Members of the tightly knit bodyboarding and surfing community, including sporting organisations and publishers, said they had been shocked by the news.
Friend and former owner of Flux Bodyboarding, Gary Watson, said the father of one son was a great supporter of children who wanted to get into bodyboarding.
“He used to be a team rider for Flux and I asked him if he wanted to be president of North Bodyboard Club because he was so good with the kids,” Mr Watson said.
Another friend, Tony De Costa, said he was “beside himself” at the news.
“He was well-loved and helped so many young kids who were into bodyboarding,” Mr De Costa said.
“There are about 60 kids aged 12 to 15 at the club. Over the years he’s done so many wonderful things for bodyboarding.”
Editor of bodyboarding magazine Riptide, Michael Saunders, said the community was deeply saddened.
“Stevie was renowned across the country for his passion to grassroots bodyboarding, his talents as a dropknee rider and his bubbly and infectious personality, both in and out of the water,” Mr Saunders said.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to provide support for his family, in particular his son, Spencer.
Donations can be made at gofundme.com/2bhtbec
The paddle-out will take place at the beach at Fifth Avenue, Burleigh Heads, from 2pm Sunday.
If you need help or know someone who does, call Lifeline on 131114.
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