Video: Surfer Ben Gravy Catches Waves At All 43 New Jersey Beach Towns In One Single Day

Ben Gravy's Instagram bio describes him as a "semi pro novelty wave surfer", but I've been following him on Insta for years now & would also add "absolute delight" to that. He's been vlogging his surf adventures since 2015 & has such an affable, positive, contagiously enthusiastic energy that it's impossible not to feel a little happy watching his videos, even if you've never surfed a day in your life. 

For this particular challenge he went from the very bottom of NJ in Cape May all the way up to Sandy Hook in the Highlands. Gravy also calculated that 14hrs 21min of daylight gave him & his crew about 20 minutes per beach town. Picture this route in summer traffic:

1 Cape May 

2 Wildwood Crest 

3 Wildwood 

4 North Wildwood 

5 Stone Harbor 

6 Avalon 

7 Sea Isle 

8 Strathmere 

9 Ocean City 

10 Longport 

11 Margate 

12 Ventnor 

13 Atlantic City 

14 Brigantine 

15 Long Beach Township 

16 Beach Haven 

17 Ship Bottom 

18 Harvey Cedars 

19 Surf City 

20 Barnaget Light 

21 Island Beach State Park 

22 Seaside Park 

23 Seaside Heights 

24 Ortley Beach 

25 Lavalette 

26 Mentaloking 

27 Bayhead 

28 Point Pleasant 

29 Manasquan 

30 SeaGirt 

31 Spring Lake 

32 Belmar 

33 Avon by the Sea 

34 Bradley Beach 

35 Ocean Grove 

36 Asbury Park 

37 Lock Arbour 

38 Allenhurst 

39 Deal 

40 Long Branch 

41 Monmouth Beach 

42 Seabright 

43 Sandy Hook

Things started off rough when they made a pre-sunrise Wawa trip & the store was out of coffee (I have NEVER heard of that happening before), but smoothed out from there. As a bonus his friend Makki dropped fun facts about each location, like stop #6 - Did you know Avalon's slogan is "cooler by a mile" because "Avalon, NJ is positioned one mile further out in the Atlantic than any other barrier island in NJ"? 

I could go on but highly recommend checking out the video yourself & giving Gravy a follow on Instagram. If you do you'll get to witness him riding waves behind the Cape May-Lewes Ferry, shredding the gnar (yes I'm a dork) in all 50 states, nearly get swallowed by the Waimea River with Jamie O'Brien (@whoisjob), and roll up to my old neighborhood, Astoria, Queens, by surfing the East River (floating condoms included). 

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Side note, if you're an East coast surfer or just love following that stuff check out Uncharted, a new docs-series with surfer Rob Kelly. 

Spend an entire year in a Northeast surfer’s shoes — or rather, their booties — and you’ll find out pretty quickly that this region is not a microcosm for what’s happening everywhere else in the world of surf. No, the Northeast is a totally unique experience that begins and ends with extreme shifts from one season to another. It’s tough, it’s complicated and it’s tiring, but if done right, it’s nothing short of a surf trip at home. And if done really right, it’s a score like no other.

Good stuff.