Goblins and Ghouls Take Over the Beach

Surfing ninjas, ballerinas, monsters and even King Neptune hit the beach at Santa Monica Beach's Tower 26 for the third-annual Haunted Heats Halloween Surf Contest on Saturday morning.

Kids of all ages dressed up for a scary-good time and to help raise money for Boarding for Breast Cancer. The free event is hosted every year by ZJ Boarding House, and your costume and acting abilities matter more than your surfing skills.

Event organizer Todd Roberts says the surf contest is the favorite event of the many he does each year. 

"This is our feel-good event of the year," he told Patch. "It is so much fun to have everyone in costume, laughing and enjoying the morning and trying surf in their Halloween costumes. The pictures are priceless!"

It turns out that surfing in your Halloween costume can be difficult. First-time contestant Leah Ball said, "I dressed up as hula dancer, but it was much harder to paddle and catch waves then I thought it would be!"

Several repeat contestants confirmed that picking the right costume is the key. Wigs, wings and other items end up floating into shore. 

Ultimately, on Saturday, everyone left the beach a winner with no worse than a suntan and smeared make-up.

Look above for photos from the third-annual Haunted Heats Halloween Surf Contest.