Ryan Helm Sets Sights on the ECSC Surfing Tournament in Virginia Beach

At the upcoming 2009 East Coast Surfing Championships (ECSC) in Virginia Beach, August 27-30, BP Team Invigorate Athlete Ryan Helm will be attempting to better his 2008 “Runner-Up” Finish.

Helm will have his “surfing” wheels well primed and oiled after flying in from Mexico where he has been competing in the Quiksilver Pro at Puerto Escondido’s infamous “Mexican Pipeline.” Fresh from the 3 Star World Qualifying Mexican event, Helm will be setting his sights on the tamer waves of Virginia Beach. As we are now entering the East Coast’s peak Hurricane season, the surf does however have the potential of looking a bit more like Mexico (not so tame), which will suit Helm just fine.

A former X Games competitor, Helm is enthusiastic about his chances for a win in Virginia Beach; “I take my fitness training and event preparation seriously. As a spokesperson for BP Fuels and BP’s newest product, BP gasoline with Invigorate, I find that my efforts to run younger for longer are not only consistent with my sponsor’s goals to help engines run younger for longer, but this mantra is essential to maintain competitive longevity in the sport of surfing. Through my fitness and cross training efforts, I have been able to extend my career and feel confident that I will be able to continue to compete at the sport’s highest levels. I came very close to winning this event last year and my intentions are nothing less, coming into the 2009 event.”

In between competing in professional surfing tournaments and running his Native Surf School in South Florida, Ryan Helm has been training at his 2nd home in Mexico.

He and wife Paola are the proud parents of two young children (boy and girl) and spend a lot of time as a family on (and in) the water, catching waves (of course)!

The ECSC is one of the longest running Pro-Am Surfing Tournaments in the United States and draws one of the largest beach crowds. It is widely regarded to be the most important surfing event held on the East Coast.

During the tournament, BP will maintain an on-beach presence and give away fun surfing and summer-related prizes, while providing consumers the chance to learn about the benefits of BP gasoline with Invigorate® and earn a $10 BP gift card. Helm will also be available at specific times throughout the event for autograph sessions and to chat with individuals about how he runs (surfs) younger for longer®.

In his second year as a spokesman for BP, Helm has been commissioned to help the company promote BP gasoline with Invigorate, a gasoline that with continuous use, helps clean and protect a car’s vital engine parts, helping it run younger for longer. As an ageless professional surfer and strong fitness advocate, Helm epitomizes this message, as he strives to run younger for longer through surfing professionally and teaching kids the sport he loves through his Native Surf School.

This year, Helm is also working to help encourage Americans to run younger for longer in their own lives as well, helping to promote the BP Younger for Longer Challenge, a nationwide contest that asks Americans to visit bpinvigorate.com prior to November 1, 2009 and tell how they personify this message. The top-20 entrants will receive a first place prize of BP gas for a year, valued at more than $2,000 (gas for a year is awarded as $2,080 in BP gift cards), with one grand prize winner being awarded $10,000 in BP gasoline and other great prizes.