For a few golden years from 2006 to 2011, the town of Thurso played host to a professional surfing contest sponsored by surfwear giant O’Neill, known first as the Highland Open and later as the Coldwater Classic. During this period, some of the best surfers in the world visited Caithness to compete in the thumping waves of Thurso East and Brims Ness, from veterans like 2000 world surfing champion Sunny Garcia to new kids on the block like John John Florence – a hotly-tipped youngster when he first visited Thurso who went on to win back to back world titles in 2016 and 2017.
