Switchfoot surf jousting at Moonlight Beach

Minnesota placekicker Fred Cox invented the Nerf football in 1972. Nerf soon became associated with safe and soft athletics.

Today, the weapon of choice for surf jousting is not actually a Nerf product; the soft weaponry the toy company produces for children are too short for people on surfboards to do battle with while riding a wave. A foam pad wrapped and taped to the end of a six-foot pole solved that, and surf jousting was born. Because jousters are dressed in goofy battle armor, it is not a common thing to see, or even considered sport.

This Saturday, the cause for surf jousting will be the Switchfoot Bro Am. The Surf Joust Expression Session will be featured during the surfing competition at the surf and music beach fest at Moonlight Beach. From 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Team Surf contest, the Rob Machado Bro Junior Surf Contest, Challenged Athletes Foundation Kids' Adaptive Surf Series, and the Surf Joust Expression Sessions will take place in the waves.

Along with the host band and creators of the event, Switchfoot, the music lineup on the stage will include Indie-pop quartets Sure Sure from Los Angeles, and Colony House from Franklin, Tennessee.