Sponsored Video: Surfing Montauk

How does one live in New York City but still go surfing regularly? If you are NYC-based part-time professional surfer Mikey DeTemple, then you, your friends and their surf boards all load into a Mercedes-Benz E-Class station wagon and drive 2.5 hours to Long Island town of Montauk.

DeTemple, who’s also a part-time professional film maker, recently made a video about his Montauk journey for the online contemporary culture magazine mb!, which is published by Mercedes-Benz. Check it out below:

As you can probably tell from the video, the Mercedes-Benz E-Class station wagon is that rare vehicle that possesses the luxury-factor to fit in on Wall Street, the fun-factor to fit with a weekend getaway and the interior room to fit a group of friends to go with you.

That luxurious, fun, roomy ride is powered by paddle-shifted 7-speed automatic transmission engine. In the E350 4MATIC model, the V-6 cracks out 302hp that’s capable of zipping the wagon from 0 to 60 mph in 6.9 seconds.

But it’s all the vehicle features, big and small, that stand out to us. Among them: the fold-down third row of seating, the radar-based collision prevention assist, the rear side-window sunshades, the full-time all-wheel drive and the multicolor interior ambient lighting, to name a few. Shift into reverse with the front wipers on and the rear-window wiper sweeps automatically!

Of course, technically speaking, you needn’t have a Mercedes-Benz to go surfing in Montauk. Here’s our roundup for planning your own Montauk surf trip:

Planning a Montauk Surfing Trip

Why go:

Think there’s no good surfing in the northeast of America? Think again. Surfing Magazine ranked Montauk among the top 10 surfing destinations in the entire country! Located on the eastern most tip of Long Island, the beaches around Montauk get ocean swell from three directions.

When to go:

Montauk surfers are a hearty lot and hang ten year round, even in sub-freezing air temperatures. Water temperatures range from around 65°F (18°C) in the summer to 35°F (2°C) in the winter, so you’ll probably need a wet suit regardless.

Typically, waves around Montauk are ideal for beginning and intermediate surfers. After a storm, waves can grow to a gargantuan size fit for experienced surfers only.

Where to surf:

Cliff-lined Ditch Plains Beach is easily the most popular place for surfing around Montauk. (It’s the beach featured in the video above). Ditch Plains can get crowded in the summer and only cars with town-issued permits are allowed to park there. So consider heading to one of the other surf spots around Montauk instead. The parking is much easier at Camp Hero beach. The area around Montauk Lighthouse gets the largest waves. Hither Hill State Park has sand dunes and an ocean-side camp ground.

Montauk town itself is loaded with surf shops and schools.

Where to stay:

Why The Surf Lodge, of course! (Pic to the right.) There’s a hip bar and wonderful waterside seafood restaurant attached, worth a trip even if you aren’t spending the night at The Lodge.

Getting there:

In addition to driving from New York City, you can take the Hampton Jitney bus service or a Long Island Railroad train from Penn Station. There are also flights from LaGuardia and JFK.

This post was sponsored by Mercedes-Benz

LEARN MORE: E-CLASS VIDEO / MONTAUK TOURISM |

More from Spot Cool Stuff:

Incredible (and Incredibly Dangerous) Plane Spotting on Mahó Beach, St. Maarten
A Family Road Trip Around the Catskills
The Best Cameras for Travel