“Huntington Moves to Malibu: The U. S. Surfing Championships,” SURFER, January 1974

The City of Huntington had orphaned the mainland’s oldest surfing contest. They had finally blown out on the logistics of trying to create an organized, meaningful event. The founders of the Huntington Beach contest couldn’t keep pace with the fast evolving values of the surfers, didn’t understand surfing, tried to put helmets on its head, computerize subjective judgments, sell TV on the possibility of dramatic surf (it did happen occasionally); they tried to run it all like a football game. It was the U. S. Championships, and because of the title, most good surfers came. With everyone there, it was a wild two-day boogie, with the parties frequently being larger and juicier than the surf. But it’s all gone now. The city got nothing but raspberries for its confused efforts, and although it drew 20,000 to 30,000 spectators, to them it just wasn’t worth the hassle. So with respects and regrets they cast it adrift to anyone who wanted it.

Who wanted it? Ray Allen, WSA Competition Director, did. Most of the industry wanted to see it live on. And so the contest was slapped into an iron lung and rolled to Malibu where one classic day of classic Malibu could put it all back together again. The contest was given a waiting period, but after a few days of waiting, they went for a 3' to 5' west that hopefully would pick up. Next day it was 2' to 3'. One saving grace. Small Malibu is better than small anything else. There was a lot of energy at Malibu in the form of hot surfers. Over 60 came from Hawaii. The East and Gulf were well represented, as was, of course, California. The people energy was, unfortunately, greater than that of the ocean’s. Larry Bertlemann of the HSA was “the” standout in the water. As we’ve seen in recent surf films, Bertlemann, in a basic, aggressive way, is as far ahead of the pack as David was three or four years ago. There were hot, explosive instants of surfing and a provocative mixture of personalities on the beach. The major gripe of all was the lack of organization. Like no trophies (to be awarded at a later date). It must have been disillusioning for those who traveled and spent bucks to attend.

For some, Malibu was a far cry from the Huntington Beach mechanization, but at least this year it was put on by surfers. With more time for organizing, it should get better. And who knows, next year the “boo” herself may deliver!

1973 United States Surfing Championships

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