"Surf Riding in Canoes Society Fad of Newport," unattributed, ran in the August 28, 1908 edition of the Los Angeles Evening News. * * * One of the great sports at Newport this season, of which the outside world hears nothing, is surf riding in canoes. This is a feature of the fun in which the exclusive set indulges on the private beach at the foot of Bellevue Avenue, where, free from public ...
This unattributed article ran on the front page of the Southwest Wave, a twice-weekly Los Angeles-area newspaper. This version has been slightly edited. * * * The chances are that you will not stumble onto Rocky Point cove at Palos Verdes by accident. It is reached only by a rough auto trail which travels a precarious half-mile on a cliff above the beach. But if, some Sunday afternoon, you s...
Surf historian Malcolm Gault-Williams wrote about the Palos Verdes Surfing Club in his "Legendary Surfers" series of articles, from in the 1990s and early 2000s. "Doc," below, is surf photographer and PVSC cofounder John "Doc" Ball. This version has been slightly edited. * * * Doc graduated from the USC Dental College in 1933. In March 1934, he opened an office on South Vermont Avenue, in Los...
The Santa Barbara County Surf Club was formed in 1960, and about two years later the club made an agreement with Clinton Hollister whereby club members would have exclusive access to ride the inconsistent but beautiful waves at the Hollister Ranch. The SBCSC rules and by-laws were created at that time. The version below is likely from two or three years later, as the original annual dues were $25 ...
Paul Holmes interviewed John Milius for Holmes' 1999 Longboard feature In Trim: Lance Carson. This version has been slight edited. * * * It's no secret that the Warner Bros surf epic Big Wednesday, cowritten by Denny Aaberg with screenwriter-director John Milius, was inspired by the Malibu scene both men experienced growing up as teenagers in the late '50s and early '60s. But just how much of...
Paul Holmes' profile on Lance Carton ran in the January 1999 issue of Longboard magazine. This version has been slightly edited. * * * It's not easy being Lance Carson. At 55 years of age and one of the undisputed all-time greats in surfing's pantheon, he is genuinely stoked to be still involved in the sport through his board and T-shirt business, trading on a much-deserved reputation he earn...
Bob Ottum's report on the 1966 World Surfing Championships ran in the October 10 issue of Sports Illustrated. This version has been slightly edited. * * * The object of surfing is to stand on your feet and stay calm while being chased by a wave that has every intention of eating you alive. There are certain refinements beyond this, such as hanging both feet, all your toes and as much of your ...
Mike Hynson is best remembered for his starring turn in Endless Summer, as the regularfooter with the self-satisfied grin, the glossy slicked-back blond hair, and the casual but flawless surf-forward wardrobe. The level of style that Hynson brought to Endless Summer was not a one-off. He would never again reach the kind of popularity he had during the mid-1960s, but that finely-tuned instinct for ...
Warren Bolster's profile on Alec Cooke, better known as Ace Cool, ran in the Winter 1992 issue of Surfer's Journal. This version has been slightly edited. * * * It was sometime in early 1983 when I first met Alec Cooke. I’d been living above Cafe Haleiwa, and Alec owned the surf shop next door. He was part of radio personality “Surfer Joe” Teipel’s surf report team that included, among others...
Matt Warshaw's profile on Christian Fletcher ran in the April 1990 issue of SURFER. This version has been slightly edited. * * * What’s important to you? Having fun. Having fun every day. Those guys on the World Tour don’t have fun. I know that for a fact. I did it in ’87—it was hell. You spend 60 hours traveling from one place to another, live out of a duffel bag and never get to eat home-c...