Years Surfing + Top Two spots

1989 in OCMD. Got my first board for christmas during 5th grade. It was an ugly pink and purple Ashton thruster from Sunshine House.

Best Waves:
1. South Shore Oahu/Northwest Maui
2. Hatteras
3. OCMD in October

Dream Wave
1. Ollies Point

 

1977,yellow Gerry Lopez Lightning Bolt wing pin single fin.
up the street,Surf Way,Chadwick Beach.
Buxton, the motels.
i'm content.

 

First place I ever stood up on a board was fall '03 in Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The place is just magical pristine nature. Waves were small when I was there, but it can pump in the winter. I will go back! I have family in western Canada and we took a camping trip there. My sister and I got lessons, cold water, booties and hood. Not so typical first surfing experience!

After that I was hooked. However, went to college in Philadelphia and playing on ice hockey team limited my water time. Surfed AC, Seaside, LBI a bunch any chance I got. Hurricane Hannah was a special day for me. I even took NJtransit train to AC a bunch because I didn't always have a car. I would skate with my 6'10 Steve Ford under my arm down to 30th Street Station. Man, the looks and comments I got lol!

Graduated and got a job in NYC and now live in LBNY, one block from the beach. Dream come true.

I have been fortunate to travel a bunch, these are my favorite places

1) So.California camping/surfing tour
2) All over Maui
3) Vancouver Island
4) Montauk

Of course, cant beat at home break with friends hooting and hollerin!

Making some coin now, got trips coming up for Morocco and Panama!

 

I've been surfing basically the same 5-6 jetties since 1985 - age 14- didn't surf much from '91-96 (military & college)

I fantasize about long lefts - Montauk, Pavones (CR), and Puntas Rocas (Peru)

 

I've been surfing for almost 18 years now (started @ 11) and the two best place I've surfed are Montauk and OBX. I haven't surfed much while traveling, but there are tons of places I'd love to surf.

 

Telling my age now; started surfing at age 14 (1976) (heavy-natural art single fin) between the triple s pier and oceanna pier in Atlantic Beach, NC, also Emerald Isle some in late 1970s early 80s. Surfed to 1985. Went to college, graduated, got a job, house, wife, kid, ect.. started surfing again in 2002. (with updated boards! LOL)

Favorite Spots
Outer Banks - so many spots to choose from
Wilmington - (wrightsville) good swell window
AB, EI - when the fickle spots break

Wish List
Santa Cruz area
Trestles
J-Bay

 

First paddled out at the old Deauville Jetty in Rehoboth in 1983.

Best waves surfed:
1. La Lancha, mainland Mexico. 3 perfect days
2. Little Hawaii, CR on a huge day

 

Wow

Tons of respect for someone surfing that long.

very curious, is it crazy to witness how much surfing evolved in just a mere 40 yrs?

because its still schocking to me how much it evolved peformance wise in the 7 yrs i been in this blessed sport.


like imagine 45 years ago you saw 20 yr old kids doin this http://www.surfline.com/video/webisodes/landscape-altered-part-one_42589

these surfers are way ahead of their time

 

Those boards are great.

1. I got my first Morey Boogie board in 1976. I think it was called the "Aussie." I lived in North End (Long Branch, NJ) and wore that thing out! Somebody there had a Lightning Bolt...green with a yellow bolt. I wanted one so bad! In '78, I bought my first surfboard. It was a single-fin Sunset and had the same pin-ish outline that the Lightning Bolt boards do. I wish I kept it.

2. The first place is Ollies Point. The boatride is always a crapshoot, but if you catch it when it's hitting, you'll never forget it. The second place would be a toss up between Avellanas & Sandy Hook on a clean south swell.

 

Started surfing at age 9 in SIC. So I have been surfing for 30 yrs.. Wow time does fly...
I can not narrow down my best surf sessions or spot since there have been many so I'll go by my best two most memorable trips.
1st flew down to CR solo in 93 after college hung around for 2 months till I met a guy who was there already in Central America for 9 months had his truck shipped out from cali and needed someone to drive back with him. We drove back from CR hitting every spot we could... Nica was hardly on the map vert difficult to get to spots and saly was so scketch guatamala was empty and then mex was unreal. I flew back from cali, so surfed and travelled out total trip was five months.
2nd best trip was a high budget Indo trip 4 weeks Bali and G-land along with a week on boat best waves in the world have to be in Indo couldn't even day dream how perfect some spots were..

 

Started surfing about 4 years ago im 15 now. I really took off after my second year and im now able to do some nice carves and cutbacks. Just started surfing the fall and spring about a year ago. And when im able to drive i want to start surfing the winter. The best sessions ive had were my homebreak in barnegat light which is a long rolling left in about clean shoulder high waves.(Im Goofy foot) A nice break that i go to in beach haven that always works when the tide is low.

Places id like to go to would be:

-The Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras

- Take the Pacific Coastliner train route in Southern California and surf every break along it

 

started bodyboarding in 1990, didn't pick up my first surfboard until '03, a WRV funshape...it was the perfect board to learn on IMO and I still enjoy riding it some days....

two best spots:
1. Honalua Bay, Maui and some other spots along the road to Hana..wasn't big when I was there, but solid chest-head
2. Witches Rock, CR 1-2ft OH
& even though the place is way too crowded, IRI during Ernesto was one of the all-time best days of surfing...DOH+2-3ft and breaking clean right down the line....& Rodanthe Pier, NC when it was DOH was pretty sick!

really want to surf the left coast, Blacks, Trestles
and, of course, Indo...

 

Started bodyboarding 3 years ago, im only 17. Only been in nj.

2 spots id love to go to:
Laje do dramin

Breakwall

 

I started surfing in 1998 when I was 15.I had to take 3 years off from surfing due to knee reconstructive surgery.And an unfortunate fall down some stairs, which broke two of my leg bones last fall.The best waves I have surfed were on Hatteras Island and Roca Bruja this past July. I am planning on taking a trip to South Africa within the next year(I have always wanted to go on a safari and dive with white sharks) Indo would be a vacation of my dreams, hopefully I can make it there within the next few years.

 

Nice ride down memory lane in OCM for me it was '69, no surf beach, no leases and Dunes from 94 st to Bobby Bakers then more Dunes including the WWII watch towers dotted the beach all the way to Rehobeth Bch

 

Said Perfect!

 

As I read your post, I couldn't help but think about how much single-fin surfing reinforces these skills. Good post, MD.

 

Michael Peterson did it best

 

haha I am very happy I asked!
thanks for the wisdom.


You are right, when it comes down to it surfing will always be just you and the wave, with only a surfboard as separation. Its true you are not really surfing if you’re up in the air, but surfing is progressing so fast that their not just “punts " they link airs to turns to airs again. as fun and exciting as it is to watch, I hope the youth of surfing doesn’t get sold on " how high you can fly " and forget all about carving, snaps, bottom turns, cut backs, floaters…….heaven forbid the tube..

You never know because all the pros have to do crazy airs now just to keep up in a contest. Snaps and cut backs don’t do it any more for the fast paced crowd and judging. 10 yrs from now who knows what professional surfing will be like.

There’s no right or wrong way to surf. You can’t judge style, just like you can’t have a contest to see which artist made a nicer painting.