Met a really cool guy today while I was working. I went up to an old historic site on the North End of Hilton Head Island, at the end of beach city road. We were looking for a place to build a museum. This guy had built, by hand, by himself a replica of an original house that was built on the site when The Union moved in 40,000 troops to initiate the "Anocanda" in the civil war. They built an entire military base with rail road tracks and a pier that could accomodate 300 foot vessels all in 30 days... Anyway, this guy had artifacts from his property that were nuts. Thousands of trinkets from the civil war. Small cannon balls, weapons. He had the oldest piece of pottery EVER found on North America. It dated back to the Indians around 2800 BC. Crazy... So anyway, the historians I was with all know this guy very well and asked him how Costa Rica was. They were saying, how were the waves and all this stuff. Then someone asks him what is in the huge shed out back. He says, ohh nothing. Junk. A couple hundred old surfboards, some sails, paddleboards and stuff. Ding, Ding... It was an inappropriate time to talk surfing, so before we left, I shook his hand and asked him how Costa Rica was... Made a joke about how bad it must suck to be back on the Island after spending time there. He went on to tell me that he constantly goes down there, and that he does have hundreds of boards in his sheds and he shaped most of them. He said he used to own a surf shop on the Island. He said, "shoot kid, I surfed in the US Open back in the day".... So, I left baffled, intrigued that I met the guy. Definitely want to take a peak in that shed, to see this guys boards from decades of shaping. He is into sailing as well... Anyway, Does the name Jerry or Gerry Weckhorst ring any bells to anyone around the low country? Can't find anything on the guy on google. Tried to look up what the old surf shop was called on Hilton Head. Wanted to see when he competed in the US Open... Just sparked my interest. Everyone in town seems to know him. Anyone know this guy or about his old shop?
Personally doesn't ring any bells, but that sure is a cool story. This might help: http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2482&dat=20010913&id=sZ1IAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MwsNAAAAIBAJ&pg=1235,5002835 This link even credits him as a "pioneer of surfing on Hilton Head." http://scmcs.weebly.com/members-rides.html
i know who your talking about. try looking back 20 years on stuff about hhi, its non existent. but that dude did surf the open and did good. listen man this island lost its soul, your kind can have it now, dont take offence..its just the way it is and became.
Wow man. Thanks for the link. That is him. He was working on an old 50's model pickup that he was working on out front. He was under the hook when we pulled up. His wife's nickname is "Nan-Sea" and apparently she is one of the most recognized sail maker in the southeast. Here is the blurb: If you have lived on the Island for a while and not buried under a rock, the names of Nancy and Jerre Weckhorst bring a lot to mind. I credit them for being the pioneers of surfing on Hilton Head and their work with wildlife and historical preservation speaks for itself. Their karma meter is maxed out. I've always looked up to the duo and when my brother told me that they had a 1960 Impala with some interest of cruising with us, I jumped at the opportunity. Their 1960 Impala dubbed "Momma's Ride" is a smooth, clean Island cruiser with a 283 V8 and a luxurious interior. Sleek, mellow and for the fun of it. This is how they surf. This is how they drive. This is how they live. And this link was even better. I feel like I just got tossed back into the history of surfing on this island. And it looks like this guy I met yesterday is in fact the godfather round' here. Interesting. I will definitely pick his brain a whole lot more when I see him again. He knew everything about the coast line on the island and is quite the historian. Thanks for the link. I was miss-spelling his name in google.
Except for maybe Costa Rica. He was telling me he spent a lot of time out in my old neighborhood in San Diego, OB. He and I traded a few stories, so in that generation of the surf community, they are probably known by Skip and Mouse and all those guys from that era in Southern CA. I am sure you meet a few people at the US Open and the World Championship.
