Surfing's Origins - On being a Grom
Addicted to Joy has some exciting news, we now have T-shirts. almost 8 years after our first attempt (which was limited at best to about 25 shirts, because that was all the new shirts our printer had). We have established a limited line of shirts, you can view them here. These are really high quality supima cotton and wash up well. I’m tall so I would suggest ordering a size up if your big, but the large fit my wife very well, and we hope you enjoy them. I’d love to see the Joy being spread on the beaches and streets where surf history happens.
It occurs to me that if I really wanted to talk about surfing’s origins, I should also start with mine. I am a Grom….there I said it. Groms (officially they should be called Grommets) still exist in the world today, but were far more prevalent in the early to middle 1960’s before surfing exploded. In Hawaii, very few people were allowed to surf, as surfing was for kings, and surfboards were rare. Young men would sit on the beach and watch and learn. “What was there to learn by watching?” is what we would hear from beginners today, they would just get out and do it (that’s what I thought). The observers grew into the famed “Beach Boys”, helping tourists surf and along with Tom Blake, really established the surfing lifestyle.
The word “grommet” officially came from Australia in the 1950’s and seeped its way into the southern California surfing culture. A possible etymology for the word may be from the Portuguese term 'grumete', meaning the lowest ranking person on board a naval ship. Groms are certainly the lowest level person on the beach. It’s the grom’s job to watch and stay out of the way. Usually a younger friend of an established surfer, just like a Portuguese ship’s boy, they did the nasty work, what ever that could be. They also got a great education in surfing and everything involved in it. The changing of the tides, where the waves break and which way are they going, the skill level of the other surfers in the lineup, and everything involved in surfing. I’m sure the accepted use of the leash keep a lot of groms swimming their teacher’s boards back out after they had lost them in a wipe out.
I guess the first time I heard the word was when I was interviewing Wayne Lynch.I had asked him if he wanted to tell me a story, his response was a laughing NO!
Wayne (Australian) gave me a great education. Grom is a term often used in surfing culture to describe young, talented, and enthusiastic surfers, typically kids or teenagers. Wayne told me stories and shared his knowledge with me, I’m blessed.
Groms are known for their energy, passion, and dedication to the sport of surfing. They often possess impressive skills, despite their young age, and are often seen shredding waves with style and finesse. Grom surfers play an essential role in the surfing community, bringing fresh perspectives and keeping the sport vibrant and dynamic. Many professional surfers started as groms, honing their abilities from a young age and eventually rising to the top of the surfing world.
Kenny Tilton also used the word to describe me, but Kenny was kind enough to explain what I was doing incorrectly and helped me find the right Path. I think of you daily Kenny, rest in Aloha. Kenny proved to me that there was so much I needed to learn and he graciously took me under his wing and taught me, always with love and a smile.
The ocean is a strange and powerful place, it can take a life in a second, and before you embark on your surfing journey, you need to find a mentor. You need someone to show you the local breaks and rips, you need someone to show you how to get back up again after your first and worst wipe out. The grom is an essential building block of the surfing community. I encourage you to a find a mentor and sit at his or her feet. Knowledge is power and can save your life, Aloha!
I’d like to thank you all for reading Wood Water Soul. We’d like to announce we have moved Addicted to Joy to a new streaming service, we have some very cool things planned for the future, (check out the shirts)and we’re excited to share it with you. Please share this Blog with a fellow surfer, from or with a friend that needs so Joy in their lives. I invite you to watch, Aloha.