Surfings Origins - Santa Cruz
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This week, I’m gonna take a deep dive into Santa Cruz, not my home beach (which is Monterey), but it’s 45 miles north, and a true blessing to be that close to it. The surf spots run along the coast for nearly 50 miles, with these locations being more in and around Santa Cruz proper. Cowell's, Capitola Jetty, Steamer Lane, Pleasure Point, Manresa State Beach, The Hook, 30th and East Cliff, and Natural Bridges. The fabled Mavericks breaks closer to Half Moon Bay. All of these a legendary surf locations.
Surfing in Santa Cruz began with three Hawaiian princes: David Kawānanakoa, Edward Keliʻiahonui, and Jonah Kūhiō Kalaniana'ole. In 1885, while attending a military academy over the hill in San Mateo, California, the young princes traveled to Santa Cruz during a break. During that break, they harvested first growth redwood logs from the San Lorenzo River and hand-built their own surfboards, as they would do in Hawaii. As much as Huntington Beach wants to be the home of surfing in California, Santa Cruz wins.
Surfing was still a novelty at the turn of the 20th century, since most of the “social media networks were down”, and surfing was only available on the coasts. In 1907, George Freeth, a native Hawaiian, was the one who “walked on water” at various expositions between Venice and Redondo Beach. George was also the foundation for the first lifeguards in California. Various expositions brought both Duke Kahanamoko and Tom Blake to California, even to Santa Cruz, but the water was far too cold for the Hawaiians. Remember also any trans-oceanic trip was done by steamship and could take several weeks.
In 1951, MIT Professor Hugh Bradner invented the first wet suit, called a beaver tail. This was a huge boom for adventurers wanting to brave the 50 degree water of the Monterey Bay, with Santa Cruz being at the top of the bay.
Jack O'Neill moved to the area in the early 1950s and opened one of the first surf shops and the wet suit was a huge draw His innovation had a significant impact, enabling year-round surfing in Santa Cruz, and further cemented the city’s place in surf history. “It’s always summer on the inside” was the slogan from a Jack O'Neill advertisement.
I’d like to share some of the names of the men that brought surfing to Santa Cruz: Fred Van Dyke, Johnny Rice, Dave “Count” Littlefield, Danny Anderson, The Mitchels (think Mitchels Cove), Doug Haut, Dave Stewart, Gary Ventyrini, Harold Goody, Rodger Adams, Spike Bulls and Ted Pearson to name some. These men were pure lovers of a activity that was looked at as an outside, beyond the normal pastime. These names were preserved in the Henry Mayo collection of photographs. I thank both Henry and the Santa Cruz Natural History Museum.
Such a rich history in Santa Cruz! I hope I have brought light to the world of surfing with this blog, and I’ll leave you with one more picture - please notice the smiles. It’s what it’s all about; let’s see if there is more for next time on Santa Cruz. Aloha
I have incredible respect for all these men who started surfing; I’m sure you’ll enjoy them too.
I want to thank you all for reading Wood Water Soul. I want to announce we have Addicted to Joy and all the interviews are free. Again if you need a new T-shirt or you broke your favorite coffee mug, look no further. (check out the shirts, coffee cups, tote bags and water bottles ). Please share this Blog with a fellow surfer, or with a friend that needs some Joy in their lives. I invite you to watch, Aloha.