
Jimmy Young, founder/director of the prestigious Hermosa Beach Bear Back Invitational contest looked at the draining, overhead barrels Saturday morning at 16th Street in Hermosa Beach and wondered aloud whether the annual Super Bowl Sunday weekend contest should be postponed. The Pitcher House owner was concerned about liability.Greg Browning looked at the same draining barrels, breaking on a waist deep sand bar and said, “Look at those spitting barrels.”

Everyday, Don Swift sat in his spot, 40 yards southwest of the end of the Topaz jetty waiting for the next set wave. He had been out there for as long as I could remember, at least 30 years. He always got the wave of the day, facing into the bowl and coming off the bottom with a smooth turn into the top part of the curl with style and grace. But Don has been missing in the lineup since October 14 when he was diagnosed with a malignant tumor attached to his brain.


