by Sean Carroll
The South Bay Quiksilver Triple Crown of Retro Surfing took place Saturday in a fun, waist to head high wind swell on the south side of the Hermosa Beach Pier.
The contest was sponsored by Quiksilver and Spyder Surf, which was hosting its 9th Annual Spyder Surf Fest on Pier Plaza.
“What makes this contest different from the others,” explained Spyder founder Dennis Jarvis, “is that the boards are older, they’re dinged up. You have to surf a board from the ’80s.”
“They’re totally different to ride than the boards nowadays, ‘cause this was the experimental phase of surfing. So when you see the guys out here, some are kinda bogging down and some are really rippin.’ The surfers have to pick the board that they think will work best for them. It makes for a really fun event.”
“Most of them are ones I built. I started shaping when I was on the pro tour in ’78. I shaped my own board and then I started shaping for friends in ’79. During the ’80s there was a big shift in the way boards were built, with twin fins and all these other, different designs. It was an age of metamorphosis and experimentation, trying to figure out what worked, what didn’t, and how many fins could go on a board.”
Saturday’s contest was about more than just surfing. It was about recognition.
“Hermosa Beach has a rich heritage of surfing and my frustration is that we don’t boast about it. So I’m waving the flag with my partner Dickie O’Reilly and the Quiksilver guys and all the brands you see when you walk through Spyder Surf Fest. We’re saying, ‘Look. Take notice of who we are and this is our ninth year.’ It’s kinda just a give-back, but hopefully it’s gonna shake up our community, to take ownership of Surf City USA, which is what we are.”
Two more contests are planned for the South Bay Quiksilver Triple Crown of Retro Surfing.
“The winner of the Triple Crown will be recognized August 20 during the Surfer’s Walk of Fame inductions. We’ll have the third contest that morning. Each contest has an era. So the next contest might be ’60s. All these guys may be riding longboards.”
“The winner of the Triple Crown wins a custom Mark Richards twin fin. That’s through the Quiksilver guys. I’m making a custom surfboard for the winner of each of these individual events.”
The South Bay Quiksilver Triple Crown of Retro Surfing Results results:
Men’s
- Matt Pagan
- Dane Zaun
- Tom Seth
- Chris Darrah
- Cody Purcell
- Robbie Itzinger
Women
- Kyra Williams
- Megan Seth
- Emma Waldinger
- Amelie Vergnolle
- Sophie Arky
- Peri Nathan
Juniors
- Chad Parks
- Will Allen
- Billy Atkinson
- Parker Browning
- Shane Moseley
- Beck Cherry
