Moved to Fla from Va Beach in the late 60's. Watched the guys from shore on longboards as I kid and always hoped I'd own a board one day. Became a lifeguard on the west coast of fla and our rescue boards were about 11 ft. long. One day after work, a squall was off the coast throwing waves 3-4 ft about 400 yards out. We grabbed the boards and started paddling and taking off on waves. Needless to say, you never saw a bigger bunch of idiots. We were wiping out, running into each other and getting hit by the boards. After about an hour, I began standing up and turning the board. The waves began to reform on the inside, and each ride was a few hundred yards long. I hadn't noticed but a crowd began to form on the beach, and cheers started to rise up with each successful ride, encouraging us to keep trying. We finally packed it in from exhaustion, but I'll never forget that day, and remain a devoted longboarder.

Good stuff, very cool!

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Who needs a better life?

First surfed at Galveston Texas, then Dad transferred to Homestead AFB and South Beach was my proving ground.

First time I surfed was in Galvestion Texas. The Dad transferred to Homestead AFB and began sufring South Beach.

Va. Beach, 1974...6 foot styrofoam board with a plastic fin...My grandad pushed me into my first wave and I was hooked.  Hurricanes and Hatteras (Rodanthe pier) taught me all I know. 

PS -My grandmother gave away my grandad's 12 ft. Velzy to the lawn guy. 5k + lost.....

Kauai 1975.  Been at my family's new digs one night.  Bought a board from neighbor Billy Isherwood for $15.   Walked to awesome break.   Stood up on first wave fell and got the crap beat out of me in that beautiful blue water for the rest of that gorgeous morning.  Hooked.  

I learned to surf behind ocean woods apts in the winter of 94'. Back then it was a much smaller development that it is now, and had a cool trail leading to the beach that gave us

the feeling we were on an adventure through the jungel( bums, coons, bobcats, snakes, huge banana spiders).



The typical north winds would be offshore up there and I remember knee high offshore days that to me looked like J-Bay! My brother and I each had foam boards, Mine a 6'

thruster, and his a 8' long board.



My mom would not want us to go out deeper than we could stand so I remember walking out until even on my tippy toes I could not touch, then bracing my elbows on my board

so most my body was out of the water to appear as if I was walking, but really was kicking toward the outside!


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I troll 2L.com to be a better person in real life

I learned to surf in 93. My pops took me to the cocoa beach pier and i never looked back... It then turned into a hobby which quickly escalated to an addiction/obsession which my father already had. Thank Pops!!!

As a kid in the 70s went camping at Pacific Rim park, Vancouver B.C., this burned out hippy guy rented my brother, sister and I wetsuits and (leashless) boards, a short lesson for $5.  The guy (kinda fat) had a hard time getting up but we didn't care. It was 2-3', so much fun!!!!!!

1988 with a 6'0" rainbow in wrightsville beach, norf cack

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'85. I was 15. A buddy and I headed to New Smyrna and rented a couple of boards from Inlet Charlie's. We didn't know any better. They advertised on DIZ all the time. We were a couple of Kooks. The locals were giving us the typical intro by threatening to run over us if we tried to take their waves. A couple of guys headed to shore and started swinging. It was eye opening to say the least. Over the next year or so we gravated to Cocoa. At first the Pier and then within a few years to second light.  

Learned surfing by surfing on hard bottomed boogie boards until I was about 12 or so, then got a surfboard. Was small enough to ride it like a surfboard.

My first wave was at Break Wall Beach in Lahaina Harbor. We were on a family trip to Maui. You never forget that first wave!

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~ A A Ron
MahaloBoards.com

I'll keep the tread going. 1965 15 years old and 145 pounds, surfing a 10 foot something Harbour surfboard.  We  loaded our boards into one of our small boats and sped across the Great South Bay on Long Island, New York to one of the barrier islands that had no roads or car access. Crowd factor 0 on a 1-10 scale. First day stoke factor a 10.

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Josh Rubin

1970/71 Ditch Plains, Montauk, New York on a 6ft Corky Corrol Space Stick.

1971; 2.5 years old. On a 7'6" O'Hare Pig/Beach board,(one of the 1st "shortboard" shapes). Rode my 1st wave to the beach after being pushed in by my neighbor!! He told my Mom that I was a natural and its all I've Loved since,.....Until my Daughter was born!!! Still LOVE it to this day, although we've had our ups and downs!!!!

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Tubes, Boobs, & Doobs!!!

This is a fun thread...

My first surf experience was in 1975 when I was 4 years old. My folks took my little brother and I to 4th St South. My dad pushed me into a wave on a styrofoam belly board, I was hooked on the feeling immediately.

My first stand up session was Spring Break 1984 behind the old Cocoa Beach Holiday Inn on a borrowed Cocoa Beach Surfboards board. Don't remember the exact length (maybe 6'0") but it must've been 3 inches thick. I recall a slightly older dude making fun of the board! I never heard of that label before or since. At any rate, I stood up on the first wave I paddled into, not because I was a natural but more likely because I'd been sponging for years.

About 2 months after that my dad dropped me and a couple friends off at Islander Hut early one morning. I had in the interim acquired a 5'11" Canyon twin fin shaped by Rusty. The waves were head high and clean, probably an early season tropical swell (nobody knew where the waves came from back then). I caught a long clean right where I was under control and trimmed, wall flying by, offshore wind in my ears. I'll never forget that moment. One of the older guys from my neighborhood was out and hooted at my wave. That day is in my top 10, right up there with my kids being born.

One common theme in these stories is mom and dad taking us to the beach and getting us started. I've done that for my kids. Keep it up parents!

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"If I say it's safe to surf this beach, captain, then it's safe to surf this beach!"

Edited: 08/18/2018 at 07:37 AM by SurfCaster