Surfing in California has a rich, storied history. In the late 1800s, three Hawaiian princes, who were studying at a military academy in northern California, carved surfboards out of redwoods and paddled out for Santa Cruz locals to watch.
It was later popularized by Duke Kahanamoku, and his surfing demonstrations performed in southern California, during a publicity tour ahead of the 1912 Stockholm Olympics (where The Duke swam to a gold medal in the 100-meter freestyle).
Flashforward a couple decades, and surfing’s popularity continued to grow.
In newly released footage from CBS 8, the surf scene of San Diego in 1965 is shown. And accompanying the historic footage, there’s a report from former anchorman, Mel Knoepp.
As it turns out, some things in the surf world were much different back then, and some things haven’t changed.
Knoepp wrote:
“A pastime that has been a common way of life for thousands of young men for years, particularly in Southern California, suddenly has gained status. Despite the unfortunate reputation that some shaggy, irresponsible participants have given it—surfing has become a sport. Almost like tennis, golf, or waterskiing.”
Sound familiar? Even today, in 2023, surfing is still struggling to earn its spot amongst more mainstream sports. Just recently, in 2021, surfing made its debut appearance in the Olympics – something Duke Kahanamoku was pushing for way back in the early 1900s.
And check out this nugget from Knoepp’s reporting:
“Traditionally many so-called surfers were nothing more than beach bums: young men and women who had nothing else to do but hang around the shore and when they got restless, cause trouble. Beach area residents know them well: backyard fences broken up and carted off for beach fires, trampled geraniums, beer can littered driveways.
“But the San Diego police department reports that complaints are becoming fewer in number every year. Says one police captain: ‘We get much less trouble now from the surfers than in the past. Our new policy might help—when a surfer is cited—we also seize his board for 3 weeks and that really cramps his style.’ No wonder this sport is one of the fastest growing athletic endeavors in the world.”
Trampled geraniums? Beer cans in driveways? Cops confiscating surfboards, as housewives clutch pearls at the sight of sandy-footed surfers?
Sounds like the good ol’ days.
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