The Pier in Huntington Beach.  Salt Creek in Dana Point.  Brooks Street in Laguna Beach.  Trestles in San Clemente.  It’s undeniable: Orange County is a legend.  And its beaches are the hub of international surf culture.

The Birth of Surf City
OC’s surfing lifestyle carved its way into SoCal during the early 1900s when Huntington Beach founder H.E. Huntington organized HB’s first pro surfing exhibition.  Later, legendary Hawaiian surfer Duke Kahanamoku, the father of surfing, further boosted the sport’s popularity with his surf-gospel-spreading visit to OC.  And when local musicians Jan and Dean dubbed HB Surf City, history was officially written: OC had become the heart of the surfing universe.

On the Cutting Edge
From geezers to grommets, CEOs to art students, while catching an OC wave, we’re all part of the same tribe.  In fact, OC’s surfology has become a powerful, uniting influence throughout the world. Surfer’s Journal publisher Steve Pezman locates OC on “the cutting edge of humanity”.  From the hottest threads and slickest sticks, to internationally-renowned tournaments and surf schools, OC sets the bar for the surfing world.  This isn’t a passing fad. Surf style just seems to flow here. Surfwear is a $4-billion-per-year industry and OC is the trendsetter.  The foundation lies in home-grown entrepreneurs – Quiksilver, Oakley, Roxy, Billabong, Hurley, and Volcom – leading the way to an ever-growing market while still finding time to hit the beach daily.  Beyond threads, local shops like Jack’s Surfboards and Huntington Surf and Sport offer the sweetest boards and all the gear a surfer needs.

Our Way of Life
But surfing here in the OC isn’t just a commodity.  It’s a way of life.  Surfing America, the governing body of surfing, is based right here.  Back in 1959, Huntington Beach housed the very first US Surfing Championship, now evolved into the peerless US Open of Surfing with 600+ top surfers and more than 250,000 spectators flocking to the city each summer.  And with the future
stretching endlessly ahead, it’s events like these paving the way for landlocked surfers – air shredders – like BMX bike riders and skateboarders.  Hey, down here, anyone can surf the OC way.

Safe Waves
For the last century, national and international surfers have found peace here in OC’s legendary waters.  But our ocean can’t always protect itself. Local surfers and volunteers strive to preserve our most vital natural resource through the San Clemente-based Surfrider Foundation – a grassroots non-profit dedicated to protecting all of the world’s oceans, waves, and beaches.  For more information on how you can help, check out www.surfrider.org.