Who knows What You'll See?
Written
by SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel
The annual Vans US Open of
Surfing (July 28 - August 5) always has something new and exciting to see.
More than a champion surf event, it's a Surf/Skate/BMX extravaganza.
Since surfers first began competing
in Huntington Beach in 1959 the US Open of Surfing (now sponsored by Vans) has
evolved into one of the largest action sports festivals in the country. The
world’s best surfing, skateboard and BMX competitions are here along with art
exhibits and hands-on creative workshops in the Van Doren Village on the beach.
It's a summer fun fest for everyone
with a big dose of Huntington Beach hospitality that gets the whole community
involved. And you never know what you're going to see - from sports greats and
up-and-coming athletes to new surf product demos, art and outdoor movie events,
athlete meet-and-greets, and more. That's part of the fun.
So, come early and stay late. Java
Point Cafe in the Huntington Surf and Sport shop across the street opens at 6
AM. This is where the surfers go for coffee and breakfast treats or to grab
some board wax. If you're there on August 3rd having your morning coffee, step
outside the door and you can see this year's Surfers' Hall of Fame inductees -
Brett Simpson, Ben Aipa and Herbie Fletcher.
SurfWriter Girls are excited for all
the new inductees…especially Ben Aipa,
who we cheered on when he was honored by the Surfing Heritage & Culture
Center for his illustrious boardshaping career.
This is a big year for Aipa,
who is also being inducted into the Surfing Walk of Fame.
The restaurants and shops along Main
Street offer lots of places to hang out, enjoy a cool drink or ice cream and
check out the latest surf apparel and equipment.
Fred's Mexican Cantina overlooking
the HB Pier is one of SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel's
favorite spots. So is Duke's. Named after surfing great Duke Kahanamoku, it's
so close to the surfing action that you can feel the ocean spray.
And, while surfing history is being
made, drop in to the International Surfing Museum on Olive Avenue to see how it
all began.
The beach itself definitely will have
some surprises on hand – in the water and on the sand. When Fiat introduced its
Fiat 500 mini-cars it floated them in the ocean in front of the viewing stands.
One of McDonald's first McCafes
showed up here – as a pop-up on the boardwalk. GoPro - maker of the
ever-present cameras that go anywhere to capture the action - made its debut
here.
And Kelly Slater gave people a first glimpse at his line of cool home products that turn any room into a beach retreat at the USOS.
There's so much to see and do,
everyone loves the Open! Well, almost everyone.
Please
post your comment below. Comments will appear the next day.
Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel hold the
exclusive rights to this copyrighted material. Publications wishing to reprint
it may contact them at surfwriter.girls@gmail.com Individuals and non-profit
groups are welcome to post it on social media sites as long as credit is
given.
No comments:
Post a Comment