Legendary Bay Area swim coach and U.S. Olympian Richard Thornton died Thursday while preparing to surf at The Hook in Santa Cruz. In a Facebook post, his younger brother said Thornton, 65, died “doing what he loved.”
Surfing
Posted inFood & Drink
Patrick Trefz melds passions for surfing, travel and food in wide-ranging new cookbook
Santa Cruz-based photographer and filmmaker Patrick Trefz is known for documenting surf culture. But in his new cookbook, “Ode to Travel,” Trefz shares recipes, photos and travel experiences through the lens of food.
Posted inRecreation & Sports
Cold Water Classic returns to Steamer Lane on Wednesday
Despite a rainy weather forecast, some of the country’s top professional surfers are gearing up for the return of the O’Neill Cold Water Classic at Steamer Lane starting Wednesday and running through Sunday. The World Surf League qualifying event promises fierce competition in the iconic amphitheater off of West Cliff Drive as more than 100 surfers, including Santa Cruzans like Nat Young, John Mel, Maddie Storrer and Autumn Hays, compete for $10,000 in prize money.
Posted inCoast Life
From Steamer Lane to Pleasure Point, high surf advisory thrills surfers, prompts rescue calls
Massive waves rolled through the Santa Cruz County coastline Thursday, as forecast by the National Weather Service earlier in the week. Though surfers rushed to take advantage of the big swell, safety personnel had a lot of work to do as they assisted about 20 people out of the dangerous waters. Friday is expected to see calmer seas, but the agencies working to ensure recreators’ safety will be monitoring the conditions closely.
Posted inLatest News
In the ruins of Lahaina, a surfing legend leads a volunteer army to get supplies to survivors
Legendary big-wave surfer Archie Kalepa has turned his home in Lahaina into a well-orchestrated supply depot for survivors of the devastating Maui fire.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
I left my board with a Malagasy surfer: How I learned to let go of what I cherished
Santa Cruz native Evan Quarnstrom left his favorite surfboard halfway around the world — on purpose. He gifted it to a surfer in Madagascar he had met who needed it more than he did. But he misses it. Here, he reflects on the bond between a surfer and board and the memories and surfer friends he made from Brazil to Indonesia to Madagascar during his almost two-year travel adventure.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
When is it not safe to surf? My experience surfing in the world’s shark-attack capital
Nowhere in the world has been more dangerous for surfers than Reunion Island, a French department in the Indian Ocean. The isle has gained global notoriety for its disproportionate amount of shark attacks. Santa Cruz native Evan Quarnstrom, who has called the island home for the past three months, details his experience becoming part of a unique surf community that has been forever altered by sharks. “Everyone seems connected to someone who was attacked,” he writes.
Posted inCoast Life, Events
The last wave: Ambitious and locally rooted publication Santa Cruz Waves closes up shop
Santa Cruz Waves, the glossy periodical devoted to covering surfing and its influence on Monterey Bay culture and environmental issues, has ceased publication. “To put it quite bluntly,” CEO and founder Tyler Fox told Lookout, “I was just not getting enough financial return to make it worthwhile for me, personally.”
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
On Jack O’Neill’s 100th birthday, let’s celebrate ocean protection and education
People associate Jack O’Neill, who died in 2017 at the age of 94, with inventing the wetsuit, which allowed him and other surfers to spend more time in cold water. As we approach what would have been his 100th birthday on Monday, Tracey Weiss, executive director of O’Neill Sea Odyssey, encourages us to celebrate Jack’s role in ocean protection and education. Jack called the program, which focuses on educating youth about the ocean, his “greatest achievement.”
Posted inCoast Life
Kitesurfing Californians found the perfect beach in Baja. Then they gentrified it
A quirk of geography has created a spot in southern Baja with nearly perfect winds for kitesurfing. In the past few years, Californians have built a thriving outpost there. Is the growth sustainable?