I visited the Surfing Heritage and Cultural Center (SHACC) in San Clemente while I visited the West Coast. Thanks to Unclegrumpy for the recommendation. Sorry I missed you!
SHACC is not a hall of fame for surfers. It is a museum of surf crafts and the teaches the progressive evolution of the surfboard. I was lucky enough to receive a tour from Dick Metz. If no one knows who Dick is, look him up. He has a ton of experience, knowledge and has been in the surfing industry his whole life. He worked with Hobie, opening a shop in Hawaii. He was also at the forefront of developing polyurethane foam with Hobie before Grubby Clark took over. Dick collected the vintage surfboards, since at the time no one wanted them. Vintage meaning the old balsa and redwood boards. The boards that weighed 130 pounds. He saved these boards for generations before opening SHACC. All the boards were in storage or in Hobie shops. He decided people would appreciate the history. He also had four Duke Kahanamoku boards, which was impressive.
I attached a bunch of pics. Take a look. Its an extensive history of boards.
It was an awesome place to visit. Everyone there was friendly and full of knowledge. Talk to Dick he has a ton of stories. I highly recommend to anyone interested in learning the evolution of the surfboard.
My brother and I rushed down there after the Taylor Guitar tour in El Cajon, but we didn’t plan things well. Traffic was bad and got there 10 minutes before closing. Enjoyed seeing all the boards and had a nice chat with the 2 people there. We got a few goodies as well. We went to San Clemente to meet a guy my brother rents a place from on Kauai.
Too bad you missed Uncle Grumpy. He was kind enough to let me and my son explore the attic of the place. If you ask me that is better than what is on the floor. I was like a kid in a candy store searching through the literally hundreds of boards in stacks up there. Many famous boards and boards that came from famous surfers hiding up in that attic. They just don’t have the space to display everything. It is an absolutely amazing collection they have amassed and it is growing all the time.
Third pic down, way in the background is a rare and valuable board. Painted by Rick Griffin and shaped by Jeff Timpone, for their friend Tom Bernardy. It was up for sale some time back in the 90s with a price tag of $150k. It is one of only two boards known to exist that was painted by Griffin. The other is a thruster.
Speaking of Rick Griffin, we met a guy named Steevo at Bird’s shop in Ocean Beach. Steevo uses a version of the sun from Griffin’s Pacific Vibrations poster in his label. He was a cool guy and used to live near one of our old stomping grounds. He knew a lot of our friends at Barber’s Point. He busted out 2 Ukulele, and we played song together, then I showed him what I remembered about “the lonely bull” from endless summer.
A great place. You get to feel up the rails and everything. Touch a board surfed by legends. Never been to Cooperstown, but I doubt they let you put Honus Wagners glove on your hand and feel it up. SHACC you can! Mike
A great place. You get to feel up the rails and everything. Touch a board surfed by legends. Never been to Cooperstown, but I doubt they let you put Honus Wagners glove on your hand and feel it up. SHACC you can! Mike
Thanks for the kind words. It’s a privilege volunteering at SHACC.
Truly the Smithsonian of Surfing.
I’m always happy to share our amazing history; especially with fellow surfers.
If you are visiting San Clemente let me know and I’ll hook you up with the deluxe tour.
Did SHACC ever do a surfboard tour, showcasing a lot of those boards at other museums? I recall going to our art museum years ago and there was a large surfboard exhibit similar to SHACC. I spent hours in there and that was when I didn’t know what to look for. A lot of those boards have white dots on the tail. What is that? Please don’t tell me they’re leash plugs!
The small white dots on the board tails are the archival stickers with the boards catalog number that allow us to keep track of what’s where…
SHACC’s collection is big enough that we almost always have boards out on loan to other museum’s and galleries and also rented out for photos shoots and dressing for big events.
Boy that’s some heavy bullshit. Parrish’s board isn’t a thruster. There is also another board in Oregon that is pretty authentic but not confirmed. and likewise a belly board.
There are many myths, tall tales, rumors, and far fetched claims about Rick Griffin. Sadly, he is no longer alive to confirm what some claim. Some claims are harmless speculation, some are akin to urban legends, while others are outright lies.
Here are two photos of the ONLY other board that has been verified to contain his artwork. This, and the previous one, were on display at the Laguna Art museum in 2007 .
Having consulted two of Griffin’s former business partners, a couple of his friends, and his friend who owns the eyeball board that’s at the SHACC, the consensus is that the board listed on ebay was not painted by Griffin. A couple have called it an outright fake. I hope some poor sucker doesn’t buy it for the price listed.
The heart and torch emblem it has was ‘borrowed’ from one of Griffin’s 60s concert posters. The rest of the artwork on it is obviously not his work.
