In case you haven’t already been informed, a memorial for Miki Dora is being held at Huntington Beach Pier, Saturday, Jan 26… Arrangement, Gidget informs us, spearheaded by David Nuuihiwa family… including a paddle out, bring flowers, maybe say a few words, etc. Besides being the icon of our age, Miki Dora also was the first guy I ever saw to break the traditional paddling mold by paddling arm over arm (as most of us always do now) rather than plodding along using both arms at together. What a great thing to teach us all through his example. Duuuh (I can almost hear him saying as I write) Another of his innovation was tying the board on top the car skeg first so the wind would ever be tightening the hold by blowing the skeg a bit to the side. And later using only one rope just around the front. (Of course this was during a time before any kind of surf racks.) I have to confess that for probably the first 15 years I surfed, I’d roll down the windows and tie the board on through the car. Then climb in and out the windows. It seems we all did. Only later did I finally realize that the doors could be opened BEFORE tying the board on, then open and shut to enter and leave. (Double duuh, right, Miki? You probably figured that out on day one.) Chapin (who we knew him as for it seems decades) was also a model builder of significance and I remember him running a bitchin’ little speed boat from the pit. Forerunner of todays motorized model surfer. And a heck of an artist, remember how some of his boards were decorated? Then there was a day, borrowing his awesome Quig heavy black square tail with the ‘Dork’ fin. What a sweet board. And I was surprised he was so cordial in loaning it out. (That year was a kelp filled season at Malibu and unless you had either a ‘Half Moon’ skeg or one of these shallow but with extra hanging off the back, ‘Oooolie’ or ‘Dork’ fins, you couldn’t even move through the kelp. Even so, you had to wait until way late to take off, that way there’d be plenty of water in the wave lifting you out of the kelp.
Thanks Tom, for sharing those memories with us.I will see if my bro Ray will attend…As for me,if not in person ,I will be there in spirit!Herb.