Surfers’ Hall of Fame greets newest inductees
The red carpet was rolled out on the corner of Main Street and Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach as two legends of the surfing world became immortalized in concrete.
The Surfers’ Hall of Fame added two more inductees Friday — surf filmmaker Timmy Turner of Huntington Beach and surfboard shaper Rusty Preisendorfer from San Diego.
More than 100 people flocked to Huntington Surf and Sport to cheer on the newest members.
Turner was the first to dip his feet and hands into wet cement, thanking his family, surfing coach, friends and other surfers.
“I love Huntington Beach and I have no second thoughts about raising my family here,” Turner said. “I’m so blessed to be in H.B.”
Preisendorfer and Turner were the last of the Hall of Fame’s 2014 class to be inducted. Hawaii’s Carissa Moore was inducted July 25 before the U.S. Open of Surfing in Huntington Beach, in which she is competing.
They join previous inductees such as Peter “PT” Townend, Rick “Rockin’ Fig” Fignetti, Kelly Slater and Laird Hamilton.
“All of the inductees in the Surfers’ Hall of Fame have contributed greatly to advance the sport of surfing, whether through their talents, innovation and/or contribution to our surfing culture,” said Aaron Pai, founder of the Hall of Fame and owner of Huntington Surf and Sport.
Turner, 33, grew up in Surf City. He is best known for his film “Second Thoughts,” a 40-minute piece that won Movie of the Year at the 2004 Surfer Poll and Video Awards.
Townend, who helped Turner edit the film, said he was impressed with the onboard surfing footage during an era when GoPro cameras had yet to be created.
“I told him that was the most incredible footage I’ve ever seen,” Townend said.
Another film, “Cold Thoughts,” documented Turner’s ordeal with a staph infection he caught in 2005 while filming in Indonesia.
Turner currently works at his family’s Huntington Beach restaurant, the Sugar Shack on Main Street, a favorite among locals.
“I’m a trained, professional busboy,” he joked. “I cook and do dishes. Just don’t let me call the [guest] list, because I can’t even pronounce the names.”
Preisendorfer, 61, also made imprints in the cement. He had to sign his last name twice because it didn’t fit the first time.
The founder of Rusty Surfboards has shaped more than 40,000 boards.
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Surfing Walk of Fame
The Surfing Walk of Fame inducted six people Thursday during an event in front of Jack’s Surfboards in Huntington Beach. Granite slabs with their names will be embedded in the sidewalk along Main Street at Pacific Coast Highway.
The inductees were:
•Randy Rarick, a surfing pioneer who helped create the International Professional Surfers, the first governing body of professional surfing.
•Larry Bertlemann, a Hawaiian surfer who won the 1974 Duke Kahanamoku Classic and was the 12th-ranked surfer in the world in 1979.
•Phyllis O’Donnell, the first women’s world surfing champion in 1964.
•John Van Hamersveld, a graphic artist known for designing the poster for “The Endless Summer,” an iconic surfing film. He also helped design album covers for the Rolling Stones, the Beatles and the Grateful Dead.
•Mike Haley, a Huntington Beach surfer who won the U.S. Surfing Competition in 1960. He died in 2006 from liver cancer.
•Vince Moorhouse, a former lifeguard chief in Huntington Beach who is credited with developing the city’s lifeguard program.