History of San Onofre’s rich surfing culture detailed in new 1,500-page book

It started out as a simple collection of memories from the longtime surfers who were the original wave riders in the ’30s at San Onofre, the tucked away, cobble-stone beach south of San Clemente.

But what began as a small project meant to be no more than 100 pages turned into a historical compilation of 200 surfers’ stories, along with thousands of photos laid out in about 1,500 pages in the newly-released book “San Onofre: Memories of a Legendary Surfing Beach.”

“Other pioneer surfers heard about the project and they all said ‘we have memories too, and we want to share them’,” said San Onofre surfer and author David Matuszak, who has spent the past six years working on the book.

Matuszak will unveil the book at the Surfing Heritage and Culture Center in San Clemente on Saturday, Dec. 1, with a panel discussion. Key figures of surfing history will tell their stories of a place locals call “San O.”

“The project just took a life of its own and became a run-away train,” Matuszak said, adding that he wanted to showcase “the unsung heroes of surfing who established the sport as among the greatest recreational pursuits in history.”

History of San O

It’s not the first historical book Matuszak has written; previously he’s authored books about the Old West and the Gold Rush.

The former biomechanics and exercise science teacher of 40 years decided to take the same historical approach on the topic of surf at San Onofre State Beach.

His latest book goes far back before the surfers discovered the wave to when Native Americans were the first inhabitants of the land, and on to the Spanish Cattle Ranch era.

It also touches on the origins of surfing, the start of the sport in areas like Polynesia, Peru, and Africa, and the role that San Onofe played in molding California surf culture, when surfers like Whitey Harrison and others traveled the California coast in search for waves, discovering San Onofre in the ’30s.

Historical tensions

The book details how various groups interacted with each other – the farmers, cattlemen, the marines and the surfers – the latter two having a sometimes confrontational relationship.

The entire San Onofre area was taken over by the marines in 1942 by eminent domain to form Camp Pendleton after Pearl Harbor, Matuszak explains.

Trestles, part of San Onofre State Beach but north of the popular San Onofre surf beach and harder to access, was used as an amphibious craft training center and closed to the public and surfers, he said.

But it also happened to have some of the best waves in the world.

“All of that area, Trestles and Church and Cottons Point was out of bounds – you could not go in there,” he said.

One story that sticks out involves well-known surfer Mike Doyle, who was surfing with a friend at Trestles when the military police called them out of the water with a bullhorn.

“They refused to go, they paddled all the way to San Onofre, where the surfing club had special permission to surf the “Old Mans” area. They paddled there and they got onto the beach and mingled in with the surfers.”

Doyle later told Matuszak he was missing part of the story – the part where the police shot at them while they sat on their surfboards in the water.

“I don’t think they were trying to hit us, but we could see the bullets hitting the water around us,” he told Matuszak.

Some of the military police were forgiving. Others would run over boards and slash surfer’s tires.

“It’s a very colorful period of surfing history,” he said.

Family culture

Among the things that makes San Onofre so special is the family culture that thrived on the beach and in the water, a microcosm of Southern California in the ’50s and ’60s — a time when neighbors talked to each other and knew each other.

“That culture made its way to San Onofre via the San Onofre Surfing Club,” he said.

Only club members, at first 500 and then 1,000, were allowed to surf at the beach.

“It was considered to be one of the most exclusive clubs in the world,” he said. “Hollywood stars couldn’t get in. It was a 5-year waiting list.”

The book chronicles different decades up to last year, telling the stories of locals like Evie Fletcher, now in her 90s, one of the few women surfing the area in the ’50s and ’60s.

“She was really the matriarch of female surfing there,” he said.

Uncertain future

There’s a few reasons he wanted to write a history of surfing in San O, Matuszak said.

For the younger generation that now crowd San Onofre’s waves, he wants to tell them about the family vibe among the surfing tribe — something lost with today’s youngsters, he thinks.

“It’s still a family beach more than any other place, but it’s not the same,” Matuszak said. “My hope is to encourage, what we call the spirit of aloha, at San Onofre.”

He also wants to make sure the stories are told before the original surfing settlers are gone.

“At least 12 of the old timers have passed away in just six years,” he said. “This project can not be done again… These people are gone.”

Another driver behind his encyclopedia-size book: the uncertain future of San Onofre.

The 50-year State Parks lease with the military is up in 2021, and it’s unknown whether the federal government will continue the public access enjoyed here for the past five decades.

“I’m hoping that my book offers the historical documentation to support the significance of the place.” he said.

Book signing

When: 10 a.m. on Dec. 1.

Where: Surfing Heritage & Culture Center in San Clemente, 110 Calle Iglesia.

Q&A: A panel of surf culture notables will include Paul Strauch, Kalani Akui, Steve Pezman, Steve and Barrie Boehne, Jericho Poppler Bartlow, Joyce Hoffman, Steve Long, among others.

For more information on the book, visit Pacificsunset.com