Baseball has Fenway Park. Football has Lambeau Field. In the world of surfing a Southern California wave named after a railroad bridge occupies a similar place of honor for those who love the sport. We visited "Trestles" during the Hurley Pro, an annual event that attracts the world's best surfers to an expanse of sand and cobblestones roughly 50 miles north of San Diego. Join us as we encounter this iconic American sporting venue for the first time.
An intriguing sideshow was the journey from the clubhouse to the water's edge. The athletes traversed what some referred to as the "beach highway" - a narrow, unregulated part of the beach flanked by fans and event scaffolding.
The job of navigating surfers through the throng belonged to Michael Simmons, a former security guard for singer Lionel Richie.
Once surfers reached the water's edge each had a different way of preparing for competition.
Some fans brought their own surfboards and tried neighboring breaks during lulls in the action.
Others used different ways of passing the time.
The biggest crowds gathered around Kelly Slater, 44, the 11-time world champion. One fan asked him to balance a spinning basketball on a flip phone and Kelly obliged. There were countless requests for group photos and selfies.
After each day of the Hurley Pro there were endless opportunities to surf the areas surrounding Trestles. We tested a few. Those who live in nearby San Clemente enjoy these breaks year round.
One local surfer we encountered was 62-year-old Randy Pile, a professional musician who plays classical guitar and teaches at Saddleback College. His favorite spot is Trails, part of the San Onofre State Beach. Randy said he started surfing when he was 12 and had to stop at 17 because "I knew if I surfed I wouldn't go to class." He picked the sport up again in 1990 and now surfs 2-3 times a week. It's "addictive."
Credits:
Twenty Magazine