The second wave

Mike Sciacca

Aaron Pai, owner of Huntington Surf and Sport, called it the lifelong

dream of several people in the local surfing community to open a

surfing Hall of Fame in famed Surf City.

Friday at 10 a.m., that dream that came to fruition will celebrate

its second class when some of the biggest names in the sport of

surfing will be inducted into the Surfer’s Hall of Fame.

The ceremony, which this year will honor inductees Jack O’Neill,

Tom Curren, Shaun Tomson and Andy Irons, will take place in front of

Huntington Surf and Sport.

“We’re honoring some incredible people who have made some

outstanding and memorable contributions to surfing worldwide,” said

Pai. “It’s a pretty impressive group and in terms of surfing. These

four have more than 200 years of experience. That’s amazing.”

The four inductees will add their handprints and footprints to the

cement blocks around an imposing statue of Duke Kahanamoku, the

“Father of Surfing” and winner of three Olympic Gold medals, that

stands in front of the popular Downtown surf shop.

“I spent many years competing in Huntington Beach, and it’s a

sentimental place for me because I won the Katin Team Challenge there

in 1977,” Tomson said. “I won $5,000, but more importantly, that win

gave me a lot of confidence, as I used it as a springboard to win my

first world title that same year.”

Friday’s additions will bring the number of honorees in the

Surfer’s Hall of Fame to 10.

“The idea of the Hall of Fame was a cool way to give back to our

community and the sport of surfing,” Pai said.

A nine-member committee selects the inductees the November or

December before the ceremony, he said.

“When making our selections, the committee takes into account what

an individual has done in the past as well as what they currently are

doing,” he said. “This group of inductees not only has done some

outstanding things, but continues to contribute to the sport of

surfing.”

Here’s a look at the 2003 inductees into the Surfer’s Hall of

Fame:

JACK O’NEILL

O’Neill is one of the most significant contributors to the sport

of surfing for creating the wetsuit.

Because of his development of the wetsuit, surfing has become a

year-round sport.

In 1952, he opened one of California’s first surf shops in a

garage in San Francisco with a modest lineup of products -- balsa

surfboards, wax and the first neoprene vests.

By 1980, O’Neill Surf Shop had become an international company

with a stronghold on the world’s wetsuit market.

Today, O’Neill is the top-selling wetsuit brand in the world, with

distributors in more than 67 countries.

His work ethic as an entrepreneur earned O’Neill a lifetime

achievement award from Ernst & Young.

In January, O’Neill celebrated 51 years in the surfing business.

TOM CURREN

Curren is known as a “natural talent” in the surf industry, a

surfer who possesses power, grace and the ability to nail large,

drawn-out turns and catch phenomenal tube rides.

He entered the surfing scene in 1980, the year he established his

name among the sport’s up-and-comers by winning the Junior division

of the World Amateur Surfing Championships. In 1985, at just 19, he

won his first professional world title and became the first American

to win the title since the pro tour began in 1976.

Curren has won three world titles overall and more world tour

events than any other surfer.

SHAUN TOMSON

Thompson is considered surfing’s first “true professional.”

A native of South Africa, Tomson began surfing at age 10 on a

longboard, but soon made a successful transition to the shortboard.

He had a distinctive surfing style and developed an amazing

barrel-riding ability while surfing Jeffries Bay in his native

country. His low, wide stance allowed him to create one of the

smoothest roundhouse cutbacks in the sport.

In 1975, Tomson won the Pipe Masters at the North Shore in Hawaii,

and in 1977, became champion of the world tour.

Tomson had one of the most successful surfing careers, which

included being a Top 16 seed in the world until 1989. Later, he made

several appearances at the World Masters Championships.

Tomson lives in Santa Barbara, where he runs his own clothing

company, Solitude. In 2002, he was named Environmentalist of the Year

by the Surf Industry Manufacturers Assn.

“I think it’s very important to get as much excitement and

exhilaration out of the ocean, then do enough to give back to it,”

said Tomson, who serves as chairman of the Surfrider advisory board.

ANDY IRONS

Irons has made a name for himself as one of the best surfers in

the world.

The native Hawaiian rose to the top of the National Scholastic

Surfing Assn. in the early 1990s and got his first taste of big-time

surfing when he competed in and won the HIC Pipeline Pro in 1996.

In 1997, Irons qualified for the World Championship Tour, and in

his first season, won the six-star G-Shock U.S. Open and the Op Pro

in back-to-back events.

Later, on Oahu’s West Side, he was crowned Billabong World Junior

Champion.

In 2000, he was among the top 16 in the world. He went on to win

the Billabong Pro at Trestles in San Clemente.

Irons rose to the top of the sport in 2002 when he captured the

coveted world title.