FEB. '03: EAST COASTER'S HISTORY OF THE WORLD

In the beginning, God made California. Or so you would think. For decades, So Cal's media machine has made West Coasters the genesis for nearly every US milestone outside Hawaii. But, as the following timeline will prove, the truth is Right Coasters have been masters of their destiny since the dawn of time.

30 Million BC
Ice age melts and recedes, creating a glorious stretch of coastline along the world's second largest ocean.

August 28, 1565
The Spanish sail across said ocean and settle St. Augustine, FL, the oldest city in America.

August 18, 1587
Roanoke Island, NC. Virginia Dare becomes the first East Coaster born in North America (besides about a million Native Americans.)

1861
The first tourists invade Hatteras as Union soldiers stage an amphibious landing at Frisco. Immediately ask, "Where's Buxton?"

1870
The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is completed -- 198 feet of East Coast pride.

1886
Fishermen in Sebastian Florida dig out an inlet with shovels and wheelbarrows (no wonder they're so damn protective); it only takes 80 years for surfers to take over.

1912
East coast surfing officially begins with "Wave shooting" contest in Virginia Beach, using canoes and dories; that same year, VB's James Jordon receives a Hawaiian board as a gift and makes newspapers. Summer: Duke bodysurfs Steel Pier -- better late than never.

1913-1929
Surfing grows in VB via demonstrations by lifeguards Hugh Kitchin, Babe Brathwaite, John Smith and Capt. Robert Holland

1930:
John Smith and company begin introducing surfing through southeast and Florida while renting beach concessions. Budweiser rafts come later.

1932:
SFL's Bill and Dudley Whitman build first East Coast board ever: a 10 ft, 87 lb longboard based on a Hawaiian design. They paint it fluorescent yellow.

1933
You shoulda been there last century: the most active Atlantic tropical season on record with 21 named storms.

1934
John Smith and the Whitmans winter with Tom Blake in Florida and discuss hollow boards; 6 are built back in VB that with the help of engineer Bill Cox. Ghost shaping officially begins.

1935
VB holds a paddling contest across the Chesapeake Bay, 26 miles from Cape Henry to Cape Charles. Braithwaite wins in 6 hours 51 minutes.

1937
Whitmans take boards to Hawaii and Outrigger Canoe Club is so impressed they eventually make them members. Palm Beach, FL's Dave Aaron also travels to Hawaii with Dorian Paskowitz, meets Duke, surfs big waves, learns to shape, keeps building upon his return. Back in NJ, Stretch Pohl and Mike Howes catch the Duke performing at Steel Pier and begin building Tom Blake-style hollow boards.

1941-45
EC line-ups even less crowded as WWII turns many surfers into soldiers.

1948
Reuben Snodgrass moves to Montauk, NY from San Onofre and rides Ditch Plains and Shinnecock.

1955
Future 7-time US Champ Bob Holland, Jr. starts selling Jacobs boards out of his garage -- by '62 he's opened the town's first real surf shop with Pete Smith.

1957
Russians launch Sputnik -- plus dozens as surf careers as space race begins and NASA settles Cocoa Beach, drawing parents of Kech, Kuhn and Slater and others. Meanwhile, NJ lifeguard Charlie Keller builds the EC's first foam surfboard after seeing polystyrene at NYC boat show -- attempts to build stacked Miami bikini model not nearly as successful.

1963
After four years exploring East Coast with mentor Jack "Murph the Surf" Murphy, Dick Catri moves to Hawaii and becomes EC surfing's biggest ambassador. Comes back saying, "brah."

1964
Ron Jon surf shop opens in New Jersey but is soon overshadowed by Cocoa Beach location -- the world's largest surf shop -- which continues to grow in size (34,000 sq ft by '87) and hype. Aug. 31: Jack "Murph the Surf" Murphy arrested and convicted for stealing a 563.35 karat Star of India sapphire plus 23 other gems from NY Museum of Natural History.

1965
Cocoa Beach's Gary Propper is officially the hottest EC surfer as Hobie's Propper model proves to be the company's most popular. A year later, he's the only East Coaster to be invited to US Invitationals at Oceanside. Brings famous "jello mold" as a sign of appreciation.

1966
Aug: 'East meets West' at ECSC where Catri's Surfboards Hawaii team defeats the Weber team; Propper wins both men and juniors, beating Dewey Weber in the final with first 360 ever performed in a heat. Nov: World Contest takes EC push abroad as 14 year-old Mimi Munro finishes third over Australia women's champ, Gail Cooper, becoming the youngest surfer, male or female, to place in an international competition and is inducted into the Int'l Surfing Hall of Fame the following year.

1967
Summer: Mike Tabeling wins Juniors at Laguna Masters and is seen as the first international threat. Back in NJ, Bill Yerkes shows first all-EC surf film ,"How the East Was Won,' a collection of footage from '65 and '66. Fall: Rudy Huber, Cecil Lear, Hoppy Swartz, Will Jacobs, Don Herd, Richard Duffen, Bob Holland and Betty Marsh found the ESA, which goes on to produce every major EC star to date -- plus a healthy share of sixth place bodyboarders you'll never hear of.

1968
Dick Catri invited to Third Annual Duke Invitational. One of 24 competitors; Back home, the ESA crowns their first champ. Cecil Lear predicts it could become "the largest surfing association in the world." He's right. Furthermore, they go on to produce every big east coast star to date.

1969
Attention shifts south from Cocoa Beach's Canaveral Pier to Sebastian Inlet thanks to a newly extended jetty and it's new baby First Peak. Takes four years before they can surf it legally; almost thirty years later, Sebastian remains the East Coast's performance epicenter. 1970
First ESA's Easterns at Picnic Tables in Cocoa Beach's Picnic Tables fail to complete; move to Hatteras the following year and produce the first of many East Coast champs. Winter:North Shore locals name the left off Velzyland, "Freddieland" after Freddie Grosskreutz who lived in the bushes there for a year. 1971
After two years of fighting, Supreme Court refuses to hear Mike Fremon's case, upholding decision for Long Island, NY to close beaches to surfing on weekends and holidays; Surfing Magazine immediately moves from New York to California.FEB. 11, 1972
Kelly Slater is born, three wisemen in baggies show-up in Cocoa Beach. 1973
Jeff Crawford becomes Surfing's first East Coast cover boy with a shot taken by Warren Bolster at La Jolla.; 5 years later he graces the cover again with a Pipeline photo considered the most technical surf image of its kind. Jim Boone of North Carolina reports that NC State is designing an artificial Reef for Onslow county -- first of many artificial "pipe dreams." 1974
Sept:US Championships come to Cape Hatteras in September; Ricky Rasmussen and Isabel McLaughlin win in epic surf. Dec: Crawford wins the Pipe Masters; mags claim he's 'the first great surfer from the East Coast." Obviously, they never had to surf with him.1975
Dec: Thongs and shoe mirrors top Christmas lists in expectation of the following year's first Surf Expo.1976
Crawford becomes first mainlander to crack Top-16 in the IPS' inaugural year. The following season he beats Bugs in the first ISP-rated East Coast contest, the Florida Pro, at Sebastian Inlet. Bartholomew claims it breaks "just like kirra, but much shittier." 1977
Bill Yerkes buys Sundek and moves it to FL; becomes first EC company to sponsor athletes abroad (Ken Bradshaw) and non-profit groups (ESA and Surfrider).By the early 80s, the biggest EC surf shots are Sundek's ads. Winter: NJ's Linda Davoli goes straight to Oz after Hawaiian season and explores Indo; later becomes first woman to surf G-Land and the first female to beat a guy in man-on-man competition at the 1980 Bali OM Pro and stops touring ranked 3rd in the world. Comes back in 2002 to beat the fellas again in an Easterns Legends heat. 1978
Two-time Florida Pro winner Greg Mungall bails for Cali and wins the Katin over PT at HB pier; surfs without a wetsuit and downs a pint of honey before every heat. Later credits the East Coast's APS system as "superior", citing double-elimination and a points-based champion several years before a similarly designed ASP appears. 1979
Greg Loehr's stages first EC international pro victory at Lacanau Pro. French honor him with epoxy statuette of Eiffel tower.

1980
NY's Rasmussen and Tony Caramanico hook up with NBC producer Bob Nixon and enlist Linda Davoli and actor Gregory Harrison to surf Indo for an episode of American Sportsman; filmer Dan Merkel wins an Emmy. Summer: Chuck Evans and Mike Tabeling attempt to paddle 65 miles from Bimini to Florida but are defeated by man-o-war stings and currents, stopping just eight miles off Palm Beach. Efforts to find spot in Time/Life's "Tales of the Bermuda Triangle" series denied. 1981
Thousands watch as Matt Kechele beats APS champ Pat Mulhern in an all-Florida Stubbies Pro final at Sebastian; a later profile bills him as "the man bringing skateboard moves to surfing" for his ollie hop "Kech airs" and board spins. Take that, Fletcher and Crimo. 1982
May 9: the Weather Channel airs for the first time, giving East Coast surfers a new way to pray. Summer: Unknown Frieda Zamba blows away the Mazda Pro in Solana Beach with her 360s (becomes EC's first world champ in '84 and by '88 she's the first surfer to match MR's record of four world titles.) Aug. 29: A year after being busted for heroin Rasmussen dies in NYC in during a drug deal gone wrong. Sept.: MD's Jay Reale wins Easterns and becomes the first bodyboarding champ crowned anywhere. Cooler lid industry booms.1983
Todd Holland makes the final at HB to become the NSSA national team's smallest member at 4'10" 80 lbs -- the exact same size of his goatee ten years later. Aug: Wes Laine beats Tomson, Carroll and Ho to win the EC's first ASP event -- Atlantic City, NJ's Op Pro East -- breaking the top-16. Dec: Pipe charger Steve "Beaver" Masserfeller suffers one of the worst wipeouts ever during the Masters.1984
SFL's Wave Wizards pushes the limits of flatness and becomes known as the Waveless Wizards; a boat captain even guns past the lineup in a vain effort to create waves, forcing Ian Cairns to create the 18 inch rule. Mighty mite Tom Carroll wins, sets up for a repeat in the following year's more famous small-wave mockery, Allentown, PA's wave pool event. ASP adds, "no running" and "adult swim" clauses. Also that summer, Bill Johnson beats Parsons, Gerlach, Farnsworth, Booth and Sila 1985
Lisa, Andersen, 16, runs away from home, tells Mom: "I'm going to be world champ someday." Memorial Day: Kelly Slater places fifth in the Sundek Pro at the age of 13. SEPT. 22. New School when New School wasn't cool? SNC's Record Bar Pro. Kong wins in epic surf thanks to Hurricane Gloria but the real news is Kech beats Curren 5-0. 1986
Charlie Kuhn proves gators got gonads by charging a Waimea macker during the Billabong Pro while Gary Green and Bryce Ellis watch from the beach.1987
US Jr's Champ Todd Holland signs biggest pro sponsorship deal ever for an EC er with Op, then justifies the contract at the OP pro when he beats defending champ Occy in the first round. Sept: New Jersey surfers find hypodermic needles, soiled wound dressings and human body parts in their lineups; Gov. Kean orders $200 mil for cleanup and today the Garden State's waters smell like lavender -- well, at least they don't' smell like cadavers. Fall: ISA ranks Kelly as No. 1 in 19-and under division but he fails to make US Team for PR contest in the North Padre Island trials. "I guess it's my fault. But I still don't think it's right I'm not on the team because I had one bad day in junky little waves. "

1988
ASP judge Mike Martin starts ASP East. Richie Rudolph crowned first overall champ but not without controversies. June: When the world comes to NJ for the Garden State Pro at Seaside Heights, no one gets paid. ASP later settles-up with winner Rob Bain while promoter Tony Consilece disappears (much like the ASP East nine years later, but not before training 'CT talents such as Bryan Hewitson and Danny Melhado).1989
March: Doug Waters shot of David Speir at Sebastian Inlet is Surfing's first cover shot on the homecourt. That June, Logan beats world champ Damien Hardman at the Aloe Up Cup in New Smyrna; Hardman retaliates by out-drinking him. June: New Smyrna Beach toppled as Florida's most consistent surf spot when Disney World opens Typhoon Lagoon a 500' x 126' 2.7 million gallons wave pool. Dec: Year ends tragically when ESA director and guiding light Colin Cuture suddenly dies; replaced the following year by active bodyboarder/action watersport magazine publisher Kathy Phillips. 1990
Aug: Todd Holland beats Potter and Curren to win the Men's division of August's OpPro, Zamba zaps Womens and Melhado wins the Jrs, forging a new era of success and respect for EC surfing entered a new era of success and respect. Sept: Newly turned pro Kelly Slater wins the Body Glove Surfbout III, in some of the best surf ever seen for a CA contest. Ben Aipa: "You see that? He doesn't think he's some huge star. He's one of us. A surfer." Oct. 26: a huge barge busts loose and crashes into Oregon Inlet bridge, knocking out a 400-foot chunk, keeping Hatteras crowd-free for months. Winter: Organizers of Barbados' Natural Art/EKU winter contest request that Wes Laine not compete because of his refusal to support the ASP boycott of SA and related comments: "I'm not going to jeopardize my livelihood or miss out on a surf trip for anything. I don't feel a boycott has any impact on SA's politics."1991
Cocoa Beach Homecoming King Kelly Slater named one of People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People." Aug: Where's the Billabong Odyssey when you need them? Hurricane Bob slams into New England with 138 mph winds; waves nearly decapitate Mass' 100' Minot's Light Oct: Hurricane Grace meets up with a low pressure off Nova Scotia creating the infamous Halloween Swell -- better known by George Clooney and other outsiders as the Perfect Storm -- pushing 20+ faces from New England to PR; Bill Hartley rides Kech's 9'3" Waimea board at RC's in Satellite Beach. 1992
Jan. 20: EC natives turned Ocean Beach, SF locals Grant Washburn, Christie Davis, Bob Battaglia and John Raymond travel to Mav's with Doc Renneker (by 2002 Washburn is a big wave name with a Red Bull Award at South Africa's Dungeons.) July 3: an approximately 18-foot, 27 mile-long rogue wave crashes along Daytona Beach wrecking hundreds of cars and causing 75 minor injuries, seismologists blame an underwater landslide. Sept: Typhoon Lagoon lifts the ban on surfboards for Surf Expo display by Slates, Pottz and others, paving the way for weekly rentals by regular shmoes. Winter: Kelly Slater makes up for his decision to play Jimmy Slade on Baywatch by clinching his first world title in Brazil. All in all, the perfect year to unveil Eastern Surf Magazine and the Surf NRG video series, both of which become the longest running media efforts of their kind.

1993
30 years after coining the term, "Cowabunga," Gary Propper strikes back with a project called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; takes percentage of earnings from multimillion dollar film and merchandising and busy Maui estate. Summer: Future Surfing uberphotog Pete Friedenreich makes mag; later shortens his name to Frieden to conserve page space. Sept: Fifteen-year-old hellboy Dave Dixon becomes the coast's first homeschooler.1994
Dec. 9: Who's tops now -- and for the next four years? Kelly wins 2nd world and Pipe Masters crowns as Lisa takes her first world title. They'll tag team the competition thru 1997. Dec. 23: surf world mourns as Pensacola/Maryland ESA surfer turned Hawaiian supercharger Mark Foo dies at Maverick's. 1995
North Shore legend Roger Erickson moves to VB just in time for the most active hurricane season since 1933: 19 named storms and 11 hurricanes; Felix shines sending more than two weeks of epic surf from Maine to Miami. Aug. 11: VB pioneer Robert D. Holland dies, he's one of the few surfers able to remember the '33 season. Sept.: a Space Shuttle flight makes ESM the most far-reaching surf 'zine this side of Uranus. Dec: Dean Randazzo becomes the first non-Floridian to qualify for CT. Meanwhile, Kelly works on other records at the Pipe Masters, earning the highest heat score twice -- 29.32 then 29.70 -- for his third crown. Celebrates early by high-fiving Rob Machado in the semis. 1996
Jan.: East Coast Surfing Legends Hall of Fame honors inaugural class at Surf Expo. Feb: Lisa Andersen makes the cover of Surfer mag with the phrase, "Lisa Andersen surf s better than you" (proves it a year later by entering the mens of the 18th annual Katin Team challenge and beating CJ Hobgood.) May: Slater makes the cover of Interview with the phrase 'Half Fish, Total Dish. The world's greatest surfer." Proves it that summer by out-snaking Beschen at the U.S.Open. (Sebastian: 1; Lowers: 0.) April: Surfing sounds the grom revolution with a poster of 13 year-old Inlet terror Phillip Watters. July 13:Luke Morgan, Larry Schmidt, Mark Oliver arrested for surfing during Bertha (dubbed the "Spring Lake 3," they're vindicated two years later in a rare access victory.) Oct.: Relative unknown Ben Bourgeois beats Taj Burrow, Andy Irons and others at the ISA World Games in front of East Coast teammates Hewitson, the Hobgoods, and Kyle McCarthy, plus coaches Kevin Grondin and Bruce Walker. Nov.: Jason Borte becomes the last ASP East Champion as the circuit collapses.1997
The First Annual East Coast Wahine Champs hits Wrightsville in August, grows to 175 entrants by 2002.