SURFING NAKED
Update
July through September Things To Do Nude offers
Nude Surfing Lessons, click here

Surfing is a great sport and a natural for nude recreation.  Since you can’t wear normal clothes, why wear any?

SHORT HISTORY OF NAKED SURFING

When the Hawaiian natives invented surfing they did it naked.   When Mark Twain visited Hawaii in 1866 he wrote  “In one place we came upon a large company of naked natives, of both sexes and all ages, amusing themselves with the national pastime of surf- bathing.”   Clearly the Hawaiians were on to a good thing.  Too bad the missionaries messed that up.  

But surfing and nudity wasn’t over.  Long before wetsuits were invented, early American surfers like Tom Blake and George Larson used to surf nude at San Onofre, then a remote beach well south of Los Angeles.

Surfing  nude was still popular in '70s .  California surfers Mike Purpus and Angie Reno both posed and surfed naked for Playgirl and Wayne Bartholomew of Australia did the same for Tracks surf magazine cover shot.  Women got in the action too.  Laura Blears of Hawaii was featured in a US Playboy spread and Four-time world pro tour champion Wendy Botha did an Australian Playboy.

Even current surf legends like to get naked and surf once in a while, including a pro surf team travelling the world on the Billabong Odyssey surf ship.  

NUDE SURF CONTESTS

Australians have  proved to be the most enthusiastic nude surfers.  A group of Sydney surfers formed Club INT - In the Nude - in 1984 later changing their name to Even Nuder.  They had  28 nude surfers in their first contest which grew to a major event at Bondi Beach drawing more than 2,000 spectators.

 Each summer the Blacks Beach Bares hold a Nude Surf Event at Blacks Beach.  Dozens of men and women from kids to senior citizens jump on their boards and compete naked.

WHERE TO SURF NAKED

In California, the best nude surfing is at San Onofre.  Waves are reliable and fun.  On a warm summer day there will be dozens of nude surfers riding the waves, and hundreds more naked  people on the beach.

Blacks Beach has some great surfing, but the best surf area isn’t on the nude beach section.  You can either surf in your trunks or wetsuit, then head down to the nude section, or have fun in the waves that break in the nude area where all of the surfers and boogie boarders are naked.

Australia still has some great nude beaches where you can surf, and France has become a world-class surfing destination and is famous for it’s free beaches where virtually all of the woman are topless and total nudity is common.  There are even beaches in the surf area of southwest France with huge naked resorts and campgrounds where you can live, play and surf naked for days or weeks.

WHEN TO GO

In Southern California the water is generally warm enough for nude surfing from June through late September.  Blacks Beach tends to be a little bit warmer than San Onofre.   Nude beaches in Northern California offer a chance for nude surfing but the water is cold all year long – and we don’t want to discuss what cold water and nude surfing does to guys.

WHO YOU’LL SEE

As with surfing at any beach, it’s mostly guys.  San Onofre does have women who come and surf naked, particularly during the summer.  But they’re coming for fun and recreation and not to have you trying to hit on them in the water so relax and let them enjoy themselves.   The more obnoxious you are, the less likely they are to come back.

GETTING STARTED

To get started all you need is a surfboard, some basic coordination and a good attitude.    There are lots of  places that offer lessons (but we don’t know of any nude lessons…yet), or you can rent a board at a surf shop like Killer Dana and learn yourself by playing in the white water until you can stand up.

Once you get hooked, there are hundreds of boards for sale on CraigsList.  This is a great way to get started without paying big bucks for a new board.  Or head over to somewhere like Becker or Stewart.  If you’ve got $800 or so – you’ll leave with something really sweet.

SOME HELPFUL FACTS

We’ve surfed naked for years, and seen hundreds of other men and women surf naked, and nobody has done serious damage to their special gear.   Common sense and coordination are all you need.

Put on lots of suntan lotion, but not immediately before you surf.  You’ll slip and slide all over your board.

So stop reading and start surfing.   Get a board, a smile and some sunscreen and have FUN!