San Clement No Ka’ Oi
Surfer Magazine ranks San Clemente among the top 10 surf towns in America
By Andrea Swayne
San Clemente Times
San Juan Capistrano-based Surfer Magazine named the top ten surf towns in the country in its July 2009 issue. San Clemente came in at number five after careful consideration, holding its own against the myriad of great places to live and surf lining the thousands of miles of our country’s coastline. Selection criteria included quality of life, variety and quality of waves, climate, culture, cost of living, employment opportunities and the all important, number of shark attacks.
San Clemente’s south Orange County location—which geographically exposes it to both winter northwest swells and summer time souths—accounts for the abundant availability of waves. Culture, great weather, and a very low “sharkiness” factor are attractive qualities as well and the city’s reputation as a hot bed for developing surf talent and the subjective quality of “vibe” also contributed to its top ten designation.
Surfer Magazine Editor-in-Chief Joel Patterson has since noted that the response to the article has been huge and that Surfer message boards are jammed with strings on the issue. Huntington Beach is up in arms about not being included on the list. San Diego County surfers, especially Encinitas locals, are applauding the list for not overlooking the smaller towns in favor of the ones more well-known by tourists. “We haven’t heard much from San Clemente though. I think it is because people there already knew that their town belongs on the list,” said Patterson. “This type of list gets people talking. It makes some friends and some enemies, but overall, debate is healthy. We love the feedback. Bring it.”
San Clemente’s inclusion in the top 10 list reinforces what every surf stoked local already knows—San Clemente is the best! Or, in the language of Hawaiian royalty, the world’s first surfers: San Clemente No Ka’ Oi.
THE COMPLETE LIST:
1. Santa Cruz, CA
2. Haleiwa, HI
3. Encinitas, CA
4. Paia, HI
5. San Clemente, CA
6. Kill Devil Hills, NC
7. Malibu, CA
8. Montauk, NY
9. New Smyrna Beach, FL
10. Ocean City, NJ
Surfer is following up next month with another opinion-packed issue. Their “Big” issue will feature the 50 greatest surfers of all time—as voted on by industry insiders and renown surf journalists. The 50 greatest were then asked to profile each other.
ON THE WEB: www.surfermag.com
