Surf's Up! Surfing Is Now California's Official Sport

CALIFORNIA – Surf's up, California! Surfing is now the official state sport.

The Golden State already has a state animal (California grizzly bear), a state flower (California poppy) and a state tree (California redwood). And although surfing has long been associated with California, Gov. Jerry Brown made it official on Monday, signing Assembly Bill 1782, which declared surfing the state's official sport.

Though the bill calls surfing "an iconic California sport," it recognizes the sport's Polynesian roots and notes that surfing was imported to California from Hawaii, where surfing was declared the official individual state sport in 1998.

California, however, has also embraced surfing and "many Californians have made important contributions to the sport as we know it today," according to the bill.

"I am stoked that surfing is now California's official sport," said Democratic Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi of Torrance, an avid surfer who co-authored the bill. "No other sport represents the California Dream better than surfing — riding the waves of opportunity and living in harmony with nature."

California is the heart of the surfboard building industry and the place where the neoprene wetsuit, a modern staple of surfing, was invented, according to the newly-signed law. The late surfing icon Jack O'Neill, who was known as a pioneer in the evolution of surfing wetsuits, opened his first surf shop in the 1950s in Southern California, later opening another in Santa Cruz.

With 1,100 miles of coastline, California offers a number of world-famous surf breaks such as Malibu, Mavericks, Huntington, Rincon, Steamer Lane and Trestles.

Every year, the state hosts domestic and international surf events, including the Founders' Cup of Surfing, International Surf Festival, Mavericks Big Wave Surf Contest and the U.S. Open of Surfing. Additionally, the Golden State is home to the Surfers' Hall of Fame and the International Surfing Museum in Huntington Beach, as well as the California Surf Museum in Oceanside.

Photo of Rob Machado at Bro-Am. Photo by Mark Ritter