A bill in the state legislature aims to make surfing the official sport of the state of California.
AB 1782 has already passed out of the state Assembly. Next stop: the state Senate.
The bill hasn’t had much opposition so far. It could hit Governor Brown’s desk this summer.
Democratic Assembly members and surfers Al Muratsuchi (Torrance) and Ian Calderon (Whittier) introduced the bill, which lists reasons why surfing should be the official state sport:
- California is home to a number of world-famous surf breaks like Malibu, Trestles, Mavericks, Rincon, Steamer Lane, and Huntington
- Every year, California surf breaks host numerous domestic and international surf events
- California is home to the Surfers’ Hall of Fame, the International Surfing Museum, and the California Surf Museum
- California’s coastline spans 1,100 miles and its beaches and coastal areas generate $1.15 trillion in economic activity annually
- California is the heart of the surfboard building industry
- The world’s first neoprene wetsuit, a modern staple of surfing, was invented in California’s San Francisco Bay area
- California pioneered the science of surf forecasting at the University of California’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography
"Surfing is an iconic California sport. It is important to recognize that surfing traces its origins to the Polynesian people and was imported into California from indigenous Hawaii," the bill reads.
Surfing is already the state sport of Hawaii, but it’s OK to share, apparently, as South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming each claim rodeo as their state sport.
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