Surf journalism is a small pond with even smaller paychecks. It’s not discussed often, but writers are obsessively aware of each other. Why? Part of it is genuine mutual respect and support, while the other chunk is garden-variety competition. We are generally trying to one-up each other. Constantly. Generally, among us, there’s a lot of friendly camaraderie and support (Hey Stab! Hey Inertia!). But occasionally, it gets weird. Like when Chas Smith (BeachGrit) and Ashton Goggans (Red Bull) came to fisticuffs at Surf Expo. So when I met author, coach, teacher Jason Borte at Atlantic Park Surf in Virginia Beach, I was happy to learn he was familiar with WavePoolMag (or quite possibly he’s shrewd enough to do research pre-interview, either way, I was grateful for the validation.)
After his pro career, Jason made the transition to surf journalism back in the heyday of print, eventually being whisked off to DotCom land in the ill-fated Y2K boom. He’s written a few books, most notably the 2003 Kelly Slater bio “Pipe Dreams.” I was stoked to hear that Jason is currently capturing the glorious luster and eclectic niches of the Virginia Beach surf scene in an upcoming book, “Virginia is for Surfers.” To understand the relevance of the Atlantic Park wave pool and the crucial role it will play in the future of Virginia Beach surfing, you need to know the history here. This is (one of many) points where Jason comes in.
Why is there such a deep and rich surf history here in Virginia Beach?
I think we are kind of a population hub of the East Coast. We’re centrally located, and with the military here locally, the Navy population is huge. People who already surf are always coming from other places and continuing that in Virginia Beach.
But really, the East Coast Surfing Championships in 1963—I believe that was the first year they brought it here. It started in New York, but a couple of guys from Virginia Beach went up there and basically brought the event back. And it’s been here every year since. It’s the longest continuously running surf contest in the world now because Bells didn’t run one year during COVID, so we leapfrogged Bells.
That contest has always been the linchpin in our calendar every year. It’s that one week when everybody makes their way down to the main spot in Virginia Beach, and the entire city goes surf crazy. It’s just one week a year, but it has kept us relevant in surfing.
And then Wes Laine played a huge part—getting as high as second in the world during the ’80s. There was a huge group in his wake trying to follow in his footsteps.
Give me some of the top surfers from Virginia Beach. I only knew Wes Laine.
If you know Wes Laine, you know everything you need to know, basically. But the guys I looked up to, who were just behind Wes, surfers like Ken Hunt, Brad Beach and Joe Strickland.
There were twenty or thirty guys in the ’80s all ripping here — maybe not making it internationally, but doing really well. My main contemporary was Jeff Hunter. He and I were best friends and very competitive. Sadly, he passed away at an early age.
Then there was Jason Griffith, Michael Dunfee, who nearly made the world tour, and Philip Gould. Now there’s a new batch like Blair Barton, who’s 20 and won the East Coast Champs last year.
We’ve got a thirteen-year-old girl, Story Martinez, who’s in here every day, absolutely ripping with beautiful style and very supportive parents. I think she has a great future. There’s always been a handful of rippers pushing at the national and international level.
Personally, until I got in here at Atlantic Park Surf, I was still surfing blown-out, knee-high surf. Growing up here, your sense of what’s “surfable” and what’s “fun” is way different than in California or anywhere else.
– Jason Borte
So do you think the East Coast Championships being here kind of fueled the whole surf scene and that people were motivated all year by that?
I think it gets the competitive juices flowing all year. The people who do well there end up doing the US Championships, maybe going into semi-pro careers. John West is another one from that group I forgot to mention. And the surf industry is strong here. Several big surf shops in town have been successful for decades—legacy shops.
There’s always some level of support for kids getting into it from those shops, which helps keep a group of hungry, up-and-coming surfers around.
On average, how many surfable days do you have here?
Your surfable days and my surfable days are not the same thing. Honestly, our surfable days are more like what you might see in the Great Lakes or the Gulf.
Personally, until I got in here at Atlantic Park Surf, I was still surfing blown-out, knee-high surf. I’d ride a big board or a fish—find the right equipment to make it fun. Growing up here, your sense of what’s “surfable” and what’s “fun” is way different than in California or anywhere else.
I grew up surfing knee-high, blown-out waves, and it was still better than any other sport or activity I’d ever done. That stayed with me. I think some people grow out of that, but a lot of people I know are still having just as much fun in absolutely terrible surf.
Maybe that helped Wes Laine succeed when the tour was 20 events at non-descript beachbreaks, long before the Dream Tour?
Yeah, he did well when the tour was still three-to-the-beach—the crappy beach break tour. I could do well in competition because I loved surfing those kinds of waves. Most people would show up for a contest, see crappy waves, and lose immediately—in that moment, they were already defeated, just down on themselves and the ocean. I’d look at it and go, “Let’s go.” This is what I grew up in.
It gives you an advantage. The community here has a lot of different factions, but it’s a huge population and we’ve got a massive surf community. If you drove through a neighborhood and people had their garage doors open, you’d see surfboards in most of the garages. Whether they get used or not, those people still consider themselves surfers and keep up with it.
And the book you’re writing about the scene?
I quit teaching a year and a half ago and had some time before this position started. I got really lucky and fell into this project. A friend of mine was starting a book about Virginia Beach surfers and about the surf culture here.
His idea was to interview fifty different surfers from all different backgrounds: competitive surfers, board builders, shop employees, all kinds of people. We were going to do it together, but then he got too busy, and I didn’t have a job. So I dove into it full-on.
I spent the entire last year working on this coffee table book. It’s 224 pages. It’s heading to the printer now, and we’ll have it by the end of the year.
I learned so much about Virginia Beach surfing doing this book, even though I’ve been a Virginia Beach surfer for forty years. Sitting down with these people and hearing their stories was so enlightening.
It gave me a whole new respect for the people I used to just see in the lineup and not pay much attention to. I’ve started talking to people more out there because of this project, and I’m glad I did. Everybody’s got a story. The stories in this book really encapsulate Virginia Beach surfing and what makes it unique.
