Blog
Before there were surfers: The Discovery of surf at St Francis
All surfers would love to discover a new spot and christen it – preferably after ourselves. But, in the age of Google Earth, few will ever get the chance. It was not always so. John 'The Oom’ Whitmore, was the first person to surf on the West Coast of South Africa –...
Who was ‘Terence of Africa’ really?
“He was crazy and I was obviously at that age just as crazy as him.” - John Whitmore, discussing racing motorbikes alongside his friend and mentor, Terence Bullen. Terence Bullen was introduced to the world in Bruce Brown’s timeless 1960s surfing documentary 'The...
Fear and Loathing in San Diego: Springboks attend the Ill-Fated 1972 ISF World Surfing Champs
In hindsight, it is easy to see how the whole thing was cursed from the start for the South Africans. The 1972 International Surfing Federation (ISF) World Surfing Championships had originally been scheduled for the North Shore of Oahu. It would have been the first...
Whitmore Protégés: Gavin Rudolph
John Whitmore always wanted a South African to win an international surfing event. From the early 1960s, his ambition as the manager of the Springbok surfing team and president of the South African Surfrider’s Association (SASA) had been for the Springbok surfing team...
Guest Post: Sea water in our veins – by Julian Adler (RIP)
Prominent Cape Town early 1960s surfer and surfboard shaper Julian Adler passed away a few years ago. First published by South African surfing magazine BombSurf in 2008, here is an article he wrote on how John Whitmore introduced him to surfing and influenced his life...
The First Surfing Champs
“Why contests in such an individual sport as surfing? The association was established with an aim to improving ability and knowledge of the sea." - John Whitmore, explaining the motivation behind forming the Western Province Surfing Association (WPSA). By late 1964...
1964 World Contest: Max goes Down Under
In the early 1960s, though the concept of surfing competitions had not yet made it to South Africa and to date no local surfer had competed in an international surfing contest. This all changed when Durban’s Max Wetteland travelled to Australia for the inaugural...
John Whitmore – South Africa’s Hobie Cat King
Much has been said and written about John Whitmore’s influence on South African surfing. But far less is known among the broader public about John’s influence on South African Hobie Catting. Along with his trusted lieutenants in his Cape Town Coast Catamaran factory...
Whitmore Protégés: Donald and Johnny Paarman
"Uncle John, are we out of South Africa yet?’" Johnny Paarman The story is as old as surfing itself. Young grommets in the shorebreak stealing lost boards, picking up scraps of waves, before the older guys come wading toward them, retrieve...
1960s Surfing Prohibition: The Muizenberg Banning Saga
John Whitmore would play an important role in negotiating with the authorities to fight those behind the surfing prohibitions as best he could.