by Miles Masterson | Mar 27, 2026 | Uncategorised
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...
by Miles Masterson | Mar 13, 2026 | Uncategorised
“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...
by Miles Masterson | Feb 10, 2026 | Uncategorised
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...
by Miles Masterson | Feb 4, 2026 | Uncategorised
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...
by Miles Masterson | Jan 28, 2026 | Uncategorised
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...
by Miles Masterson | Jan 22, 2026 | Uncategorised
“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...
