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THE CHUMASH CALLED RINCON “XUCO” AND FOR THEM THE POINT WAS IDEAL FOR GATHERING COCKLESHELLS, SNAILS, AND CATCHING
tidal zones among the cobblestone shoreline. They also cherished the steelhead trout that thrived in the creek. Despite the positive first encounter, the thriving
Chumash culture of the day eventually went the way of other indigenous people planet-wide. The 72 homes that sit along the Rincon Point today were actually constructed on hallowed Chumash ground. After heavy winter storms blast the coast, the runoff sometimes reveals reminders of a nearly lost culture. It’s not uncommon to find Chumash arrowheads, beads, bowls, and grinding tools along the water’s edge. Fast forward to 1934, when a lifeguard named
Gates Foss became the first surfer to stroke into one of Rincon’s epic green walls. It wasn’t until later, in the postwar world of the 1940s, that many other southern California surfers began venturing up the coast to ride the infamous point. While Foss may have spent some quality solo time out there before, it was Bob Simmons, Matt Kivlin, and Joe Quigg who were the first posse of surf hunters to consistently brave the cold water and perform those long swims after their 25-pound boards. “The sea wall hadn’t been built yet so the rides were longer,” says longtime Rincon surfer and board
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maker Rennie Yater, who first rode the point in the mid 1950s. “But I don’t think it has changed over the years.” In 1957, one of the first trips Yater
made to Rincon from Laguna Beach was with Hobie Alter, Joey Cabell and Phil Stubbs. The surf was six to eight feet and perfect. The parking lots above the cove and Indicator, at the top of the point, weren’t built yet. To stay warm after surfing, surfers rolled tires down to the beach and lit them on fire. “It depended on how many times you fell off,” says Yater. “There were no leashes and after swimming in twice to retrieve your board, you were done.” The Indicator wasn’t surfed until the
early 1950s, and as Yater recalled, only at select times on high tide. “Longboards were too difficult to deal with up top,” recalls Yater. “And we didn’t have to surf there because there were no crowds and the cove was better.” In 1959, Yater made the move from Laguna Beach
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