Gidget Rides Wave of Surf History: Does it Matter?

Gidget paddled out for a surf at 67 years old. How crazy. The teenager who inspired the book, films, and TV show that blew the lid off surfing's stoke factory is now a grandmother. How things have changed! It makes you think how far surfing has come over the past century. Watching throttling tubes in Tahiti and Tasmania and pros blasting no hand reversals over sections looks like progress. But strangely, surfing has changed very little. It's still essentially about having fun. Beyond all the hoopla Gidget generated, she was just a 15 year old girl who loved hanging in SoCal, grabbing as may waves as she could. That's surfing...hanging at the beach, nowhere to be, big smile on your face, and a board under your feet.

And beyond the celluloid heroes, surfing is built on the backs of folks who just love riding waves or shaping boards. That's where it's at, baby! Brewing up some Joe for a dawn patrol or walking your kids down to the water's edge for the first time. It's about the stoke. It's about that feeling when you catch your first wave and dream about it all night. Cool spring mornings at sunrise. Catching that last wave at sunset on a warm summer night. Pulling in to a big barrel.

So when Gidget goes surfing at 67 and Dora's new book comes out or when Slater has a new girlfriend, what does it mean to that little kid catching his first wave? Not much.