Myth, magic and Fair Day.

It wasn’t long after I got connected with a few of the local guys in the Ventura surf seen that I began getting briefed on some of the areas surfing folklore.

In the sixties there were no surf forecasts, web cams or for that matter, surf reports on the local radio stations. Yeah, the surf report when it started guys used to think it sucked when someone would do a beach run in the early morning light to check the local surf conditions then go to a phone somewhere… no cell phones then either, call the radio stations give the report of what they saw which would be recorded and played back all day. Those surf hungry in landers could listen for the report and if the report was favorable make their one or two hour treks for surf.

Well, before there was any kind of surf report there was one day you could count on for surf. It was the annual day of the first winter swell, it was actually marked on the local Ventura calendar too. Every year no matter what, be ready because sure as you can surf you’re going to get some on this day.

When I was first told this I thought… ‘wow really?’… but the closer the day got the more I anticipated, then even started getting anxious because it could get really big so ‘be prepared’.

So how can you predict without fail the day the first winter swell would arrive? Well, because…. it’s Fair Day. And without fail the first winter swell would always arrive on Fair Day. The first day, opening day, of the Ventura County Fair. And guess what? in 1967 my first year in Ventura, just like the story was told I woke up that day, that Fair Day in October, went down to the beach and there it was. The first winter swell of the season. All the local crew knew, and now I did too. Fair Day!

The Ventura County Fair is not held in October any more and hasn’t been for a long time. It’s held for 10 long days in August. And Fair day died with the new Fair schedule. For those that don’t know… the Fair grounds are right on the Point in Ventura. When the Fair is on it gets close to impossible to get to the beach to surf after about 10 or 11 a.m. And there’s one thing you can count on. Sometime during those 10 Fairs days we will see some south swell action reach Ventura. But, it’s almost impossible to get to after the Fair is under way.

D.R.

Fair Grounds picture.. David Pu'u
used by permission