Local surfers are a closed circle, especially at world-class breaks such as Swamis in San Diego. “Getting these old timers to even talk you sometimes takes 20 years; I’d only been there 15,” says Larry Graff.
It was 1996, and Graff, a long-time surfer and disability advocate, wanted to float an idea by surfing legend Bruce King (president then and now of Swamis Surfing Association) and paddled towards him as they headed out into the waves.
“Hey Bruce, I want to take blind people surfing and I want to do it through Swamis,” said Graff, then the association’s treasurer. King scowled, said, “Go away, Larry,” and paddled off. After a second rebuff, King cut Graff off on his third approach. “You can’t do it, Larry — how you gonna do it?”
“At least he was talking to me,” said Graff. “I laid out the plan to make surfing accessible to the blind, and he looked at me and said, ‘You know, Larry, that might actually work.’”
Thus began the Blind Surf Event, a program that for 15 years, with the help of the Blind Center of San Diego and the Lions Club, has made surfing accessible to hundreds of blind and visually impaired people.
In this interview, conducted by phone on January 24, 2011, Graff talks about the event’s inspiration, strategy, and affect on participants and the 100+ volunteers who team up each September.
Larry Graff Launched Blind Surf Event to Share His Love of Surfing
Q. What inspired the Blind Surfing Event?
L.G. I always wanted to share my love of surfing with people who might not otherwise have a chance to experience it. So when I saw a TV news feature on members of the Blind Community Center of San Diego waterskiing at Mission Bay, I thought if blind people can waterski, they could surf.
Q. What’s the hardest aspect of surfing for a blind person?
L.G. I think trust is one of the hardest things to overcome: feeling that the people in the water are going to take care of you. I learned how difficult this is when I tried surfing wearing blacked-out goggles. There are no prerequisites for blind surfers: if you have trust, courage, and know how to swim, that’s a good start.
Blind Surfing Event Moves All Participants
Q. How do you accommodate blind surfers?
L.G. We take a participant out in chest-high water, where generally, the large waves have already broken, and form a safety net of 4-5 experienced surfers around them, with additional rovers stationed all along their route. If they fall, they’re helped within seconds. As they near the sand, people run beside them, give verbal directions, and put a hand out to guide them off their board. It’s essentially pitching and catching.
Q. How does the Blind Surf Event affect participants?
L.G. For blind surfers (and we have people who actually ride the waves), the experience is its own reward. They love surfing just like we do and look forward to the event every year. And so many volunteers have come up to me over the years and said the event has changed their lives. It’s astounding, beyond words. I just came up with an idea, but sometimes, there’s no more powerful thing. That’s what I take from it every year: an idea can change the world.
Persistence in convincing Bruce King that blind people could surf launched a great event, and a great friendship, Graff said. “I never thought I’d be doing this 15 years later,” Graff said. “I’m humbled.”
Andrew Leibs - Andrew Leibs is Suite101’s Feature Writer for Accessible Recreation. He is a longtime chronicler of the disability movement with ...
Join the Conversation