Surfer and trawler. By Grover photographer Bob Bowné.* Special to Blogfinger.net Click to see the surf rider.
“Rip Slash” photo by Bob Bowné. special to Blogfinger.net
By Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger.net—-maker of waves at Ocean Grove NJ. Re-post from April, 2022 and August 2024.
When the subject of a dog beach at the North End was proposed and denied by the CMA, attention was called to a special area of the OG beach, at the North End, which has been set aside for surfers—-“surfers only.” Such segregated beaches can be found along the Jersey Shore, although we don’t know which are for “surfers only.”
Was this another example of favoritism in the Grove? Dog owners vs surfers? Why is that OG surfers beach sacrosanct? Who has the power in OG?
Surfers in this town are like a fraternity, similar to the lifeguards and the firemen. They are protective of their privilege at the North End even though surfing around here isn’t as glorious as some places.
Once the public gets a whiff of favoritism (as in Mary’s Place zoning and the Greek Temple) the bar gets lowered for suspicion of more of the same.
We made some inquiries and learned that the decision to establish a surfer beach came from a desire to improve water safety. Some swimmers had been knocked over by surfers, and the surfers beach restricts surfers to that location while banning swimmers at the same place. Despite the lack of swimmers, a life guard station is posted there anyhow.
Ocean Grove’s beach popularity has been growing, and it gets pretty crowded at peak summer season. This season there was a beach day that was “crowded like Coney Island” according to a neighbor who went.
Some wonder if surf safety could be improved while making the north beach open for swimmers.
Once the lifeguards leave the OG beach, however, all bets are off for swimmers and surfers. Swim and ride the waves at your own risk from north to south.
As for A. Park, this is official A. Park surfing information: “Asbury Park is a great spot for surfers of all ages and levels of experience. The 8th Avenue Surfing Only Beach is the best spot for more experienced surfers, whereas the rest of Asbury Park’s beaches are great for beginner and intermediate level surfers. Just make sure you listen to the lifeguards!” Evidently the A. Park surfers are more careful than the Grover ones.
Note that A. Park’s beach is one mile long, and their fishing pier is the oldest in New Jersey. That one mile stretch makes a surfers beach more feasible.
BRIAN STOKES MITCHELL. From his album Simply Broadway. “The Impossible Dream” is from Don Quixote. The song is dedicated to the surfers who go out alone to challenge the ocean and dream the impossible wave.
*Bob Bowné, whose photographs are shown above, is a Grover who used to make a profession of photographing surfers for magazines.
