Johnny and Rosemari Rice
by Tom Takao
Johnny’s story begins in Santa Cruz, California where he was born and raised. His love for the ocean would begin after the 2nd World War when he began going to the beach with his friends. Wes Reed an older guy that enjoy being around the ocean said to Johnny and his friends, “why don’t you guys body surf the wave.” Telling them to put their hands up in front of them as the wave pushed them forward. Since they were catching the shore pound, having their hands in front of them helped cushion the impact.
A year would go by and one day Wes had some Churchill Fins, Johnny hadn’t seen them before. Wes says to them, come up to the Rivermouth and I will show how to get lefts with these fins. So he takes Johnny, Joe Lasalky and Mike Winterburn, three grade school kids up to the Rivermouth. He swims out and catches a wave, and then turns left. Oh that was great they thought. On the other side of the Point, they saw something that had not seen before, guys on surfboards.
They would ask Wes “whats that” and he would reply “that’s surfboard riding”, Johnny says “that’s what I want to do”. So Wes says to Johnny at Cowells there a board locker that carries all the boards from the guys from the 30’s who went into the War and didn’t come back. If you can get any of those boards out of there you can ride them. After some discussion and planning between Johnny and Joe. They got a hacksaw and proceeded to cut the chain to the locker.
Like a Indiana Jones type of moment it open a whole new world to Johnny. They would soon learn that those boards were bulky and somewhat heavy, some being redwood and weighing more than 125 lbs. Others were balsa and were newer and lighter. They got this far and nothing was going to stop them in their pursuit of learning to surf.
The board that they took out was like a paddleboard with an air vent on the deck. It needed to be plugged so water couldn’t enter the hollow interior. Surfboards prior to the balsa surfboards were built like airplane wings. A sheath of plywood or wooden covering on top of a symmetrical rib frame made of balsa or redwood, in the shape of the latest outline. Its rails were usually square and at the back or front end of the board was an air vent to relieve any air pressure buildup that occurred on hot days.
Needing a plug for the air vent, Johnny walked around the beach in search of that certain something. He found a cork from a wine bottle and placed it in the hole of the board. The longer the cork was in the water the tighter the fit. So Johnny and Joe took turns in riding the board.
The water is cold in Santa Cruz and without a wetsuit your time in the water is very limited. It wasn’t long before they had to take the board back to the locker and come back another day.
Johnny and Joe Lasalky with two balsa boards that were made in the Southern California area and were brought up to Santa Cruz.
Johnny first board was a paddleboard, a modified Tom Blake type of paddleboard plank and was hollow inside and was made by Bill Grays. Bill tongue and groove everything on the board and his work reflected the fine carpentry that was done. Johnny bought that board from Fred Van Dyke and named it "The Octopus". Johnny second board was made of redwood and balsa, it didn’t have a fiberglass and resin cover, but 5 coats of marine varnish. Johnny third board was made of balsa and weight 35 lbs. and was built by George Camien.
Johnny’s heritage is Native American and Caucasian, his mother side was German-Irish and his father’s side was Prairie Band Potawatomi. His parents moved to Santa Cruz during the late 1930’s. His mother would remarry in the 40's to a Greek gentleman named Anchillis Antoniatus. Johnny and his sister were thought to be Greek kids at school, in actuality they were half Native American and half white.
His first board that he tried to shape was balsa. With the help of his step-father Johnny got a 9 ft. balsa blank and both him and his step-dad tried shaping it, neither knew how, so they put it to the side. The family would move to West Los Angeles during 1952 and this is where his love for surfing would grow and his board building knowledge developed.
The day of the move to Southern California, the car was loaded and Johnny’s balsa board was tied to the roof of the Frazier Kaisure automobile. While traveling down Coast Highway 101, somewhere near San Luis Obispo, Johnny board flew off. Looking back Johnny could see his board was near the shoulder of the road after the cars behind them swerved to avoid it.
His mom pulls over to the side and comes to a stop. Johnny gets out of his car and runs back to get his board. Excited and nervous he grabs his board out of the road and puts it to the side. Checking it over to sees if it was dinged up, he notices some damage to the balsa but nothing severe. Placing his board back onto the car, they made it down to Southern California without another incident.
It would be a few weeks before Johnny would have his board taken to Velzy’s shop in Malibu which was behind a Hamburger stand. As destiny would have it, Johnny would meet his mentor and lifelong friend Dale Velzy. So young Johnny meets Velzy and tells him the story of how his board flew off the car and would like to have it shaped and glassed.
Velzy says “Come back in a week and I will have it ready for ya kid”. So Johnny comes back in a week and Velzy had made Johnny a beautiful 8’ 6” roundpin with a mahogany skeg. Johnny was thinking this is going to cost me a lot of money. Then Velzy says how do you like her? Johnny’s reply was “beautiful, this is the most beautiful board I have ever seen.” Dale say well you owe me sixteen bucks. Johnny says I owe you more than that. Velzy replied “nope sixteen bucks.”
After that Johnny would be one of the regular kids around the shop. First at Malibu then to his other shop in Venice. Asking questions about this and that Johnny started sweeping up for Velzy and Dale would teach Johnny how to sand.
After getting situated in his new location, Johnny would take the Blue Bus everyday down to the end of Highway 1 and go up to Malibu. Having made friends at Malibu, Johnny who was 13 years old at the time would go on surf trip with these older guys. On one of these surf trips they went up to Rincon. Where Johnny met Mickey Munoz, Mikki Dora, and Bobby Patterson.
They were doing things Johnny couldn’t believe and he thought they were spacemen. Bobby Patterson had a 8’ by 24” wide single fin surfboard with an outline like a pumpkin seed. It was shaped and built by Matt Kevlin. Bobby was ripping Rincon’s classic walls like nobody had done before.
Malibu was another spot that Bobby ripped up. The board was magic and everywhere he surfed, everyone out in the water and on shore was amazed. But one day while going into a café to get a bite to eat his board got stolen. Meanwhile Johnny enrolled at Mira Costa High School in Manhatten Beach and was working at Velzy's Surf Shop cutting outlines. The following year in February Velzy asked Johnny if he wanted to learn how to shape.
With an excite “Yeah” Johnny soon learned how to shape. Dale taught Johnny about every tool that he used to shape and how to take them apart and put them back together. Johnny would work for Dale for 5 years. During this time period Johnny met Rosemari and she would become his girl friend. He would teach her how to surf and would go to San Onofre in the summer and the local beaches during the winter. Taking her in his 1930 Ford Model A panel truck that was given to him by Bobby Jenson. That was his first automoblile and Johnny never forgot Bobby and his generosity to a Sophmore surfer.
Velzy’s shop would become the epicenter in which surfboard building would spread around the world. Johnny would be a part of that wave of board builders. Beside Johnny there were Bing Copeland, Greg Noll, Dewey Weber, Sonny Vardeman, Rich Stoner, Mike Bright and others all those guys were at his shop.
While in High School, Mike Bright and Johnny went to Rincon one day. Johnny says they didn’t stop once while going to Rincon from Hermosa Beach. They hit all the signals green. If one of them got tired of driving the other would slide under as the other would slide over. The waves were small at Rincon that day. After coming in and drying off, Mike was watching Johnny paddling in. He notices 2 large dorsal fins a few feet apart serpentining behind Johnny.
I don't think he heard me or saw them said Mike, but they came within inches of his board. At that moment there must have been a few different scenarios running through Mike's mind, all of them not good. Just as Johnny stood up to wade the board across the rocks, the sharks disappeared. Johnny thought Mike was joking with him as he placed his board down on the shoreline rocks. It was a nice trip up and a safe trip back. Mike and Johnny were on a roll that day.
Johnny at Pleasure Point, Santa Cruz 1958 with his balsa board that he shaped. On the ground is an O'Neill Surfboard shaped by Mike Eaton.
In 1957 Velzy decided to move to San Clemente and open a shop there. He told Johnny that he would be working at the Venice shop with Hap Jacobs instead of San Clemente. One day at the Venice shop George Downing comes in and starts talking to Johnny and says, if you ever come over to Hawaii you can have a job with me at Waikiki.
It wasn’t long before Johnny would be in Hawaii. In 1958 he took the long flight over and got situated in town. Like ships in the night, Johnny didn’t see Rosemari or she him during the time when he arrived and when she was leaving. After getting acclimated to his surroundings Johnny would get a job working for George Downing at Waikiki. He did surfboard repairs at the Outrigger Club with Gene Magnago. After that he got to know the guys there and became friends with many of the Beach Boys and would get a job a the Waikiki Surf Club renting boards. It took nine months before Johnny could get a Beach Boy Association Card. But some were indifferent to him, but eventually things worked out. Johnny would be accepted as a Beach Boy and spend his time at the beach.
Hanging out with the other Beach Boys, giving surf lessons, surfing when the surf was up, paddling when the surf was flat or small, and canoeing with a tourist if the moment called for it. There would be times talking story under the Hau Tree with an occasional rain shower passing by or just enjoying the day at the beach. In 1960 Johnny would enter a few surfboard paddling races and would come in among the top racers and won a 6 mile paddle race on his Velzy paddleboard.
Left to right Wallace Forseith, Johnny Rice, Joey Cabell, unidentified. Johnny Rice, Billy Bragg, Tom Zahn
After awhile he would become a second Captain on the Hotel's catamaran. Johnny worked with Bobby Achoy and his dad John. Things were going good and the catamaran was going in and out through the surf everyday. But the unexpected happen and a local girl's family were seriously thinking that Johnny and her should get married. Johnny wasn't ready and not to cause friction, he decided to returned to Santa Cruz.
But after returning to Santa Cruz, Johnny met his wife to be and decided to get married after all. Johnny continued making surfboards to support his wife and family. The longboard market was slowing on the West Coast with the transition of many to the short boards. Surfboard shops were stuck with large inventories of surfboards and orders were down.
Johnny Rice late 60's Florida
Johnny decided to move to Melbourne Beach, Florida and work there. The East Coast was still busy and it was a change of scenery that Johnny welcomed. Working for Dick Catri surf shop and at Oceanside Surfboards, Johnny developed a following of customers who liked his boards. After a coupled of years of working in Florida Johnny was ready to make another move. Hearing stories of Brazil and its surf and its culture, Johnny was ready. So one day he packed up his belongings and with his family flew to Brazil.
They got off the plane from Miami Beach, and were at the Galliano Airport, in the town of Vera Copus. The hot Brazilian weather greeted Johnny Rice and his family with a sweaty welcome. There to meet them was an acquaintance whom had met Johnny in Florida and suggested that he shapes some boards in Brazil.
They were off, the dust clouds disappeared behind the car as they drove to Guaruja in the state of Sao Paulo to begin making surfboards in Brazil. It was the summer of 1970, and with $500 to his name, a new beginning was going to be tight.
The only board makers in Brazil were Rico de Soza, and Catorogo in Rio de Janeiro and Homero Naldinho in Sao Paulo. In Guaruja there was a small funky retail shop where Johnny would make surfboards. Johnny would influence the local guys with his surfboard knowledge and riding ability.
Johnny surfing Brazil
After setting up his workshop in the back of his small house, Johnny would go down to Uruguay and Argentina and recruit some guys to come up to Brazil and work for him. Speaking Spanish to his new worker but speaking Portuguese to his customer and dealers. Johnny two children went to Brazilian’s schools and learned to speak Portuguese. He spoke Portuguese to his children and but English to his wife. After awhile they all spoke Portuguese only.
During that time period of 1970 to the latter part of the decade it was very shaky and scary, a dirty war was going on. You had to watch it and mind your own business. Johnny had his passport and paperwork confiscated by a local official. This left Johnny without any ID.
Johnny had to do something so he went up to Sao Paulo to see a Colonel and try to get some help. It was 7 a.m. and Johnny knocks on his door. The Colonel opens the front door and had on pink pajamas. Not smiling or making any funny gestures, Johnny began telling his story. He told the Colonel that he wanted to do good things. Make surfboards and teach surfing and all that kind of stuff.
But he just gets shit from the people and that he doesn’t even have his passport anymore. The Colonel asked where is your passport? Johnny says some delagoto in Sao Paulo has it and that he lives on so and so street. The Colonel says he will take care of it and invites Johnny into his house. He gets on the phone while telling Johnny to sit down and have some breakfast.
Johnny could hear the Colonel ordering someone to get a black and white (military vehicle) outside his house in a hurry. The Colonel had changed his clothes by the time a couple of cars came to his front yard. So Johnny and the Colonel speed off with security guards right behind them to central Sao Paulo.
They go up to the guy’s house who had Johnny passport and the Colonel asks “where is this guy passport”. The delagoto says he doesn’t have it. The security guards beat the shit out of him and the Colonel ask again “where is his passport and immigration papers for his wife and children”. I don’t know, I don’t know the delegato continued saying. The guards continued beating the crap out of him. Finally he tells them where Johnny’s passport and papers are.
They put the guy in jail and Johnny had his ID back. Johnny tells the Colonel that the local police also were harassing him. The Colonel tells Johnny if anyone is giving you any troubles, give him this card and tell them to call me. The Colonel gives Johnny the card and Johnny looks at it. The card had his name and his title and position in the government. After giving Johnny his card he tells Johnny to go see his lawyer to straighten out the paper work. So Johnny was in the black and white off to see his lawyer, the lawyer fixed it all up and Johnny was again a legal immigrant.
After seeing the Colonel’s lawyer Johnny is getting off the bus at Guaruja. A local police officer walks over to him and starts giving Johnny a bad time. The officer says you spit on the street Gringo and you are dead.
Johnny says to the officer, excuse me sir, I just been to see Colonel so and so and hands him the card and tell him to call the Colonel if he is having any trouble with Johnny. The officer looked at the card and his attitude and demeanor changed. Excuse me Mr. Rice, go on with what you are doing. After that the local police stopped harassing Johnny.
His shop started small shop behind the house and through the 8 years it grew. He rented a larger shop down the street from his house that had 18 employees at it’s busiest time. With 2 shaping stall, Johnny used one and a shaper from Uruguay Roberto Damiani in the other. When Johnny Rice first greeted the young shaper, he was surprised that he spoke English to him.
After telling Johnny that his family lived in Southern California for a couple of years, things started many sense. Johnny sold a new Paasche airbrush to Roberto and made him the new airbrusher and sander at his factory. Roberto learned many valuable lessons from Johnny. One of them was: “You can’t do everything perfectly. You have to expect to carve out a fluke every so many boards and be able to admit it.”
And so Roberto worked for Johnny and learned to improve his shaping skills before returning back to Uruguay. Johnny would return to Southern California before returning to Santa Cruz and meeting Rosemari again. Rosemari and her brother were very coordinated and of coarse loved being in the ocean. They both caught on quick to riding a surfboard and looked forward to each surf trip Johnny would take them on. Johnny would teach Rosemari how to surf on her balsa surfboard that he made. One thing I will always remember says Rosemari was that “Johnny told me never take your hands off the board until your feet are under you, and I still tell people that today”. On a return trip from San Onofre Johnny and Rosemary were driving through Laguna Beach. Johnny was talking about surfing and surfboards when through the corner of his eye a dress catches his attention. It was an oriental style dress with a mandrian collar and a slit along the seam line.
Rosemari Johnny
Rosemari's story
On a clear and sunny day with a sea breeze flowing, I walked into the garden of Rosemari and Johnny Rice. Johnny was sitting on a bench next to a small pond just off to the side and Rosemari was nearby the kitchen porch. After saying hi to Johnny and waving to Rosemari, I sat down on a bench seat. Rosemari walks up and joins us. We were talking about how things were and the surf. I had stopped by before and talked to Johnny about his adventures. There are stories and article about Johnny in surfing magazines and in local newspapers; his legend has span two continents.
But not much is known of his wife Rosemari who was one the top female surfers in Hermosa Beach during the late 1950’s and early 60’s. There were hints of her abilities from the photos in Johnny shaping room and in their house. With that in mind I asked her about her early beginnings in surfing and how she met Johnny. With the sound of water falling beside us, she began her story. It seemed like only yesterday when Rosemari was wearing a cashmere sweater, a wool dress and white buck shoes. Looking across the campus and seeing Johnny, who was looking back at her. It wasn’t long before they were attending the school dance. Johnny and Rosemari started their relationship at Mira Costa High School in 1954; he was a junior and she a sophomore.
Johnny was a surfer and learning to become a surfboard shaper. Rosemari lived by the beach and enjoy everything about the ocean, playing in the surf and sand. There would be walks along the beach in her teenage years. Sitting on the top of a sand slope near the water’s edge as the afternoon winds would blow her hair into a windswept style. She would watch the surfers riding the waves and thinking how fun it would be to do so. She kinda wanted to do it, but needed someone to teach her. It wasn’t long after Rosemari met Johnny that she would be on a surfboard and surfing.
Johnny was working at Dale Velzy’s surf shop in Venice, sanding and learning how to shape. He had an old 1930 Milk Panel Truck that got him where he wanted to go, only problem was that he had to pop the clutch to get going. Either he would park it on a hill or have someone push him to get going. Rosemari soon learned if she wanted to get somewhere with Johnny she had to push him. They would travel from school to their favorite spots around town. Places like the Manhattan Beach Pier, the Hermosa Beach Pier, the Palos Verdes Cove and to Venice where he worked. Then there were the times he would take her surfing.
Since the waves in Hermosa Beach were more difficult to teach on back then. Johnny would take Rosemari and her brother to San Onofre. Where the waves rolled and had better shape, compared to the Hermosa Beach’s waves which would wall up and collapses all at once. Inspired by Rosemari, Johnny shaped and glassed his first surfboard for her, wanting it to be the best for his girl friend to learn on. The surfboard found a special place in Rosemari’s heart, this was the first time a boyfriend had built something for her. It was a balsa surfboard with dark blue pigment and had her name across the nose of the board in yellow letters. His gift was like music to her. She breath his song and her heart sang.
There seemed to have been parties every weekend and the Manhatten Beach Pier was the place to be. Those who were there were either friends or a friend of a friend. A special group of Hawaiians would show up, Alan Gomes, Chubby Mitchell, George Kepo’o to name a few. There were others but their names have been forgotten over the years since those days. Someone would bring this, somebody would bring the meat, and somebody else would bring the drinks or they would bring their own. With the make shift luau happening, anyone who happened to be there were welcomed. After the meal, some of the Hawaiians would play their Ukuleles, Slack Key guitars and sing.
Sometimes they would play in the parking lot or out in the sand next to a fire. The melody transformed those listening into a tropical frame of mind. The fingers gliding across the neck of the ukuleles and guitars were like the trade winds through the palm fronds. The listener’s mood would sway with the thought of Hawaiian surf rolling to shore. Into the night they would play as the sound of the surf nearby added its measure to the ambience. Rosemari and Johnny held hands and viewed the moment with warmth. Well into the night the flames from the pit swirled and kindled their young love for one another.
Those were the days when surfing was growing. Just a few of the beach cities had a gathering of surfers and the South Bay was one of them. The guys would plan surf trips to far off places like Rincon, San Onofre and San Diego. San Onofre was the main spot for those in San Diego and the South Bay to surf and meet. Not long after going steady, Rosemari and Johnny would drive down to San Onofre in the old milk panel truck with the boards in the back. Lots of times we they would take Rosemari’s little brother with them and he would have to sit in the back with no windows to look out of. Sitting there on top of the surfboards, always asking "are we there yet?"
He pulls the panel truck over and parks it in front of Waltah Clarks Dress shop. With Rosemari in hand they enter the dress shop. The clerk comes up to the teenage couple and asked can I help you. Johnny says to the clerk, would you have that dress in the display in her size pointing to Rosemari. After returning from the stock room the clerk said she did. Rosemari tried it on and looked into the mirror. A few hours earlier she was surfing in her bathing suit and hanging out at the beach. Now she was putting on a stylish dress in Laguna Beach and making Johnny feel like a fashion designer watching his top model getting ready for the runway.
He bought the dress for Rosemari and they were back on the road again. As Johnny returns to the conversation where he left off. Rosemari still thinking of the dress and what has just happened, answers Johnny back. They passed Thalia Street and the Greeter waved to them as they drove by. Leaving Laguna Beach behind Hermosa Beach is still a couple of hours away. There was this one time when Rosemari and her friends Sandi, and Judy stole (more like borrowed) a car from Dick Henderson. The guys were going to Trestles and didn’t have room for the girls. Rosemari, Sandi and Judy wanted to go and would not be left behind.
They convinced a Hispanic guy that they had lost their key to the car and needed to get somewhere. He obliged to help and hot-wired the ignition for them. They weren’t the Ra Ra or the Goody Goody type, but were in a class of their own. They were beach girls with a free spirit, the ones that many of the surfers would marry. Anyway they were driving down Pacific Coast Highway after the guys in a stolen car. With Judy behind the wheel and Rosemari sitting shotgun the girls were on their way. They could hardly wait to see the guy’s faces when they walked up to them at Tretles. As they passed Lomita the discussion was about school and the latest gossip about so and so. Crossing the bridge from Wilmington into Long Beach, they talked about the Pike.
It wasn’t long before they approached the Long Beach Traffic Circle in the fast lane. Both the fast and low lane entered the circle. If you were in the fast lane meant that there would be traffic on their right side. With oncoming traffic from Pacific Coast Highway going north, Los Coyotes Diagonal going west and Lakewood Blvd. heading south all merging into the Circle. After going around in a circle a few times, Judy got in the outer part of the Traffic Circle. She put her foot to the floor and made a dash for the street outlet. Unfortunately for her it was Pacific Coast Highway going back from where she came. Judy looked at Rosemari and Sandi with the expression do you want to drive.
Looking at the gas gauge the needle pointed to empty, showing no sign of movement. The girls decided to stop at a gas station and fill up. They proceeded to put $2.00 worth of gas into the tank. That was about 13 gallons enough to get them back. Having a few close calls and relieve of not having had an accident. The girls were satisfied in having gotten to where they were and decided to head home. Dick never knew his car had been stolen. But it will be the last time the girls would steal a car. Their boy friends would take them from then on.
Back home in Hermosa Beach a popular place to go says Rosemari was the Foster’s Freeze on Hermosa Ave. next to 14th St.. She and her friends would hang out there. Another place was Lulu White’s Stop Café next to the Manhatten Beach Pier. With a smile she continued “They had great food and ice cream”. It was a favorite spot for eats and if the café were closed, they would hang out in the parking lot next to the cafe. One of Rosemari’s friend was Sandi, who lived next door to Leroy Grannis. There were parties at her house with Rosemari, Judy, Sue and some of her other friends showing up.
Whenever the cars started to fill the street in front of Granny’s house, he knew Sandi was having a party. This must have kept Granny on the edge of his seat Rosemari recalls. Sandi’s mom didn’t mind, knowing she was keeping an eye on Sandi and her friends at her house, instead of worrying about where they were or what they were doing. Besides parties, there would be times at Velzy’s shop. One day Velzy told Johnny to test paddle one of the boards at his shop. Johnny would have Rosemari do the paddling since this would help her in gaining more experience in handling a surfboard.
They walked across the street and down into the Venice Canal. Rosemari remembers to this day “The thing I hated was when you would get in and out of the canal; it was all mushy mud. Feeling the crabs on the bottom of my feet and trying to move away with each step that I took.”
Their friendship grew during High School, but would fade as each would take a different direction on life’s road in development. Rosemari would marry Charlie Reimers in 1957 and they move to Hawaii. Charlie had been drafted into the Army and was stationed at Schofield Barracks in Wahiawa. They lived in Waikiki and Charlie would commute to the Schofield Barracks every third day. Meanwhile Rosemari was surfing almost every day on her Matt Kevlin balsa surfboard. She got pregnant with their first child, but would surf until a couple months before having her son.
This time period was classic Hawaii, cottage shacks and palm trees along the beach. No high rise except for the Royal Hawaiian and Moana Hotels, it was a picture postcard moment. After a year Charlie was re-stationed on the mainland. He moved his family back to Hermosa Beach in 1958 and was soon discharge from the service. They would have their second child in 1960.
Living on 30th St. and the Strand, it wasn’t long before Rosemari began surfing more and more. With a VW Van to take her on surf trips, Rosemari, the kids and Connie the babysitter were off in search of surf. Farthest north she would go was Rincon and the furthest south she would go was to Tamarack Beach in Carlsbad. At this time she was one of Hermosa Beach’s hottest female surfers. Dewey Weber was very much impressed by Rosemari, that he and Caroline Weber went over to Rosemari’s house at 30th St. and asked her to be on his surf team.
Rosemari in the middle
The board she was riding at the time was a 9’+ balsa board shaped by Joe Quigg in 1959 at his Newport Beach shop. It had been glassed by Sonny Vardeman at his father’s garage. One day she opened her garage door to get her board. To her surprise, someone had stolen her board. Rosemari was feeling bummed for awhile; then one day she got a call from Sonny Vardeman who was working at the Greg Noll Shop on PCH. He says “You might want to come up here and look at this board some guy wanted to put footprints on the nose”. So she did and sure enough it was Rosemari’s surfboard. When the surfboard got stolen Rosemari reported it to the police and had filed a report. She also had the glasser who did the glassing as a witness to the fact. The guy who brought it in didn’t have a chance to make his case. Rosemari got her board back and was very happy.
Even though she was on the Team, competition wasn’t her cup of tea. During the Huntington Beach Surfing Championship at Huntington Beach Hev McClelland announced her name as she was about to stand up on the wave. She developed stage fright and her knees locked up and couldn’t stand up for about 5 seconds, eventually wiping out. In the late 1960’s she would divorce Charlie and become a single Mom. She would move up to Santa Cruz in the 1970’s and raise her two children there. With the responsibility of 2 children she would surf only occasionally. In November of 1986 Rosemari saw Johnny (who had been married twice) at the Harvey West Longboard Contest dinner. It was Déjà vu of the campus of Mira Costa High School 1954.
Johnny and Rosemari got back together and married. They have shared many fond memories together, he the shaper and she the number one team rider. Her inspiration started his career. His inspiration made her one of the best woman surfer in Hermosa Beach, during the Balsa and Early Foam Era. A time when it seemed like 99 percent of surfers were boys and men. Still surfing today, her story can relate to the many girls and women who are starting out and to all who love surfing.
Rosemari Rice with her Hermosa Beach Walk of Fame Plaque and surfing Cowell's
