I initially decided to write a story about teen surf culture in Southern California because of the local connection I have by living in San Diego County. I wanted to explore the perspective of my peers and the atmosphere that they would describe to me about regional surfing. By exploring something unique to my own age and area, I wanted to incorporate a style of storytelling that is close to home for me. Teaming up with fellow PRS journalist, Cassie Brown, I set about writing an article as refreshing as the coveted SoCal ocean breeze. 

By first exploring the rich history of surfing on the California coast, we set up our approach to the story by gaining background information and perspective. Next, we addressed the scene around local surfing today, especially the scholastic surfing competitions. Including different photographs and quotes from past and present PRS surf team members, we were able to deeply examine the memories and emotions tied to surfing among adolescents in San Diego County. 

The interviewing process was pretty easy, considering so many students in our PRS community are a part of the surf team. Putting together the article and choosing the right photos were also straightforward processes, as previous PRS alumni had already taken great surf-team content to choose from. I’d say that brainstorming and finalizing the structure of the article proved to be the most challenging, yet rewarding, part of the process. 

All and all, we wanted our article to offer a unique viewpoint of the distinct tradition that surfing offers to Californian kids. We wanted to utilize our local resources, and build from what we already knew as California natives. We hope this story inspires you as much as it inspired us to write it.

To read Reese Walsh’s original story about surf culture at PRS, co-written with Cassiella Brown, click here.