THE KIERNAN SURFING STORY:
The Kiernan Surfing Association was founded by a group of young wave riders in 1965 who were looking for a place to surf. It all began with a beach located at the end of Kiernan Boulevard in North Long Branch, NJ, and the amazing surf that broke on its shores. In the sixties the shifting sands off of the jetty at the end of Kiernan Boulevard had set up perfectly to deli
ver the largest and longest riding waves in the area, and before long some of the best surfers in New Jersey began gathering to ride these swells. As was the problem for surfers across New Jersey at the time, most beaches were privately owned by beach clubs that did not allow surfing. The Kiernan Beach was owned by George Savoth, who also owned the adjoining beach club, White Sands. As George Savoth looked down the beach from his White Sands Beach Club, he could see that he had a problem. He had big waves breaking perfectly on his property, and a growing group of surfers were out there riding them. He was not opposed to the idea of his beach being used for surfing, but he was concerned about the liability he would incur if any of the surfers either injured themselves or others on his property. He also recognized that enforcing a “no surfing” policy on the property would be expensive, time consuming, and ultimately impossible, as vanloads of surfers were now showing up at all hours to ride the biggest and best waves around. After a while, a small group of the wave riders met with George to see if they could find a solution that would allow them to legally use the beach. With the help of one of the surfer’s fathers who was an attorney, an agreement was struck between George and the surfers that would allow them to lease the beach for the symbolic cost of $1.00, under the condition that the surfers would patrol it, perform their own lifeguarding duties and keep it clean The cost of providing insurance to protect George against any accidental injuries was covered by charging each surfer a $20 annual membership fee.So with this agreement between the beach owners and the surfers, The Kiernan Surfing Association was born. Over the six years of the Kiernan Surfing Association’s existence, members of the group consisted of some of New Jersey’s very best wave riders, and many of the relationships formed during those years have lasted a lifetime. This page has been created by Ted Geiser and Rich Seaton, two members of the group, in the hope that Kiernan members and others who were on the Kiernan beach at the time will join us in celebrating and memorializing the golden years of surfing at Kiernan. Please help us by sharing any old pictures and stories of surfing and partying at Kiernan during those days. We are excited about the possibility of reconnecting with old friends to marinate memories of the Kiernan Beach era.
