In its July 2009 Issue, on newsstands now, SURFER Magazine ranks the Top Ten Surf Towns in America. From the famous to the obscure, the urban to the rustic; locales from around the country were considered, debated, and disqualified until only the best remained.
 
For a town to make the list, criteria included quality of life, variety and quality of surf, climate, cost of living, access to culture, availability of work, and even prevalence of sharks. Boiling the thousands of miles of U.S. coastline down into a select group of towns wasn’t easy, according to SURFER editors.
 
“List-making of this sort is a bit of a lose-lose proposition,” says Editor in Chief Joel Patterson. “Some surfers will feel their town should have made the list, while others will grimace with the thought of a sudden influx of visitors in their local lineups. But we wanted to celebrate America’s surf meccas, and motivate our readers to expand their horizons this summer.”
 
Ultimately, the list accounts for styles, tastes, and preferences of all types illuminating the true variety of surf available to surfers in America. Taking the coveted number one spot is Santa Cruz, California, the real Surf City U.S.A., with its year-round surfable, if chilly, conditions and cultural melding pot of educators, artists, life long surfers and everyone else in between.
 
THE COMPLETE LIST:
 
Santa Cruz, CA
Haleiwa, HI
Encinitas, CA
Paia, HI
San Clemente, CA
Kill Devil Hills, NC
Malibu, CA
Montauk, NY
New Smyrna Beach, FL
Ocean City, NJ
 
To learn more about the surf, culture, quality of life and even which pros hail these towns their home pick up your copy from local newsstands today.
 
For additional web features, photos, videos, community pages and more visit http://surfermag.com/.
 
VIA Press Release