'Santa Cruz Cool' and the wild-water warriors | Ross Eric Gibson, Local History – Santa Cruz Sentinel
"In the 1930s and 1940s, local surfers had trouble staying in the ocean for more than a half-hour, due to the frigid Alaskan Current turning their skin blue and rubbery," writes columnist Ross Eric Gibson. "They resorted to second-hand sweaters, sometimes treated with oil (a nerdy look for surfers), but they preferred 1890s wool bathing suits, which were 15¢ each at Goodwill. Then in 1959, Jack O'Neill opened his Cowell Beach surf shop where Dream Inn now stands."
Source: santacruzsentinel.com
