Sometimes Santa comes early. At least that’s how Bryan Lowe must have felt when a crateful of vintage, highly-desirable surfboards was delivered to him on Nov. 25. The next day, the large, wooden box, trucked in from the East Coast and full of classic Skip Frye surfboards, was opened up in front of an enthusiastic gathering of surfing aficionados at Bird’s Surf Shed, located at 1091 West Morena Blvd. Lowe had acquired the treasure trove of surfboards, made by Frye — San Diego’s legendary surfer and board designer — in a most fortunate fashion. “I was on an online surfing forum that was discussing Skip Frye and struck up a conversation with a guy in his 60s from Wilmington, N.C.,” Lowe said. “He had family in Leucadia back in the 1960s and would come visit. He met Skip at Swamis (an area surf break) as a skinny, 16-year-old, when Skip (already well-known by then) had swam in and saved the kid’s board from the rocks after a wipeout. “This guy then got boards made by Frye over the following decades,” Lowe said. “I, myself, grew up in the Pacific Beach surf scene in the 1970s and admired Skip, Bill Caster and other local board builders. I like that era of boards, so we had kind of a mutual interest as we talked. “Recently, he mentioned he was retiring to Costa Rica after getting some knee surgery and hinted he was considering selling his Frye boards to raise some money,” Lowe continued. “I had him send me pictures of the boards and he was upfront about the condition of them, so I took a leap of faith and bought seven of them without seeing them in person. A carpenter friend of his constructed a large crate and they were all sent out from North Carolina.” The boards were delivered to Bird’s Surf Shed, which is run by Eric “Bird” Huffman, a surfing historian whose surf shop is covered floor-to-ceiling with more than 400 classic surfboards. It was even featured on the TV series “American Pickers” earlier this year. Huffman arranged for a viewing of the crate being opened, knowing the interest that showcasing such a cache of classic Skip Frye boards would bring. “It was an historic event and one of the highlights of my surfing experience, sharing the surf stoke with all who enjoyed it,” said Huffman. Viewers’ anticipation made for jokes, referencing the opening of the sacred artifact box in the “Raiders of the Lost Ark” movie. “Don’t look inside!” yelled some. Lowe and Huffman then unfastened the crate, unveiling seven well-preserved boards dating back to the 1980s — including an 11-foot “Eagle” model, three “Fish-Simmons” models and three shortboard designs that brought “oohs” and “aahs” from admirers on hand. “It’s great,” said Lowe, who already owns a quiver of 15 select board designs. “It financially stretched me, but I knew the value of these boards, which are beauties and are meant to be ridden. So I feel fortunate to get them.” Lowe said he will keep three favorites and let the remainder go for other buyers to get their own early special Christmas gifts.
