Dear Gov. Newsom and Mayor Faulconer: Thank you for all you are doing for our city in these extraordinary times. The governor said that solitary exercise is permitted. There is no bigger part of our culture in Southern California than surfing, and that’s why as you know it was recently named the official state sport of California.
Surfing is a solitary exercise. For those of us who surf, it is our exercise, it is our outlet and keeps us healthy physically and mentally just like running or biking does for others.
Surfing is not a large gathering, in fact, it is just the opposite. It is the perfect example of social distancing, as surfers out there in the line up like to be far apart from each. We can practice social distancing in the ocean just like joggers and bikers can.
I beg you to please revise the rules of the beach closures to allow for surfing. You could even set certain times for surfing. For example, sunrise to 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. to sunset. We do not want to gather on the beach, we only want to surf. For those of us that actually live at the beach, being unable to access the ocean is a risk to our physical and mental health. The mayor said to exercise in your own neighborhood. Well, what if the beach is our neighborhood? Now, they’ve got us walking our dogs, walking, running and biking on crammed 3-foot-wide sidewalks and crowded streets, which does not allow for social distancing. If you are going to ban surfing, be consistent and ban walking, jogging, and biking too. These groups are not even social distancing like surfers in the water do. Senseless.
Please recognize that this “all or nothing, blanket approach” to include closing the ocean as part of closing the beach is not necessary and is unfair to those of us that use the ocean daily for our exercise. I trust you will use your discretion and see that surfing does not pose a risk to public health. Skyler Scharf
Pacific Beach