Wes Laine & the 1983 OP Pro Atlantic City, NY

30 September - 2025

This week, Peter (PT) Townend has been doing a series of YouTube interviews for the US East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame.

Today, he interviews former East Coast pro surfer, Wes Laine, who won the 1983 OP Pro in Atlantic City, NJ. Click here to view it.

Peter Townend interviewing East Coast Hall of Famer
Wes Laine on YouTube

Myself along with my good Floridian mate, Hunter Joslin, were the beach commentary team on the ASP World Tour back then and we did that event that Wes won.

What an experience Atlantic City, New Jersey was for my first visit. It is the Las Vegas of the East.

All the towering casinos line the famous wooden, beach-side boardwalk that runs for miles along the sandy ocean front.

From Virginia Beach, Virginia
1983 OP Pro Atlantic City winner
East Coast Hall of Famer - Wes Laine
Photo: Peter Brouillette

After that event, I drove the entire length of the US East Coast all the way down to Cocoa Beach, Florida with Hunter. Surfing all the way and stopping for few days in Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, where Hunter had shares in a t-shirt company and his good friend owned the classic Whalebone Junction Surf Shop. Located right at the entrance to the Hatteras Seashore.

Staying at Hunter's house in Melbourne Beach, Florida where we lucky enough to watch the first night launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger. STS-8 was the eighth NASA Space Shuttle mission and the third flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger. It launched on August 30, 1983.

One of the best things I have ever seen with my own human eyes,
the live night launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger

We watched in total amazement the live launch at 2:00am in the morning from the 'surf' by standing out on the Cocoa Beach Pier (just up the street from the famous Ron Jons Surf Shop) with fellow Aussie and Queenslander, Bill Bolman, who was the Stubbies pro, Burleigh Heads event director.

The following week, Hunter and I went on to do the live beach commentary at the 1983 OP Pro at Huntington Beach in California the event that Tom Curren managed to win.

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Truly a sign of the times on Manly's Corso.

03 September - 2025

I spotted this on my stroll down Manly's seaside Corso today.

Here's all that's left of the once mighty, multi level, Billabong super store on Manly's Corso. Now selectively chopped up into several smaller, bite-sized retail outlets.

The lifeless under awning sign, is the final reminder of a golden era that has now passed. Just like the Statue of Liberty, half-buried on the beach, in the 1970's science fiction film, 'Planet of the Apes'.

Truly a sign of the times on Manly's Corso.

I was just thinking, that Las Vegas has that visitors' attraction, the Neon Museum boneyard for all the old classic Casino, Hotel and Las Vegas Strip neon signs that live on as glowing reminders of the past, ensuring that the vibrant spectrum of Las Vegas's old icons continues to shine for future generations.

Maybe there should be a place like that for all the old surf signs.

Since '73... it least they got two good generations out of it.


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