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Notorious Palos Verdes Surfer Gang May Have A Secret Hideout
Lunada Bay in Palos Verdes (Photo by tiarescott via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
Palos Verdes' Bay Boys—that group of middle-aged surfers that try to harass non-locals from riding their waves—apparently have a secret hideout. The Bay Boys have been active at Palos' Verdes' Lunada Bay for a long time, allegedly harassing non-locals who come to enjoy the public beach. They've been accused of verbal harassment, rock throwing, vandalism and occasionally worse. The Guardian went there to check out the allegations, and said that someone egged their car, while an attorney who went there to surf told the L.A. Times that he had rocks thrown at him.
Recently, new Palos Verdes Police Chief Jeff Kepley vowed to crack down on these territorial wave czars. And recently, Kepley decided to see what the deal was with a stone structure reported to be their unofficial clubhouse.
According to the Daily Breeze, a resident who opposes the Bay Boys described the 30-year-old stone structure as "permanent 'fort'…that represents the Bay Boys' claim to control the point and the surf beyond," in a letter sent anonymous to the city.
The Daily Breeze described the Bay Boy's activities in said fort as a mix of "barbecue and chill." Kepley described it as "a break room for that surfing area" that the locals have likely staked out at their own.
Kepley said that the Bay Boys tried to tell him during his last visit to the area that they were simply trying to warn people that those waves were hard to surf, and alleged that it was the outsiders who were abusing local property.
An unconvinced Kepley—who is basically the Dalton at this oceanside Double Deuce—said that during his last visit, he told the Bay Boys to be nice. "My response was: 'It's how you say it. Don't cross the line when you deliver that message,'" he said.
Police have also been visiting the area more often, as well as handing out info on how to report aggressive localism if it should happen to you.
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The fort, however, is harder to police, Kepley admitted.
"These guys are doing whatever it is they are doing and it'll take me 20 to 30 minutes walking all around the bay to get to them and they can see me coming the whole time," Kepley said.
Kepley feels his vigilance will pay off, however. He added that he "cannot wait to make an arrest, quite frankly."
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