The murder of 66-year-old surfer Kurt Van Dyke in Costa Rica has shocked the locals and the international surfing community. Van Dyke was an American surfer and businessman originally from Santa Cruz, California. He grew up in a family closely tied to surf culture. His father and late mother were both known in California surfing circles, and Kurt himself became a respected figure in the sport. The Northern Californian was a surfer like many, who chose the warmth of the pura vida lifestyle to chase his dreams. In the early 1980s, Van Dyke moved to the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica because he loved surfing big, challenging waves like the famed Salsa Brava break. Over the decades, he became known both for his skills and for running a modest, budget-friendly hotel in Puerto Viejo de Talamanca that was popular with visiting surfers and travelers. Locals and friends remember him as a generous and friendly figure who helped young surfers and welcomed people from around the world. The crime: w

A 26-year-old surfer spent up to half an hour in open water off Santa Barbara County before rescue crews found him clinging to a lobster trap buoy and brought him back to shore. The incident happened at Haskell's Beach in Goleta around 6:28 p.m. on Friday evening, when the surfer and a friend went out for a night session in building surf. According to the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, the man lost his board in high surf and was pulled farther from shore. His friend made it back to the beach and quickly called 911 to report him missing. "A 26-year-old male surfer was swept away from shore by powerful high surf after losing his board," Fire officials later confirmed in a public statement. "He was surfing with a friend, who reported him missing immediately - quick action that made a huge difference." Rescuers soon found the surfer's board washed up on the beach, a sign that he had been separated from it in the water. Surfline reported that waves at Haskell's we

Before sunrise, with the thermometer reading 18 °F (-8 °C) and the wind chill dipping to -4°F (-20 °C), surfer and YouTube creator Ben Gravy set out on what he calls a decade-long dream: to surf a wave that wasn't quite water and wasn't quite ice. It was 4:22 a.m. when Gravy and his crew hit the road from New Jersey, chasing reports of a rare phenomenon along the eastern edge of Long Island: "slurpee waves," also known as frozen or slushy waves. The term describes ocean waves so cold and ice-choked that their surface resembles crushed ice, like a granita or a half-frozen convenience-store drink. "Slush Nation reporting for duty," Gravy said as the group began the drive north, bundled in winter gear and fueled by adrenaline. Outside, it was one of the coldest mornings of the winter so far. Offshore winds were howling. Swell was pushing toward 10 feet. And inside the breaks, ice had begun to form. By the time they reached Montauk, locals and photograph

Robert Caughlan, a pioneer environmentalist of the Surfrider Foundation, ocean activist, surfer, and an influential figure in the Jimmy Carter administration, passed away on January 17, 2026, at 82. Robert "Birdlegs" Caughlan was a cherished author at SurferToday.com. For several years, I had the privilege to exchange multiple emails and transatlantic ideas with an extraordinarily simple yet impactful and altruistic man. "Birdlegs" - I know he loved his nickname. I never did. I thought it was too childish and diminished his living legacy. But Robert insisted I add it to my edits of his contributing articles. And so I did. Caughlan - pronounced Cog-land - lived a truly meaningful life, advocating for surfers to assume their responsibility and become ocean protection leaders. Robert Willis Caughlan was born on February 27, 1943, in Alliance, Ohio. His father, Willis, was a U.S. Army parachute instructor who died when Rob was 4, right after the end of World War II. Bob