Surf Ohio

I sometimes feel that San Diego residents take for granted living so close to the beach and having amazing surf waves right in their backyard.  As a high school student, Ohio Native Ron Kaplan, founder of Surf Ohio, wished that he was surfing the waves of Southern California.

As a high school student, Ron became enamored with imagery and music related to "what is often referred to as the “California Myth”– hotrods, surfing, sunsets, palm trees and the like." Ron says "he was captivated by painting the natural beauty, colors, and action of the ancient sport" of surfing. During his senior year, Ron learned to screenprint t-shirts and began putting his images on t-shirts. Ron guesses that he was the only person subscribing to Surfer Magazine in 1970's Ohio. As a result of his passion for west coast imagery and surfing, Surf Ohio (www.surfohio.com) was born in his college dorm in 1978. The brand quickly grew into a cult favorite and each year the shirt design on the back changes, making the tees collectible to fans. Celebrities including Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Cameron and other notables from the entertainment industry have been wearing Surf Ohio Shirts for decades.

Ron built the brand from 1978-1996, but than took a hiatus until 2008, when his sons begged him to start producing the t-shirts again. Today, Surf Ohio tees are beginning to make a comeback with their vintage feel, comical message and place in pop culture. The tees look like something Ashton Kutcher, Brody Jenner, Matthew McConaughey or any San Diego surfer boy would be wearing. I have a feeling in a few months these shirts will be everywhere due to the increased popularity of the surfing culture and the vintage tee. The shirts are now available on Homage Clothing (http://bit.ly/cK6QqE). I am loving the 1985 pink tee http://bit.ly/cK6QqE http://bit.ly/4cB3bK. As the story goes, Ron created this tee wiith neon hot-rod racing graphics as a source of inspiration. The shirt is the 8th edition of the  Surf Ohio series. 1985 also marked the first year of of the Surf Ohio Bash at Club 51, a rustic bar and live music club on the coast of Buckeye Lake. About 700 "surfers"--twice the club's legal capacity--experienced a weekend of unforgettable Ohio Surfing. The Surf Ohio bash would eventually move to Wyandot Lake, entertaining thousands of guests with wave pools, bikini contents and mechanical surf boards. Hang tight!