Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Summer 2011 - (Page 66)

SportS SURF’S UP Above: The view of Salt Creek Beach from The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel; the author and a fellow bodyboarding student brave the swells. s 66 w w w. r i t z c a r lt o n . c o m From Top: ron STarr;KaTe BolicK Wave appeal KATE BOLIC K S ET S OUT TO M AST ER T HE W EST COAST ’ S G REAT OUTDOOR T RAD IT IO N Salt Creek Beach in Southern California isn’t just any beach — it’s the one pictured on the first promotional poster for “The Endless Summer,” the iconic 1966 surf film that changed the face of surfing forever. Up until then, such spots were known mostly to locals, who themselves were pursuing a mostly regional pastime first imported from Hawaii in the early 1900s. My cab driver, a tanned and weathered grayhaired gent of a certain age, remembered it well. “Nothing but a couple of guys manning a beach shack and charging 50 cents a head,” he told me on the drive from Long Beach Airport to The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel. Today Salt Creek is one of the most important surfing hubs in the country, where the National Scholastic Surfing Association regularly hosts championships, and enthusiasts from all over flock for the challenging waves. The Ritz-Carlton, stretching majestically along a sheer 150-foot bluff, overlooks all of this, sentinel to what has got to be one of the more breathtaking strips of shoreline on the entire West Coast. It’s a rather terrifying beauty, though, and not for beginners, which I very much am, and which I made clear to the kind woman on the phone booking my weekendlong Surf Package. I explained that I had tried surfing twice before, and both times, by some unexpected magic, I had even managed to stand up on the board — an experience so exhilarating that I didn’t even mind when I immediately tumbled right back into the surf. I knew I’d never have the http://WWW.RITZCARLTON.COM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Summer 2011

Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Summer 2011
Table of Contents
Contributors
Editor’s Letter
President’s Letter
Falling in Love with … Hawaii
On the Boulevards
Design
Shopping In New York City
Jewelry
Watches
Wine
Wellness
Sports
Portugal
Moscow
Fashion
Culinary
The Guide
Heritage

Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Summer 2011