Raging River Wave Sucks Bodyboarder Out to Sea (Video)

In a town mostly known for weird and wonky novelty waves, Laguna Beach is home to all sorts of nooks and crannies, offering fickle, unconventional surf.

But when it comes to true novelty, the town’s most peculiar “surf” spot is the Aliso Creek river wave. Born from the reservoir just across Pacific Coast Highway from Aliso Beach – the town’s premier shorebreak spot, and pioneering location for modern-day skimboarding – the creek can break the berm (either naturally or by human intervention) and create a standing wave suitable for crafts ranging from bodyboards, skimboards, and the occasional surfboard.

And it’s not the most user-friendly spot, as demonstrated below, when a bodyboarder attempts to ride the wave, only get swept up in the fast-moving rapids and sucked out to sea. Check out the footage:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ARScjyCeN0c?sttick=0

The clip comes from Blair Conklin, a professional skimboarder hailing from Laguna Beach, and one of the preeminent riders of the Aliso Creek wave on all varieties of craft. (For proof, see the latest of Conklin busting a “world’s first” fingerflip transition into the wave below.) But in this clip, Conklin waits on the side of the berm as the bodyboarder takes his turn. And when the ride is over – as determined by the ever-changing wave – the bodyboarder gets caught up in the flow, then pulled through the whitewater rapids into the torrent.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ek6tfVfZLpQ

When it comes to the City of Laguna Beach and surfers of the Aliso Creek river wave, there’s no shortage of controversy. Greg Viviani (aka SoLagLocal) is a vocal proponent of breaking the berm, and letting the creek flow regularly – as opposed to the water staying stagnant and becoming a cesspool for bacteria, then eventually pouring out into the ocean. The battle has gone so far, that Viviani has even been ticketed for “digging a hole” in the sand.

So, Viviani has shown up at City Council meetings to preach his message, along with starting a petition advocating for the creek to be broken.

“When the creek stays filled, stagnate, non-oxygenated water creates dangerous bacteria, horrible smell and mosquitoes etc! When the creek is flowing it has less chance of bacteria build up,” the petition states.

For now, it appears city officials have backed off from restricting surfers in breaking the berm. But the battle is still ongoing.