A paddle out was held recently for legendary surfboard shaper Bill Holden, who died of a heart attack earlier this year.
Photos of the memorial were just sent over by Holden’s son, Brad. Hundreds showed up on the sand at San Onofre to pay their respects and to paddle out in Holden’s honor.
“We had WWII aircraft overhead and flasks full of tequila in the
Water,” Brad wrote in an e-mail. “We turned his ashes loose and just as we did, a swell came. I didn’t think my dad had that kind of power, but he made it happen for
us.”
The memorial was held on May 28, which would have been Holden’s 78th birthday.
Holden was a well-known surfboard shaper who helped mold the sport into what it is today.

Just months before he passed, I was fortunate enough to meet Holden. He had a grandfatherly-like persona, with a smile ear-to-ear. He reflected fondly on his early days shaping boards for Holden Surfboards, back when his boards would go for about $50.

Holden held a lot of pride in the artistry and detail that goes into creating each board.
“It’s like sculpting. It just gets in your blood,” he said during an interview in December at the Surfboard Builders Hall of Fame. He was the first inductee into the club when it started in 2000.

He was good friends with other well-known shapers, like Dale Velzy and Bob “the Greek” Bolen, who bought his first custom board from Holden.
Four surfers from Hawaii who heard about Holden’s passing held a paddle out in conjunction with the one held at San Onofre.
One of the surfers, Jeff, wrote in an e-mail that he owned three Holden boards. His friend, a Costa Mesa resident who was in Hawaii visiting, had his first ride on a Holden board.
So they paddled out on two Holden boards, three Budweisers – one for Bill and one for each of them - a rock from San Onofre, and two flower Leis.

“We said our goodbyes and memories, shared a Bud with Bill…then let the SanO rock disappear under the aqua blue water and tossed our Lei and said our final
farewells and a salute,” he wrote.

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