Coronado resident and retired U.S. Marine Corps Infantry Officer, Pat Byron, will represent Team USA at the International Bodysurfing Association (IBSA) World Tour Final in Coolum, Australia, from April 28 through May 7. This is the second annual Bodysurfing World Tour Final hosted by IBSA, bringing together representatives from five regions around the world who earned their spots by qualifying as one of the top 12 men and top 6 women during two regional competitions. Pat qualified after performing well at the Steamers Lane Bodysurf Contest in Santa Cruz in January 2024 and later at South Jetty during the Ventura Bodysurfing Classic last November. According to their website, IBSA was established in 2018 with with the purpose of: “The promotion and development of the sport of bodysurfing and the values of: sharing, awareness, the vision of the sport and the fellowship between Bodysurfers at a local, a national and international level. Bodysurfers should respect the ocean and seek to protect beaches and surf spots.”Â
Pat grew up in Virginia and was a competitive swimmer. When he visited his mother’s family in Dana Point during the summers, his grandfather taught him how to bodysurf when he was 12 and he caught the bug. His uncles and cousins were all surfers but Pat didn’t want to bother with a board, he just took his fins and body surfed the waves. His passion for bodysurfing grew as he brought his fins and found great surf spots around the world when he deployed with the Marines. Pat didn’t start competing in bodysurfing competitions until he was stationed in Hawaii, where he served four tours. While there he competed at the Pipeline bodysurfing competition and fell in love with the big waves.
When asked his top three favorite bodysurfing spots, Pat said Black’s Beach, Pipeline and the Tijuana Sloughs just off of Imperial Beach. Pat shared that he surfs better in big waves and the Tijuana Sloughs are fantastic for that. When asked if the sewage problems impact his ability to surf there, he shared that it was all dependent on the currents. It is about a mile offshore and he said, “It is a shame what is going on down there, the water can be crystal clear with tons of dolphins and it is beautiful, but the sewage problem is impacting that. Something has got to be done to fix the problem.”
Bodysurfing is thought to have ancient origins starting in Polynesia. Captain Cook was said to have witnessed the Tahitians “wave gliding” as it was known back then. Bodysurfing became popular in the U.S. in the 1920s after Olympic swimmer Wally O’Conner attracted onlookers during his bodysurfing in Los Angeles. IBSA is trying to reinvigorate the bodysurfing community and grow it as a means to establish community, friendly competitions and advocates for protecting the oceans.
Pat is the son of a Marine and continued their family’s legacy of military service as an infantry officer for 30 years. His last tour was at Naval Amphibious Base, Coronado and he chose to retire in Coronado where his daughter Helen attended Coronado High School and graduated with the class of 2020. Having spent the majority of his career in Hawaii, Pat wanted to retire on the mainland, in a place where he was near the water and could continue his passion of bodysurfing. He shared that the great neighbors and fantastic community of Coronado, along with its proximity to the beach and San Diego enticed him to establish roots here.
For more information on IBSA check out their website at IBSAbodysurf.com, or follow their updates about the World Tour Finals on their Instagram @ibsa.bodysurfing. For more information on Team USA follow @usabodysurfing on Instagram.
