The Jetty family reaches far and wide, and today we are proud to announce that
Manasquan’s Scott Duerr was inducted into the East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame. We
are particularly excited at this moment because Duerr is still turning heads in the line-up
after 55 years. And for these last few, Duerr has proudly sported Jetty gear because of
our shared roots.
“It has been a wonderful ride with so many fun times,” said Duerr this week.
Duerr was inducted on Thursday at the ceremony in Orlando, where Jetty was busy at
Surf Expo. Duerr learned to surf in the summer of 1976. He became an instant standout as New Jersey’s surf scene grew and was invited to some of the most prestigious surf events in the world. By the 1980s, he was one of the first two New Jersey surfers to garner a paycheck from a surf company and went on to ride for Gotcha in the 80's heyday. Photos of his heroics from Seaside to Jenks to Manasquan helped put our state on
the map long before the dawn of the internet.
In 2019, Scott was an obvious choice for the New Jersey Surfing Hall of Fame. Imagine
learning to surf before the shortboard revolution and still getting the best waves on bitter
cold days just last month. He and his wife Leslie are part of the foundation of the
Manasquan surf community. When the surf is down, Duerr can always find a fish in that
inlet. “This is just like a lifetime achievement award for surfing on a coast that I have so much pride in. It’s humbling and gratifying at the same time,” Duerr added, “The length of time that I was, and am still able to be a part of it, is crazy when I reflect on it. I was so
stoked that my family was there with me at the induction. All of my girls, my brother, and even my nephew Billy was on hand. This is just such a special time in my surfing journey.”
In a way, Duerr predated the business model of the free surf pro. While he didn’t have
the cutthroat attitude for high-level competition, he beat Australian Chris Byrne at the
Grogs Seaside Pro in the 70's when Bryne was ranked 4th on the International
Professional Surfers Tour. “Yeah, my biggest achievement wasn’t any event result. My trophy, so to speak, was having surf images run in national and international magazines or later surf websites like Surfline for six different decades.” Scott and brother Bob Duerr have both raised families and been involved in Jetty events over the years as well as advocating for healthy waterways as we do. The 2026 induction class was Duerr, Todd Morcom, Dr. Lisa Carulli, Bryan Hewitson, Matt Pruett, Drew Brophy, Richard Price, Carl ‘Tinker’ West, Jay Real, Bernie Crouch, and the Cecil Lear President’s Award went to New York’s Mike Angiulo. Also, inducted this year was Tony Giorodano, longtime owner of our retail partner, Ocean Hut Surf Shop. Duerr is already back in New Jersey with his sights set on upcoming cold swells. Duerr has drawn his own line and it’s a line much longer than most - Congrats Scotty!
