Ted was born Viscount Coventry and affectionately known as Lord Ted .He grew up in Britain and then moved to California, and was the first european to join the IPS world tour. He was a popular 'playboy' character on the tour who made his mark and flew the flag for Britain . In reality he was skint for long periods of time on the tour and often had to sleep in his car. He fearlessly surfed solid waves in Hawaii and his career high came in 1978 (?) when he got through to the semis of the Jose Cuervo classic at 12 ft Sunset beach, knocking out Cheyne Horan and Shaun Tomson's brother.
Ted surfed Parrish Lightning Bolts in Hawaii and when he returned to Britain , probably to earn some cash, he started shaping and was allowed to use the bolt logo. This board is from that era, its 6'8 x 19 x 2 1/2 . He emigrated to Australia in 1979 and started his excalibur label. He died of heart failure in 1997.
Ted was deeply commited to surfing and was full of the British never say die optimism. At one point he decided to take up snowboarding with the famous last words 'at least you can't drown in the mountains' , he spent the next six months in hospital ! He starred on the cover of Surfer mag in 1982 as 'aristocratic lord ted ' with his bolt quiver and hunting hounds outside the family pile ; if anyone has a copy I would love to feature it.
Here's a piece from Shaun Henderson about his memories of Ted Deerhurst . Thanks for sharing Shaun !
Hello World,
I have been out of the water for awhile rehabbing an injury.
Recently I found myself reflecting on how surfing has played such a big part in
my life. I started thinking about the time I met Ted Deerhurst. Wow, it's been
so long that I have thought about Ted and was pleased to find this homage to
him. I am also pleased that everyone seems to have the same common memory of
Ted as a fun loving and thoughtful person. Here is my story:
I was in full grom mode, ha! This was back in high school (around
'86 or '87, maybe '88). I grew up on the Jersey Shore and worked at a
restaurant called Hook, Line & Sinker (no longer exists). I was a buss boy
and became friends with the cook, a guy named Ronny. Ronny's roommate was a
charismatic and eccentric guy by the name of Ted. It wasn't until later that I
got to know the "Lord Ted" story. Ted was also a waiter at the
restaurant and apparently (according to Ronny) an exceptionally good surfer.
Ronny used to take my brother and I surfing. This was before I had my driver's
license, so it was a treat to be given rides to the beach. Ronny even let me
drive his jalopy at one point, ha! Here's a little Joisey Shore surfing tidbit:
Ronny, my bro and I surfed The Cove on Sandy Hook before they filled it with
sand. Epic!!! Anyway, one day Ronny starts to tell me the story of his
"famous" roommate. If you've made it this far in your Ted Deerhurst
Google search, you probably know "the story": Traded his aristocratic
upbringing for a life of surfing, was England's first pro surfer, etc. Ronny
showed me a video (VHS!) that Ted had. It was Ted holding the camera and
enthusiastically narrating while walking around a party. It was Mark Richard's
birthday party. I'm pretty sure I remember seeing Tom Carrol in the video and
some other famous surfers. Needless to say, this blew my grom mind! This was my
friend's roommate and a waiter at the restaurant I worked at, hanging out with
the upper echelon of the surfing world. I've been reading a lot about Ted
online lately but nothing that explained how and why he ended up becoming a
waiter in New Jersey. Ronny once said that he believed Ted was meant for
greatness. He had the personality for it. At the time I didn't think to ask the
questions I am now wondering. How did New Jersey fit into Ted's narrative arc?
One day, Ronny and "Lord Teddy" took my brother
and me surfing. By this point I kinda knew Ted's story. This day stands out for
me as one of my more inspirational surfing moments. Ted was already a legend in
my mind and he was taking me surfing! And the waves were as good as Jersey gets
(which I can now say as a much older and wiser and well traveled surfer, is
still pretty darn good! Patience is what you need as a Jersey Shore surfer, but
it does get epic). We surfed First Jetty on Sandy Hook. I forget what month is
was but we were all wearing full 5/4 wetsuits, hoodies, gloves and booties;
good ol' freezing cold Jersey. The waves were as big and clean as I have ever
seen at the time and my brother and I (and Ronny) were all noticeably nervous.
I think Ronny decided to sit this one out, if I recall. Ted of course was calm
as could be. I paddled out and I remember catching a few shoulder waves but
mainly I was making sure I had Ted in my eyes. He paddled waaaay outside and
sat there for set after set. I remember thinking that he was too far out until
THE set came through. Ted paddled effortlessly into it and dropped in right in
front of the rocks. Sitting on the shoulder as I was, I had a perfect view of
The Man Himself pulling into a cold, dark, intimidating barrel. What I remember
most is that he looked comfortable. Not, "Holy crap, this thing is
huge!" But comfortable. Right in front of the rocks on a bomb. He made it
out, rode down the line, hit the lip a few times, and kicked off the back of
the wave. People in the parking lot were honking their horns. Pure style! Never
claimed it. He paddled past me and the first thing he said was, "How are
you doing? Are you catching any waves?" Legend :) I was always grateful
that I had the opportunity to share that moment with him.
Not long after that, Ted asked me if I wanted to volunteer
in a contest he was organizing, The Excalibur Cup. I didn't realize it at the
time, but I now know that he mainly held these contests as fund raisers, not for
his own financial gain. The contest was held at Seven Presidents Park in Long
Branch, New Jersey. Kelly Slater was rumored to be attending (he didn't). The
contest day had small to non-existent waves. I remember at one point a cargo
ship went by in the distance and Ted wondered out loud how long it would take
for the boat wakes to arrive in the lineup. He even asked me to start calling
shipping companies to see if I could convince someone to go back and forth in
front of the beach. I thought he was joking but in retrospect, I realize he
probably wasn't! Trip Freeman won the contest and his girlfriend won the bikini
contest. It was cold and we were all wearing jackets and hats and they had a
bikini contest, haha! Most memorably, Trip somehow found a kite that was
floating in the water, paddled over to it, and managed to get the thing up in
the air and started flying it in the middle of his heat. I remember joking with
Ted that Trip should win the contest for that alone. Getting a water logged
kite to fly requires talent! I also remember that Trip managed to catch air on
a wave (actually, I think it was the boat wake!) and amazingly, pulled into a
barrel.
Ted also made me a surfboard. I have owned lots of boards.
The first board I ever owned was "The Original" Simon Anderson
Thruster. If I had known any better, I should've kept that board and the board
that Ted made for me. They would probably be collector's items nowadays. The
board Ted made for me had his logo the sword painted on the entire bottom, and
the Martin Potter-esque tie die bulls-eye painted on the top.
Ted made it clear that he didn't like being called
"Lord Ted". I remember getting a kick out of the idea that he gave up
his "royalty and riches" to be a surfer, but I don't think he thought
of it that way. He was a truly humble person. He had a lot of energy and
enthusiasm, and was an early influence on me as a grom. I do remember a certain
restlessness to Ted. I always remember what Ronny said about Ted being destined
for greatness, and that his job as a waiter in New Jersey was somehow a
necessary stepping stone in his life. He was already great in my mind. Ted was
"much older" than me and I remember thinking that this guy somehow
justified my obsession with surfing. A lot of what I have read about Ted says
he never really made it as a professional surfer because he never placed that
high at contests. But I would disagree. He truly embodied the spirit of surfing
in my mind. And as far as I was concerned, he was the most talented surfer I
had ever paddled out with. I guess it's now 20 years since his passing. Funny
that I took this long to Google his name but pleased I did. Here's another gem
of a Google find if you want to read about his family:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1397876/The-Earl-of-Coventry.html
R.I.P., Ted Deerhurst! It was a pleasure to meet your
acquaintance.
From Surf Scene 1981, don't understand the 20 years on bit since Bilbo started in 1965...
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