Buddy Pelletier was a man who was recognized as an amazing surfer, friend and someone who truly cared about the East Coast surfing community. His love of surfing and supporting his local surf brothers was well known by all. We love sharing his story as well as continuing his dream of supporting the local surfing community by providing humanitarian and scholastic aid.
ARTICLES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Many have written about Buddy and we love sharing those stories as much as we love reading them. Below are a few examples of what people truly thought through the eyes of his peers.
MAGAZINE EXCERPTS
Pelletier is the Southern gentleman of the circuit, always seeming to just cruise along. But when the waves are big, or when they are small, and he whips out that longboard-beware!
Probably one of the most versatile and complete surfers of all time, front side right or left, backside right or left, longboard, short board, huge waves, small waves….nothing seems to stop him or alter his flow. He knows in advance who he’s going to surf against and what he will need to do. When he’s on, and he knows it, he’s rarely stopped.
Style is the essence of true surfing and Buddy Pelletier is the master of the art. Because form follows function, the beauty of the maneuver that Buddy accomplishes tends to belie its difficulty. An example: a sweeping cutback into a switch stance allows a transitional maneuver to be completed with a minimum of lost motion. Buddy communicates a feeling of enjoyment through his surfing that undoubtedly originates from the longboard era.
Buddy Pelletier is a symphony in motion. He is at home in both large and small surf. Rides everything, he could probably ride a 2×4 if it was planned down. Grace and style mark his riding abilities, with arching turns and long down-the-line rides. Switching stance in the middle of a turn and fin first take offs offer a clear picture of his longboard heritage. Smooth, graceful rides combined with tricks insure a judge’s close attention to his ride.
Pelletier wins year after year because he is super consistent. His switch foot ability is especially advantageous for extra points. This combined with his experience on the longboard has given him an unbeatable style, which he combines with long rides to give him that extra advantage. The few points gained from this seem to push him over the edge consistently.
AWARDS
East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame
Buddy was inducted into the East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame in 2000 for his contributions to the sport of surfing through competition and through his involvement with young surfers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Florida.
East Coast Surfing Championship Buddy Pelletier Sportsmanship Award
The Foundation is very proud that the US’s oldest Surfing Competition, the East Coast Surfing Championships, has recognized Buddy’s contribution to the sport by naming their Sportsmanship award after Buddy, proving that you can be competitive and a sportsman in the “Sport of Kings”.
