What was Laguna Beach like in 1955?
Ship Mates Drive-In served coffee for 10 cents and customers were greeted in their cars by waiting staff in sailor suits, there were groves of orange trees as far as the eye could see and Hobie Alter started his famous surfboard business, followed by the popular Brook Street Surf Classic.
Beach volleyball also made its mark. The sport had been played recreationally throughout Laguna Beach and, in 1955, the Laguna Beach Open was launched, making it the second-oldest volleyball tournament in the United States. The event has featured several Olympic gold medalists, including Chris Marlowe, Dusty Dvorak, Scott Fortune, Dain Blanton and Gene Selznick, who won the first seven competitions.
The 68th Laguna Beach Open is part of the Association of Volleyball Professionals’ Tour, which will make its stop Oct. 13-15 at Main Beach, highlighting the area’s two October tournaments.
Andy Benesh and Silila Tucker won the 2022 men’s title at the Laguna Beach Open, defeating Paul Lotman and Troy Field in the final, while Molly Turner and Carly Skjodt captured the women’s championship with a victory over Kelly Reeves and Delaney Mewhirter.
Over the course of the three-day event last year, there were 80 men’s and women’s teams competing. On the final day, there were 16 teams battling for $24,000 in prize money, split equally among the men and women. The event also brought back the “Battle of the Beaches,” a hometown competition with players from Laguna Beach’s four primary locations known for their volleyball: Emerald Bay, Main, Three Arch Bay and Victoria.
In addition to the AVP Tour’s Laguna Beach Open, the inaugural Newport Beach Volleyball Invitational will be held Oct. 21 on the sand adjacent to the Newport Pier.
The Newport Beach 4-player Invitational benefits the May-Treanor Ohana Foundation, which was started by three-time Olympic beach volleyball gold medalist Misty May-Treanor, an indoor volleyball All-American…
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