News just in that the Californian shaper Pat Curren, a big-wave pioneer on the North Shore, and daddy to three-time world champ Tom, has died after a long illness. Schmidt’s story of meeting Pat post-surf will jerk a few tears out of anyone who knows the legend of Curren. The enthusiasm with which she addressed the work far surpassed what I would call the ‘usual intrigue’ of a passerby. My husband, Pat Curren, is in it and he would love to take a look…”I must have mistaken her, I thought. An 87-year-old Pat Curren stepped from the car, and we shook hands.
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