Written By: Matt Bucci
Originally posted: 3/1/18
Meet Lucas and Sam, two of today's best professional skimboarders. Though native to Maryland, the McCoys call Dewey Beach, DE, home. Dewey is a special place to the skimboarding world. Renown for producing some of the best talent in the sport and it’s unique shorebreak, the small Beach town is considered the east coast skimboarding capital.
The McCoys are also two of the nicest people you'll ever meet. Their love for the sport and passion for passing on their knowledge to the younger generation speaks for their character and the nature of the skimboarding community in general.
For those that may not know, skimboarding combines the elements of surfing and skateboarding perfectly to create a fast paced and technical wave riding sport. The competitive circuit has been around since the late 80’s but the sport has reached incredible heights in the last few years. Social media and a close knit community drive the progression of skimboarding. Pros like Brad Domke and Austin keen have gained great notoriety on a national stage through their extensive following on Instagram and have brought the sport into the eyes of the WSL Big Wave Awards and the Sports Center Top Ten.
In the later months of 2017, Lucas and Sam shared in this trend by traveling and witnessing the sport in new places. Lucas, a recent college graduate and the eldest of the two, competed in Sununga, Brazil this past fall. Sununga has become a hotbed for skimming since The United Skim Tour made it an annual competition destination. The talent level there is nothing short of incredible and Lucas went as far to say, “If these guys were on the tour (and made it to more competitions) some would be in the top 5, no doubt.” Lucas went on to say how welcoming and genuine the people of Sununga were and that experience was humbling to say the least.
Sam, a junior at Plymouth State and member of the lacrosse team, spent his fall semester abroad in Hawaii. While not in class, Sam ventured all over the Big Island, Maui, Kauai, and Oahu looking for new spots and giving lessons, all while getting some amazing footage of professional skimboarding reaching places it’s never been before.
Still, as the sport continues to grow and professionals gain more recognition, the McCoys remain two humble kids from Dewey. Any summer night you can find them out front on West street where they’ve gone from amateur to pro and from camper to counselor. The brothers grew up attending Alley-Oop Skim Camp, to which they both attribute their success. The camp was started by Jason Wilson, Joey Vavala, and Corey Mahoney and founded on their desire to grow the sport. “I have to give it all to them, they’re the main reason why we’re pro now,” said Sam. Once a camper then counselor at Alley-Oop myself, I've seen the impact the camp has had on the skimboarding world and owe one of my greatest passions to Jason, Joey, and Corey as well. Skimboarding gains more popularity every year thanks people and organizations like the McCoy brothers, Alley-Oop, Skim USA, and the United Skim Tour. We at Cha Vibes share in the stoke and hope to contribute to its growth. Thanks for watching/reading, and as always, spread the Cha!
