Bernie Crouch
Bernie “Mad Dog” Crouch started surfing as a youth in Daytona Beach and soon became a prime threat in the North Florida ESA ranks. Crouch earned numerous high finishes, and began travelling with his surf pal, Bobby Owens, and competing throughout the U.S. and Hawaii. Crouch continued with standout performances in the powerful surf on Hawaii’s North Shore, giving him the confidence to take the step into pro surfing, where he competed on the ASP Pro Tour.
After years of strong competition results, Crouch shifted focus to shaping surfboards and running Mad Dog Surf Shop in South Daytona. His outstanding shaping and business skills caught the attention of the area’s best surfers, many who found their way to success riding Crouch’s surfboards. And while his shaping and surf shop proved to be pivotal in the Daytona area, his continued world class surfing presence at Ponce was equally influential.
Throughout Crouch’s pro surfing career, he rode boards shaped by Hawaiian legend Harold Iggy, who made many trips from his North Shore home to South Daytona to shape at Crouch’s factory and ride the local waves. Iggy’s personal involvement in Crouch’s career instilled in him a connection to the great Hawaiian masters, something rare in today’s surfing community and something Crouch has shared with the next generation.
With all this vital body of work and influence, and having been nominated by New Smyrna Beach legend Charlie Baldwin, the International Surfboard Builders Hall of Fame in Huntington Beach, California inducted Bernie Crouch into their ranks in October of 2023.
Photos by Bob Bolen, Tom Dugan, Darrell Jones, Kem McNair, Dick “Mez” Meseroll, Barry Schulz, Bruce Walker and courtesy Bernie Crouch and Bobby Owens
Video contributions by Bob Bolen, Michael Baytoff, Richard Bernardi, Bruce Chrisner, Jon Coen, Eastern Surf Magazine, Donald Cresitello, Tom Dugan, Vdon Farias, Ryan Gamma, Norm Grosskruetz, Ray Hallgreen, Carlos Hernandez, Pete Hodgson, Darrell Jones, Jon Ker, Nicola Lugo, Matt Lusk, Kem McNair, Dick “Mez” Meseroll, Eric Olsen, Larry Pope, Tony Prince, Dan Przygocki, Barry Schulz, Joanne O’Shaughnessy, Jon Steele, Mike Vuocolo, and Chris Wilson.
