Lynn Vignetti Thomas McQuay
Lynn Vignetti Thomas McQuay grew up surfing in Florida just as the competitive era was coming into full bloom. By the mid-60s, she had joined Dick Catri’s now-famous team of up-and-coming surfers — all now East Coast Surfing Hall of Famers — like Gary Propper, Mike Tabeling, Bruce Valluzzi, Fletcher Sharpe and Mimi Munro.
By 1969, Vignetti Thomas McQuay was at the top of the pack, earning the East Coast Women’s Championship title. She soon married top California surfer/shaper Joey Thomas and relocated to Santa Cruz, California, where she continued on with a decorated career in both pro surfing and as the president of Thomas Surfboards.
In 1975, the Women’s International Surfing Association (WISA) was formed in California as a women’s surfing program that ran pro and amateur events worldwide. Vignetti Thomas McQuay instantly became a fixture on the WISA World Tour. From 1975 to 1984, she won numerous titles — her best years being 1978 and 1981, when she was ranked number one. In that decade of pro surfing prowess, she never strayed beyond the top ten.
Vignetti Thomas McQuay was inducted into the East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame in 2004.
