JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – If you’re into surfing and live somewhere in the 904, there’s a pretty good chance you or someone you know has heard the voice of Bill Longenecker.
For four decades, he was the man who gave the daily phone-in surf report, ensuring surf enthusiasts got the most out of their visits to area beaches. Last week, Longenecker officially retired. Since the news of his retirement was shared on social media, hundreds of people have responded, thanking Longenecker for his dedication and service. Many would agree, he is a local surfing legend. But believe it or not, he didn’t start out that way.
“Funny thing is, when we first moved here, when I was five or six, I didn’t like the beach,” Longenecker said. “Until I was about 10 or 11, maybe 12 when I started boogie boarding.”
Once he got started surfing, it didn’t take long before Longenecker developed some great skills. Even though he was doing the surf report through Sunrise Surf Shop on Beach Boulevard when he retired, his time as the voice on the other end of the line started at Hixon’s Surf Shop in 1984.
“I’d known Bill (the owner) since he opened it in 1966 and he said one day, ‘You want to get paid for looking at the surf? You do it every day anyway’. I said, ‘Sure’. And he paid me $50 a month and store credit if I drew the surf report. And back then, we had just one answering machine and one line. I had it at my house. He paid to have it put in my house.”
So, that’s what people did. If they wanted the surf report, all they had to do was dial 904-241-0933 for the information they needed from Longenecker. When he wasn’t giving the surf report, Longenecker kept himself quite busy. He served as a paramedic in the ER at UF Health. He also was a schoolteacher for gifted students.
Since the news of his retirement, Longenecker has made a bit of a splash on Facebook with people thanking him for keeping them in the loop for the day’s surf. Some people commented saying they had memories of calling him while they were at school. Another commenter said he owed Longenecker gas money for all the time he saved him over the years. One story from a while back really stands out in his mind.
“I had a guy look up from in the intensive care unit at the ER as I walked by, talking to somebody. He was lying in bed sick. And he looked up and said, ‘Do you do the surf report?’” Longenecker recalled. “‘Yeah’. He recognized my voice. He was lying in bed in an emergency department.”
Longenecker even has a WJXT connection.
“Sam Kouvaris, your former sports director, he had a radio show,” Longenecker remembered. “And I’d call into it once a day, once during his hour at 10 o’clock, and do a surf report on it for him.”
As for what’s next, like many, Longenecker takes his morning swims and regularly rides his bike around town. Always the teacher, he also does science programs at schools. Now that he’s retired, Longenecker is ever grateful for the memories.
“It’s funny,” Longenecker said. “I thought $50 a month was pretty neat for doing what I did anyway.”
Something he did, but more importantly, something he loved. From hanging 10 to hanging out, Bill Longenecker is living proof that local legends do exist in our community.
Longenecker continues to hold science programs. He has traveled to over 100 schools with five programs sponsored by the Duval County Medical Society Auxiliary.
His current programs include studies on snakes, beach minerals, the human eye, the heart, and the brain. He is open to taking questions and working with students in the future. To learn more, email him at Lbill90@aol.com.
