California is one of the only places in the world where you can surf and ski in the very same day, especially in Southern California where you're met endless surf breaks on the coast and soaring mountain ranges to the east. It’s called the California Double.
“What? Skiing and surfing in the same day?” you might ask.
The California Double is straight forward—you buckle up for early morning runs as soon as the ski slopes open. After ripping powder turns for a couple hours, you pile in the vehicle and head west to the coast to catch some waves before the sun sets. Extra credit is given if, while the gang is waxing their boards, you jump on the beach cruiser to grab burritos for everyone.
The most iconic places to pull off the California Double is Big Bear Mountain to Huntington Beach; Squaw Valley to Ocean Beach; Mountain High to Ventura; or Mount Baldy to Trestles break.
Some people call the California Double an epic challenge. At Eliel we like to call it SoCal living.
What is your version of the California Double? Where do you find your adventure on, and off the bike?
To salute the sense of adventure and freedom in the California Double, we have designed a limited-edition collection of women’s and men’s jersey. For the ski jersey, we use vintage patterns inspired by the skis and parkas you’ll remember from images from the 1960s Olympics in Squaw Valley and the 1970s and 80s Warren Miller ski films. The surf jerseys of our California Double collection evoke the palette and stripes of the original board shorts from iconic SoCal brands like O’Neil or OP apparel, which was developed at Hansen’s Surf Shop just down the road from Eliel. So buckle down, leash up, and ride on with vibe of the California Double.
