John Severson, Kathryn and George in John's studio on Maui. Not only were we able to enjoy our visit to his totally cool Maui studio, we got an original piece of art from one of surfing's legends and permanent keeper of the "stoke!"	Woodie and surfing friends Rowland and Dorma Baker shared the experience and ended up with their own original artwork.

This fall we were fortunate enough to get in a quick trip to Maui. One of the highlights of our trip was a visit to the Maui home of one of surfing's greatest - John Severson. We can all remember back in the days when John was creative and savvy enough to lead the surfing publishing world with the creation of Surfer Magazine where he constantly amazed us with his creative artwork and sense of humor. As mini-collectors, we were thrilled to be able to add another Severson original, "Island Contrasts" (shown in photo) to our home. John and his family including daughter Anna and his wife are all artists and lovers of the ocean. We invite you to follow the link below to visit more of Severson's classic art. www.surferart.com.

Meet Makenzie Kamea Currin -

No one enters the Moonlight family without their own Woodie stroller designed and built by Papa George! True to tradition, our newest Woodie Owner, Makenzie, has "driven" her woodie stroller to Woodies on the Wharf as well as other car events and parades over this past year. Makenzie is celebrating her first birthday in December and what a year it's been!

For the gals...Makenzie was born on Friday, December 20 at 4:30 in the afternoon. She was 6 pounds 11 ounces and was 20 inches long. The whole family was there - "Aunt" Kristina was the birth coach, Papa George; Grandma Kathryn, and of course father Dan. What a great Christmas gift!	Little Makenzie just 3 hours old	For the guys...tube chassis; drop front axle; 6 inch wide racing slicks with 6 inch polished aluminum wheels in the rear; 3 x 2-inch polished aluminum wheels in the front; '36 Ford cherry red body with working headlights; custom leather upholstery by woodie buddy Mike Wray (Cayucos Auto Interiors)

Who is Moonlight Woodies?

Born and raised in Southern California, the owner of Moonlight Woodies, George Benson, began surfing at age 14. Like all surfers in the 60s, George's greatest need was to get to the beaches with his friends and boards - the coolest and cheapest way to do that was in an ole' woodie wagon. The picture below is George and his first woodie when he was 16 years old - a 1947 Chevy with the nickname "runscanhardly" (runs down hill and can hardly make it up)

The woodie got him, his friends and his sweetheart from the home beach, Santa Monica (POP), north to Malibu, Secos, County Line, and south to Toes on the Nose, Redondo, Huntington, and Dana Point and any likely-looking surf breaks in between. A dollar's worth of gas and we were good to go! Getting home was no problem - there would always be coke bottles to turn in for the deposit to pay for the return trip.

Now, nearly 40 years later, George is still drivin' a woodie (a little nicer though) and still cruisin with his friends and sweetheart Kathryn (now wife of 32 years) to surfing beaches along the California coast. He's broadened his horizons with trips to Hawaii and Mexico and occasionally cruises with his two daughters (Kristina and Nikole) and twin granddaughters (Katie and Sarah) to Woodie events.

He's been repairing surfboards and creating fins since the 60s and has returned to building and refurbishing woodie wagons since 1989. He designs and builds unique Woodie Pedal Cars and surfing memorabilia. His wooden fin art is a favorite of collectors and artists alike and have been featured in foreign and domestic publications and museums.

Current photos above are George enjoying surfing at San Onofre (left) and in mainland Mexico (right) - The quality of these photos is pretty bad, but you get the idea...don't you?

We invite you to cruise through our site, visit the woodies and artwork, add to your collections by filling the easy to use "Shopping Cart", or if you just want to "talk story" email George - he's always ready to tell or listen to a tale about surfing and woodies - try to never let the truth get in the way of a good story! You should have been here yesterday (etc)!

"Thanks for stopping by. We all hope you enjoy surfin' thru this web site." George and Kathryn with their granddaughters "The Woodie Babes" Sarah and Katie Bolts.

Go Home Now? Moonlight Woodies

georgebenson@thegrid.net