Catching Up With The Jersey Devil | The Legacy of New Jersey’s Greatest Surfer

30 years after his remarkable breakthrough onto surfing’s World Championship Tour, Ocean City magazine spoke to local surfing legend Dean Randazzo about his distinguished career in and out of the water, and his fearless fight with cancer.

DEAN RANDAZZO, 58, IS WIDELY REGARDED AS ONE OF THE GREATEST SURFERS EVER TO COME OUT OF NEW JERSEY.

He’s also a tireless philanthropist and community member still working and making a difference around town.

The Margate native, nicknamed the Jersey Devil for his aggressive surfing style, spent more than 20 years plying his trade as a professional surfer. In 1996, he became the first surfer from New Jersey to qualify for professional surfing’s most prestigious tour, the ASP World Championship Tour (WCT). Making that tour meant you were one of the top 44 surfers in the world – similar to qualifying for the PGA Tour. This was a groundbreaking accomplishment for Dean and all local surfers. Randazzo’s against-all-odds rise to the pro ranks broke the West Coast’s grip on the sport and earned props for the entire Northeast.

While on tour in the early 2000s, Dean was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, an aggressive cancer. At the height of his career, he struggled with whether to tell his sponsors, fearing he could lose the support that funded his travels. But he went public with his diagnosis at the U.S.

Open of Surfing in 2001 and soon after founded the Dean Randazzo Cancer Foundation (DRCF). Twenty-five years later, the foundation continues its mission of promoting cancer awareness and providing financial support to families facing cancer.

In this issue, we spoke with the Jersey Devil about his groundbreaking WCT appearance, and his remarkable career and life. He describes how a small fundraiser at his mother’s house grew into one of the areas most anticipated surf events, the “Surf for a Cause,” held each year on the first Saturday after Labor Day. Dean told us he wont be surfing this summer as he continues to heal, but he’s confident he’ll return to the water soon.

Margate / Ocean City

Growing up in Margate and surfing local jetties, Randazzo was shaped by a tight-knit local scene.

“I surfed a lot in Ocean City, including 7th Street. I grew up surfing with, and learning from a lot of really good, talented surfers. There was a whole crew – guys like Steve Dweyer, Mark Neustadter, Bruce Beach and Tom Matthews.”

Jersey waves aren’t known for perfection. Inconsistent at best, those conditions helped Randazzo build the toughness and grit that would define his career. Grinding it out every day in heavy shorebreak and less-than-ideal surf gave him that deep desire to improve. His neighborhood also may have added some grit.

“My dad said Margate was different then, a bit rougher,” said Dean Randazzo Jr., Deans oldest son. “The older guys would beat up on the younger guys and the diverse neighborhood meant for some serious fights. It sounds rough but my dad said it was how they learned how to respect their elders. And when it came to the surf scene and culture, Margate was very isolated compared from the rest of the country, and a solid 10 years behind in equipment.”

By the early 1990s, Randazzo was competing in amateur contests in California before entering the global professional qualifying circuit, the World Qualifying Series (WOS). The WQS was unforgiving: constant travel, low prize money, and hundreds of surfers chasing a handful of spots on the elite tour. For Randazzo, it meant betting everything on himself.

At the time, competition surfing was governed by the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP), which ran two primary circuits: the WQS, which was the feeder system, and the WCT, which was the main event and featured the top surfers in the world.

“I got a late start on the pro tour. Coming from New Jersey… no one really ever broke through. I had to build my own way up because, back then, sponsors really didnt care about New Jersey. I didnt have any sponsorship help early in my early career, I had to figure everything out myself. So it took me a little longer to get through the amateur ranks.” The nickname “Jersey Devil” wasn’t just a nod to his roots or tenacity, it reflected how he surfed. Powerful, aggressive, and fearless, he attacked waves with a style that didn’t always fit judging criteria early on.

“Back then, they only counted your turns. The more turns you made, the more points you got. They didn’t count how radical or committed your turns were. My style, the radical abandonment, wasnt getting noticed. Then they changed the criteria around 1993, and I started getting results.”

Out of thousands of competitors, only a select few advanced each year.

Randazzo was one of them.

“Around 1995, I just went for it,” he said. “I was traveling around the world (in the WQS) and somehow, I made it around the world without any sponsors. And I earned enough points to qualify for the World Tour, the WCT.”

In 1996, Randazzo did something no one from New Jersey had ever donehe qualified for the ASP World Championship Tour, proving that a surfer from the cold, inconsistent waves of the Jersey Shore could compete with the best in the world.

His breakthrough didn’t just change his life – it changed the perception of East Coast surfing. Surfers like Sam Hammer and others would follow, but Randazzo proved it was possible first.

He would go on to surf professionally for roughly 20 years, competing at world-class waves from Jeffreys Bay to Western Australia, Portugal, and Japan.

He also earned X Games MVP honors in 2004 during the early 2000s era of surf competition. Even after being diagnosed with cancer, Randazzo later captured the Masters of Pro Surfing title in 2010, proving his longevity and ability to compete at a high level well into his career.

Together, these achievements highlight a surfer who not only reached the elite level, but sustained relevance across multiple eras of professional surfing.

Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and the DRCF

In 2001, at the height of his career, Randazzo was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. It marked the beginning of a fight he would face multiple times. Instead of stepping away, he turned adversity into purpose.

“I got sick with cancer in 2001,” he said. “And I started the Dean Randazzo Cancer Foundation (DRCF)… to help other people.”

What began as a personal response to a life-changing illness has grown into one of South Jersey’s most impactful charitable organizations.

HIS BREAKTHROUGH DIDN’T JUST CHANGE HIS LIFE—IT CHANGED THE PERCEPTION OF EAST COAST SURFING.

SURFERS LIKE SAM HAMMER AND OTHERS WOULD FOLLOW, BUT RANDAZZO PROVED IT WAS POSSIBLE FIRST.

The foundation focuses on helping individuals and families battling cancer by providing financial assistance for everyday expenses such as medical bills, rent, and utilities – costs that often become overwhelming during treatment.

“Dean Randazzo is the most humble person I know, and he has been through the ringer with his battle with cancer,” said Jon Baker, 53, a local surfer, artist, and current president of the DRCF. “When he made the tour, he made everybody proud. To see him doing what he was doing was just awesome. I used to see him in surf magazines, and one day I saw him in Maloney’s. I went over, introduced myself, and he was so humble and great. He told me about his upcoming ‘Surf for a Cause and asked me to come down. I donated a surf painting, and they sold it there on the beach. That money went into the kitty. Next thing I knew, I got a phone call asking if I’d be part of this growing organization, and I said

‘Absolutely.”

Through events like “Surf for a Cause, Paddle for a Cause, and community fundraisers, the DRCF has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars over the past two decades. Even as he continues to recover from ongoing health challenges, Randazzo remains connected to the ocean—coaching his sons, mentoring young surfers through his camps, and staying active in the community.

“He is a tough guy, like Spider-Man, and it’s a miracle I still have him,” said Dean Jr: who has a younger brother Chayton. “His impact and legacy on surfing, especially in New Jersey, has been huge. Before my dad, no sponsors came here. No one looked at New Jersey surfing — we weren’t important. Then he did what he did, and now there are bunches of Northeast surfers getting sponsored and supported.” From unsponsored world traveler to world tour competitor, from local standout to global pioneer, and from survivor to philanthropist, Dean Randazzo’s story is bigger than surfing. It’s about resilience, grit, and redefining what’s possible.

And it all started with a kid from Margate who refused to believe geography could limit greatness.

By Bill Godfrey. Photos courtesy of Dean Randazzo Jr.