On May 20, 14-year-old Carter Doorley walked down to his favorite beach by the Brigantine Inlet jetty. He paddled out with enthusiasm and proceeded to ride the one-foot waves that the Atlantic Ocean offered. It may not have seemed like a notable surf session, but he was joined by several members of the Jetty surf apparel brand and Heritage Surf Shop crews, in addition to his entire family.
This was the 1,825th day he had surfed consecutively, the five-year mark in a streak no one his age has come close to. An hour earlier, to celebrate the occasion, his family took him to Heritage Surf Shop in Margate after school for a “surprise.” There he saw his image on the windows of the shop commemorating the 5-year milestone and was met by his friends from Jetty and Heritage. There was a cake, hugs, 5-year-branded Heritage/Jetty apparel, photos and a Rice Crispy treat in the shape of “Otis,” the Jetty mascot. Then it was down to the jetty, a walk he has literally made almost 2,000 times in his young life, for a surf.
The 5-year-mark is beyond special because it shows a level of commitment not usually seen in kids his age, and not usually met by those with adult responsibilities.
“It’s pretty rad,” offered Kevin ‘Kevmo’ Morris, buyer/manager of the Heritage Margate shop for the last 25 years and 2023 inductee into the New Jersey Surfing Hall of Fame, “We have literally watched him grow up through this whole mission. In an age where kids have so many distractions, for him to get outside and do this every day is unbelievably inspiring.”
Morris was instrumental in making this happen with Greg Waters of Jetty’s Retail Marketing and Communications Teams. Also out to show support were Jetty’s pro surfers Ben Gravy and Rob Kelly, who have a combined quarter million followers on social media. At the beach, Carter’s positive vibes carried through the line-up despite the small waves.
“I have to thank my mom, first,” said Carter. “And my dad, they really made this happen for me. My mom went out and filmed every day.”
Carter’s parents are Andrew, an Atlantic City firefighter and Dawn, who works at Flyers Skate Zone in AC. They are involved in all of their children’s activities. Carter’s is just the most unique. Imagine the dedication of this woman, who gets her son to the shoreline every single day, in rain, sleet, snow and Brigantine summer craziness. Even your mailman takes off on Sundays. His streak is documented on Instagram at @CarterCatchesWaves.
He thanked Jetty, Heritage and Catch Surf for their support.
So what was the hardest surf session to notch?
“Massachusetts,” Carter answered, without hesitation, “There were seals everywhere and that line-up is loaded with Great Whites. That was so sketchy.”
The snowiest session happened to coincide with a day of heavy six-foot barrels, in 18 inches of snow back in the winter of 2023.
Of course, Carter couldn’t take a day off for injury or sickness, so he surfed with a bathing cap in the summer of 2024 after he took his fins to the head and had the gash stapled shut.
Was there a day where his streak almost ended? After an away cross-country meet for the Brigantine Community School in the Fall of 2022, he got home with only ten minutes of daylight, just enough to run to the water and get his waves in the fading twilight.
The best surf?
Well, that would have been August of 2023 when he traveled all the way to Long Branch, New Jersey and got the barrels of his life and wound up with his photos on Surfline.com.
Dorley is open about some struggles he has had with mental health, though none of this is obvious when you meet him. He shares some of these feelings on social media, to encourage others to seek help when they need it. Surfing balances him out. The routine of surfing every day has proved to be incredible therapy. He admits he only checks the surf forecast once a week. There’s not much reason when he’s surfing every single day anyway. The last seven months his routine has gotten a little easier since the family purchased a 4WD SUV. Now Dawn can drive him to the water in the off season.
This month, he graduates 8th grade. In 2024, he qualified for the Eastern Surfing Association’s Eastern Championships on the Outer Banks and has qualified again this year. His best results have been in the Longboard divisions. He’s also a hammer on the lacrosse field.
Carter considers reaching the milestone a proud achievement. But it’s given him so much purpose.
“I’m just going to keep it going,” he stated, “There’s no reason to stop.”
