Carlsbad

Name: Phil Boone

Home: Carlsbad

Vehicle: 1939 Ford Fordor Deluxe

Surfing: Carlsbad

"You never think you're going to get old," Phil Boone says. "You never plan for it. I'm retired now. Spent 28 years as a firefighter. I surf here every week with a group of retired guys.... I feel like a little kid again when I surf." Phil carries a board he had in high school atop his '39 Ford. The board was shaped in 1962 by a local shaper, Duke Dana. "I don't surf with it. It's nostalgic," he says.

It's not his first surfboard. "I made my first board. Back then, you couldn't walk into a surf shop to buy a board; there weren't any shops. They didn't make foam boards back then, and we didn't have the kind of money kids have now. So, I made my first board out of balsa wood in shop class."

He bought "Barney," his four-door Ford, off the Internet and has set about rebuilding it. "I put a 350 Chevy in it, and kept the original '39 running gear. It has a 1939 transmission and chassis. I had the brakes rebuilt because they were shot."

Phil says he likes the rough exterior of his car. "It's nothing to look at from out here, but I can put a wet board on it. Or put my wet suits in the trunk. I don't mind if someone leans up against it. Everything's in perfect condition underneath. And you'd never guess it has a V-8 by looking at it."

Phil's favorite surf spot is across from the Encina power station on Carlsbad Boulevard. "The power station pumps warm water to an outlet over there. And there are dolphins here all the time. I love to surf with dolphins. They're the best surfers in the world."