Trawling for locals-only discounts in PB and MB

There is a This American Life podcast called “Good Guys.” It is about always asking when you buy something if you can get the “good-guy” discount. As Ira Glass says, “You know, you’re a good guy, I’m a good guy, how about a discount?” So, when my surf buddy Jason and I bought winter wetsuits at South Coast Surf Shop in Pacific Beach, I asked for the good-guy discount.

“We don’t have a good-guy discount. Sorry.” The clerk started to ring up the sale. Suddenly, the other clerk, who had overheard our conversation, asked if we were locals. We showed her our driver’s licenses. “Well, we don’t have a good-guy discount but we do have a 10 percent discount for locals.”

We saved $40 right there.

I decided to take this new-found knowledge out for a ride. Rip Curl Surf Center on Mission Boulevard had a rash guard I wanted. I asked them for the local discount and Todd said “Sure!” And he threw in a bar of wax for good measure. At the Get-It-On smoke shop in Mission Beach, Leo had no hesitation in giving me the locals discount. “I always hook up the locals,” he said.