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Welcome to
PitSurf.com
The PIT is much more than a complex of buildings where you can buy all your favorite surf gear, eat some of the best food on the Outer Banks, or groove to some tremendous live entertainment -
The PIT is a "lifestyle"! The PIT reflects the true laid back feeling that we all associated with the Outer Banks the first time we experienced it and the it's that same feeling that keeps us coming back.
The Pit is the collective brain child of Ben and Steve, two guys who wanted to make a living AND live at the beach (and surf all day). The two got hooked on the Outer Banks lifestyle while waiting tables to pay for college. Once school was over, each felt the need to chase careers related to their respective fields of study; Graphic Design for Ben and Marketing for Steve. Their quests led to pursuits as far away as Los Angeles and Jamaica, but each yearned for the good ol' days in sunny Nags Head.
One fine autumn day in 1993, the two were reunited as groomsmen in a friend's wedding. During that weekend, an idea was hatched.... An idea that was, they agreed, so crazy, it just might work. And The Pit was born.
In the spring of 1994, with a handful of used boards and a few t-shirts, the crazed entrepreneurs threw open the doors of a little shack on the beach road and made a go of it. For the first three years, the store expanded a little each season, while standing by the concept; that a surf shop should be a place to hangout, and should be friendly and unintimidating.
In the fall of 1996, The Pit made like a hermit crab, and moved into an old log cabin on the bypass road, three times the size of its beach shack. A shoestring renovation turned this hole of an eyesore into a whole new Pit. By the summer of '97, live entertainment, dance DJs, and light munchies made the place a true gathering place complete with a pool table and footsball game. Although the new place was bigger, it soon felt like a tight fit, too. Bands squeezed into the tiny dining room upstairs, and the surf shop struggled with 9 foot long boards in the ground floor retail space sporting a claustrophobic 7'2" ceiling height.
In the spring of 1999 the pair converted the "surf theater" into a very cozy kitchen, and unveiled a progressive menu of California style wraps and quesadillas. But the best was yet to come. Less than a year later, during the winter of 1999-2000, the dynamic duo delved into two monumental projects simultaneously: building the dream 3000+ square foot surf shop, and morphing those low ceilings into venue sized 12' ceilings..
A big loan from the SBA came late in the winter, and the race was on to
beat the clock and get all this done before the summer season. With the
help of a house moving company, the log cabin was cut from its pilings,
rested on giant I-beams and jacked into the air. When she came back down,
it was onto piling extensions achieving the new 12' ceiling height. The
new building had its own set of challenges. Although its humble beginnings
were as Ben's napkin sketches years earlier, the finished technical plans
faced a tight budget and an even tighter time-line.
Although the surf shop didn't open until August, a dream had been realized.
That dream that was so crazy, it just might work.
Today, The Pit Shop & Boardriders' Grill is what the founders like to call, "All that... and a bag of chips!" From the huge array of surfboards and the "store within a store" called Skim City, to rentals, lessons, and surf camps, The Pit makes more dreams come true, for more people, all the time. And as for hanging out, world-class casual cuisine in the surf themed log cabin is continually complimented recording artists drawn to playing the area's premier venue for original live entertainment, down in the bottom of The Pit.
Whether you wanna look good or learn to catch a wave, this is your place. You wanna kick back with your crew, meet people, fill your belly, or catch a show, this is your place. We are truly living a dream. Our place IS your place. We are stoked to share it all with you.
If you haven't been here yet, we look forward to meeting you.
If you have, thanks for helping us support our habit, surfing and life - Outer Banks style.
The Pit is the collective brain child of Ben and Steve, two guys who wanted to make a living AND live at the beach (and surf all day). The two got hooked on the Outer Banks lifestyle while waiting tables to pay for college. Once school was over, each felt the need to chase careers related to their respective fields of study; Graphic Design for Ben and Marketing for Steve. Their quests led to pursuits as far away as Los Angeles and Jamaica, but each yearned for the good ol' days in sunny Nags Head.
In the spring of 1999 the pair converted the "surf theater" into a very cozy kitchen, and unveiled a progressive menu of California style wraps and quesadillas. But the best was yet to come. Less than a year later, during the winter of 1999-2000, the dynamic duo delved into two monumental projects simultaneously: building the dream 3000+ square foot surf shop, and morphing those low ceilings into venue sized 12' ceilings..
