Surfer’s Inexperience Likely Factor in Death

The mother of a former high school swimmer and avid surfer said he had not been in the ocean in many years, which likely led to his death in the waves off Silver Strand Beach.

Paulette Treinen of Rapid City, S.D., said her son, Carl Moss, was a swimmer and surfer while a student at Royal High School in Simi Valley in the early 1980s. And in 1982 and 1983, he was captain of the wrestling team, she said.

But the 31-year-old’s past skills on a surfboard and his athletic ability weren’t enough to prevent him from drowning in treacherous surf about 11:30 a.m. Sunday off the 2500 block of Ocean Road. Those who pulled Moss from the surf said they saw him lying face down just outside the surf line, pulled him to shore and tried to revive him using cardiopulmonary resuscitation. They were unsuccessful and Moss was pronounced dead at 12:30 p.m. at St. John’s Regional Medical Center.

Senior Deputy Coroner Mitch Breese said the cause of death was asphyxia due to drowning. A contributing factor, he said, was schizophrenia. No further details were released.

Moss was diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of 18 and lived in several board and care facilities over the years, said Treinen, a retired publications and presentations manager for Rocketdyne in Simi Valley. On Sunday, Moss left the Oxnard facility where he had been living, for a day of surfing with a friend, she said.

“He went with another client who has a surfboard and a wetsuit to take turns in the water,” Treinen said. “This was the first occasion in many years that he had been out doing surfing,” said Treinen. “The tide had been high that day and I think he just made a bad decision.”

Moss was born in Canoga Park and lived in Ventura County his entire life, Treinen said. “He was one of the first Academic Decathlon team members at Royal High School, and he was a champion wrestler two years in a row,” she said.

In addition to his mother, Moss is survived by a sister, Laura Wageman of Bakersfield, and a brother, Frank Moss of Costa Mesa. His father, Anthony Joseph Moss, died in 1992, according to Treinen.

Services are pending at Reardon Simi Valley Mortuary.