‘Laney’s Lookout’: Trigg surf lookout to honour WA surfing legend Mark Lane

When local surfers pause to scope out the break at Trigg Beach, they will soon be doing so standing at a lookout bearing the name of one of WA’s most influential surfing figures.

The City of Stirling has announced a viewing platform will be named in honour of Mark Lane, who died last week after a long battle with cancer.

Located next to the Surfing WA headquarters, which he spent decades helping establish, the site will be known as “Laney’s Lookout”, paying tribute to Lane’s decades-long contribution to surfing in WA and across Australia.

The new platform was built only late last year to give surfers a vantage point to assess the waves and surf conditions.

Lane was a prominent figure in the Stirling community for decades, growing up in Woodlands, attending Churchlands Senior High School and later teaching at Carine Senior High School.

Lane had been Surfing WA’s chief executive officer, the State’s peak surfing body, since 2010.

He spent a total of 22 years leading the organisation across two stints, with three years as Surfing Australia chief executive in between from 2006 to 2009.

During his surfing administration career, Lane was pivotal in growing grassroots surfing and developing the sport at a State and national level, and was a driving force behind the development of Surfing WA’s new headquarters, which was completed in 2022.

He was also a strong advocate for skin cancer prevention and mental health.

Since news of his death earlier this week, tributes have been flowing from across the Australian surfing community, recognising his lasting legacy.

City of Stirling mayor Mark Irwin described Lane as a “true gentleman”, recognising the lasting impact he had on sporting and coastal communities across WA.

“Anyone who met Mark Lane would know that he was a special person — generous with his time, kind, caring and very capable,” Mr Irwin said.

“He made an incredible contribution to surfing right throughout this State and beyond, from growing the grassroots to developing the sport at its highest levels.

“Laney was one of a kind and we stand by his family and the WA surfing community in their loss.”