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1800s - 1900s
The Sport Of Kings
Surfing's origins can be traced to Polynesian kings in the 1800s. Hawaiian
royalty rode twelve-foot surfboards called Olo's. Olo's were carved out of
Koa trees and weighed in excess of seventy pounds. After the missionaries
arrived in Hawaii they declared surfing forbidden because it was too
hedonistic. Duke Kahanamoku and the Beach Boys of Waikiki revived surfing
in the early 1900's. Duke, an Olympic Gold Medal Champion swimmer, became
surfing's most famous ambassador by performing surfing exhibitions
worldwide.
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1960s - 1970s
The Surfboard Revolution
For many American's, surfing seemed exotic. Gidget was the
first film to expose surfing to the public-at-large, but it was
Bruce Brown's The Endless Summer that motivated future
surfers worldwide to take up the sport.
By the late 1960s, shapers like Renny Yater began tinkering with board
design to increase maneuverability. Longboards quickly fell out of favor
and the "shortboard revolution" began. Early shortboards were three feet
shorter and ten pounds lighter. Montecito native George Greenough was a
leading figure in designing, testing and perfecting shortboards, including
hydrodynamic fins based on bluefin tuna. The new designs allowed surfers
to get closer to the curl, aggressively cutting back and forth along the
wave and tube-riding for the first time.
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1980s
The Birth of Professionalism
In the 1980s Santa Barbara's Tom Curren became embraced by the mass
media. Tom gained prominence by winning the juniors division of the
World Amateur Surfing Championships in 1980. His performance set new
benchmarks for his generation, influencing future surfers for years.
Tom's style, described as explosive yet elegant, exhibited a natural
connection with the ocean. Curren's many titles include World
Championships in 1985, 1986, and 1990.
Kim Mearig, Tom's junior high classmate, also found success as the 1983
Women's World Champion. Curren, Mearig, and Davey Smith (who's aerial
and floater maneuvers inspired Al Merrick to develop new surfboard
designs), all rode Channel Island's surfboards. Established in 1969,
Channel Islands Surfboards rose to prominence along with the success of
Curren, and has been a leading surfboard manufacturer ever since.
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