Bodyboarding is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a bodyboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore. Bodyboarding is also referred to as Boogieboarding due to the invention of the "Boogie Board" by Tom Morey. The average bodyboard consists of a short, rectangular piece of hydrodynamic foam, sometimes containing a short graphite rod within the core called a stringer. Bodyboarders typically use swim fins for additional propulsion and control while riding a wave.
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Bodyboarding originates from an ancient form of riding waves on one's belly. Polynesian people rode "alaia" (pronounced ah-lie-ah) boards either on their belly, knees, or feet (in rare instances). Alaia boards were generally made from the wood of Acacia koa and ranged in length and shape.[1] They are distinct from the modern stand-up surfboards in that they had no ventral fins.[2] Captain Cook was recorded seeing Hawaiian villagers riding such boards when he came to Hawaii in 1778. The boards he witnessed were about 3' to 6' and were ridden "prone" (on the belly) or on the knees. Alaia boards then evolved into the more modern "paipo" (pronounced pipe-oh) board. Paipo boards were either made of wood or fiberglass. Fiberglass boards usually had fins on the bottom.[3] Tom Morey hybridized this form of riding waves on one's belly on a paipo to his craft of shaping stand-up surfboards.
On July 9, 1971, Tom Morey invented the modern bodyboard. His story is as follows:
Soon after arriving in Honolulu, Morey began toying with the idea of making a surfboard that would be "ultimately fast." He designed a six-foot-long board with a fiberglass bottom and soft polyethylene deck that would be ridden prone. "I finally got this board together, and it was just as I had designed it, but it was weak," says Morey. "While just paddling out in a Waikiki tide pool, a little four-inch wave broke the nose off. I thought to myself, 'Man, I've got some thinking to do on this. This design just isn't working.'"
A month later Morey moved to the Big Island to the town of Kailua where he lived just down the street from the surf break Honols. One hot July morning he awoke to perfect waves. The only problem was, he didn't have a board to ride.
He knew he wanted to make something out of his last nine-foot piece of polyethylene foam, but he didn't know what. "I grabbed a knife and cut it in half," says Morey. "There was no turning back at that point. I looked at the foam and then at the surf and began fooling around with a hot iron and an electric knife. I found that I could shape the foam using the iron if I put a sheet of newspaper down on the foam first. Later that night, I drew a few curves on the foam with a red marking pen and went to bed." Morey rose early on July 9, 1971, and cut and ironed out his planned shape. He left his board as wide as possible and left the nose square so that it would have more structural strength and so he could hold on to it. "I decided I'd shape the rails like those on a Hot Curl surfboard," says Morey. "Those were the boards from the 20s and 30s; built before boards had skegs. I cut 45-degree Hot Curl rails into my board. They looked great, but I still wasn't sure how it would ride."
Morey grabbed his board, ran across the street to Honols and the sport of bodyboarding was born. "I had a ball!" recalls Morey. "I could actually feel the wave through the board. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before. On a surfboard you're not feeling every nuance of the wave; you're feeling how this seven-foot piece of fiberglass is chattering against the wave. But with my creation I could feel everything. I was thinking to myself, "This thing turns, it's durable, it can be made cheaply, it's lightweight, it's impenetrable...God, this could be a really big thing!'"
Morey was so pleased that the very next day he shaped a smaller board and sold it to a neighbor for ten dollars. "I had to know if anyone would buy it," said Morey. "After that sale I knew I would be able to sell it everywhere." During this time, Morey had become involved in the Bahai faith—a religion that stresses the principles of universal brotherhood. The Bahais believe everything done for the service of mankind is elevated to the state of worship, so when Morey asked to borrow some money to fund a move to the Mainland in order to market his board, his fellow believers were eager to help.
"One Bahai friend, Jack Spock, lent me 200 dollars," says Morey. "Then another friend, whose name I've forgotten, gave me 100 dollars. A couple of guys had vehicles they wanted to sell, so I fixed their cars. After we sold the cars, one guy, Ray Olivaras, split his earnings with me. Another guy, Roger Glick, let me keep the 250 dollars as an investment." Altogether Morey borrowed 1,000 dollars from his Bahai friends. He was ready for the Mainland.
Bodyboards are shaped to the rider's specific needs and preferences such as height, weight, and form of riding. Three basic forms of riding a bodyboard include prone, dropknee, and stand-up.
Riding prone refers to when one rides the wave on his belly. When one goes left, one places his left hand on the upper left corner of the nose and places his right arm half way down the rail of the right side of the board. The opposite is true of when one goes right. Mike Stewart is responsible for establishing the standard and progression of the prone riding form. Most of the basic maneuvers that pertain to it were also invented by him.
Dropknee is when one places his preferred fin forward on the front of the deck with the opposing knee on the bottom end of the board with his fin dragging in the water. Dropknee was first pioneered by Hawaii's Jack "The Ripper" Lindholm. Hence the term "Jack Stance" is in reference to his contribution to this form of riding.
Stand-up consists of standing upright on the board and performing tricks on the face as well as in the air. While it isn't quite as popular as the other two forms of riding a bodyboard, three notable figures that popularized it are Danny Kim, Cavin Yap, and Chris Won Taloa.
The bodyboard differs from a surfboard in the fact that it is much shorter (typically 38" to 43" in length) and made out of different types of foam. The modern board consists of a foam 'core' encapsulated by a plastic bottom, a softer foam top known as the deck, softer foam sides known as the rails. The core is made of dow/polyethylene, arcel, or Polypro/polypropylene. The bottom is made of Surlyn or Bixby. The deck is made of 8LB or CrossLink. Each type of foam core, deck, or bottom material gives a bodyboard a different amount of flex and control. Speed from the bottom turn is increased when a bodyboarder bottom turns and the board flexes and recoils, releasing energy. If the board flexes too little or too easily, speed is lost. Dow (polyethylene) cores are best suited to cooler waters as they can be too flexible in warm water. Arcel and Polypro (polypropylene) cores are best suited for warmer waters due to their increased overal stiffness.
Most boards on the market today contain one, two, or three rods (usually of carbon or graphite), referred to as stringers, to strengthen the board, reduce deformation, add stiffness and recoil to the core, thus providing greater speed off bottom turns and transitions on the wave. If a single stringer is used, it is placed in the center of the board running parallel to the rails. If two are used, they are placed symmetrically about the y-axis. Triple stringers are a combination of the placement of both a single and double stringer.
Deck, rails, and bottom are bonded via various hot air lamination techniques to the core. Previous to the lamination technique, shapers accomplished this by using glue.
The shape, or curve, of the board affects how it rides. If the wide point of the board is nearer to the nose, the board tends to be best suited to prone riding as the bodyboarer's weight rests further up on the board. Boards with more parallel rails or a narrow nose tend to be more ideal for drop-knee and stand-up riding as the rider's center of gravity tends to rest further back.
Most modern boards are equipped with channels that increase surface area in the critical parts of the board which, in turn, allow it to have varying hold and control on the wave. Originally, skegs were installed to decrease slippage on a wave face. However, progressive bodyboarding has rendered use of such skegs obsolete due to the looseness required for maneuverability on a wave. For such reasons, skegs are rarely used today and, even then, almost exclusively by dropknee or stand-up bodyboarders.
Tail shapes influence the way that boards perform in the line-up. Crescent tails provide the greatest amount of hold in steep waves. Crescent tails are generally preferred by drop-knee riders because the shape interferes less. Bat tails provide looseness for rail to rail transitions. Prone riders tend to prefer bat tails more than dropknee riders.
From the conception of the modern bodyboard in 1971, bodyboarding has experienced spurts of rapid growth both as an industry and extreme sport. With its origins in America, over the past decade the industry has shifted from an primarily American to a global industry phenomena. The sport has grown into a worldwide industry with growing strongholds in Australia, South American countries like Peru and Chile, Japan, Canary Islands (Spain), South Africa, and so forth. The evolution of maneuvers and waves in which it is being done have rendered it one of the most extreme wave riding forms in the world.
Bodyboarders have been accredited with pioneering some of the world's heaviest, most renowned surf locations in the world: Teahupo'o, French Polynesia; Shark Island , Australia; El Fronton, Spain; Cyclops, Australia; Ours, Australia; Luna Park, Australia; etc. In addition, bodyboarders place strong emphasis on aerial maneuvers on bigger, heavier sections of waves. These include aerial spinners, ARS (Air Roll Spin), el rollos, inverts (tweaking the board with the momentum of the wave and then swinging it back), backflips, and variations/hybrids of these maneuvers are also performed. Notable accomplishments for prone aerial maneuvers include:
El Rollo: Originally completed by California's Pat Caldwell. Reverse Rollo: Originally completed by Kauai's Kyle Maligro. Invert: Unknown. ARS (Air Roll Spin): Originally completed by Australia's Michael Eppelstun. Air forward 360°: Originally completed by Hawaii's Mike Stewart. Air reverse 360°: Originally completed by Hawaii's Mike Stewart. Air Hubb (Forward air to el rollo): Originally completed by Kauai's Jeff Hubbard. Reverse El Rollo to Backflip: Originally completed by Tahiti's David Tuarau. GORF (Invert to front flip forward): Originally completed by Nathan "Nugget" Purcell Invert to Reverse 360° "Inverse": Originally completed by Kauai's Jeff Hubbard. Devert (Invert to reverse el rollo): Originally completed by Kauai's David Phillips. Air reverse 720°: Originally completed by Hawaii's Jeff Hubbard.
Mike Stewart (Hawaii, USA) is considered the father of modern bodyboarding, acclaimed as one of the best wave riders of all time, and holds an unprecedented 9 world titles. He is also the only bodyboarder to receive the Mr. Pipeline title.
Guilherme Tamega (Brazil) is second only to Stewart for number of world titles: 6. He has gained reputation and fame for his aggressive riding style and appoach in both small and heavy surf.
Paul Roach (California, USA) is accredited with developing a new style of progressive dropknee riding in both small and large waves. He is also considered, by many, as the greatest dropknee rider of all time.
Jeff Hubbard (Hawaii, USA) is best known for his phenomenal aerial approach to bodyboarding. He holds 2 world titles.
Ryan Hardy (Australia)is considered one of the fathers of the present Australian bodyboarding generation. He has adapted a unique style and approach to bodyboarding that has influenced bodyboarders world-wide.
Ben Player(Australia) is also considered one of the greatest influences in bodyboarding both Australia and the world. He holds 2 world titles.
Kainoa McGee (Hawaii, USA) is famed as one of the greatest Pipeline bodyboarders and surfers of all time. Since retiring from bodyboarding, he has developed both professional stand-up surfing and stand-up paddle board (SUP) careers respectively.
Andre Botha (South Africa) is the youngest athlete to win the world title (1998). He then won a second world title the next tour season of 1999. Known for his extreme approach to wave riding in shorebreaks and heavy waves.
Phylis Dameron was the first person, man or woman, to ride big Waimea Bay on a bodyboard in the late 1970's. Carol Philips was the first woman to ride big Pipeline in the 1980's and compete against the men at Pipeline. During the early 1990's in Brazil, Mariana Nogueira, Glenda Koslowski, and Stephanie Petterson set standards that pushed women's bodyboarding to a world class level. Stephanie Petterson won the first official World Championship of Women's Bodyboarding[4] at Pipeline in 1990. It was the first women's event ever held there and initiated the longest running women's wave sport event in the world. 2009 marked the event's 20th anniversary.
From 1982-1993, the winner of the International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships at Pipeline, Hawaii was considered world champion. Since then a world tour has determined the sport's champion. The world tour has undergone one change. Currently, the International Bodyboarding Association (IBA) World Tour is the governing tour determining bodyboarding's world champion.
Current Men's IBA World Tour champion is Pierre Louis Costes of France. Current Women's IBA World Champion is Eunate Aguirre of Spain.
| Year | Competition | Winner | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Daniel Kaimi | Hawaii |
| 1983 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Mike Stewart | Hawaii |
| 1984 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Mike Stewart | Hawaii |
| 1985 | Not held | ||
| 1986 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Ben Severson | Hawaii |
| 1987 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Mike Stewart | Hawaii |
| 1988 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Mike Stewart | Hawaii |
| 1989 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Mike Stewart | Hawaii |
| 1990 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Mike Stewart | Hawaii |
| 1991 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Mike Stewart | Hawaii |
| 1992 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Mike Stewart | Hawaii |
| 1993 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Michael Eppelstun | Australia |
| 1994 | International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships | Guilherme Tamega | Brazil |
| 1995 | GOB World Tour | Guilherme Tamega | Brazil |
| 1996 | GOB World Tour | Guilherme Tamega | Brazil |
| 1997 | GOB World Tour | Guilherme Tamega | Brazil |
| 1998 | GOB World Tour | Andre Botha | South Africa |
| 1999 | GOB World Tour | Andre Botha | South Africa |
| 2000 | GOB Super Tour | Paulo Barcellos | Brazil |
| 2001 | GOB Super Tour | Guilherme Tamega | Brazil |
| 2002 | GOB Super Tour | Guilherme Tamega | Brazil |
| 2003 | IBA World Tour | Damian King | Australia |
| 2004 | IBA World Tour | Damian King | Australia |
| 2005 | IBA World Tour | Ben Player | Australia |
| 2006 | IBA World Tour | Jeff Hubbard | Hawaii |
| 2007 | IBA World Tour | Ben Player | Australia |
| 2008 | IBA World Tour | Uri Valadao | Brazil |
| 2009 | IBA World Tour | Jeff Hubbard | Hawaii |
| 2010 | IBA World Tour | Amaury Lavernhe | Reunion |
| 2011 | IBA World Tour | Pierre Louis Costes | France |