The history of Body boarding
Bodyboarding is a surface water sport (sometimes called Boogieboarding, from the inventor Tom Morey, of the "Boogie Board" where Boogie is an original brand in the greater bodyboard industry/market). The average board consists of a small, rectangular piece ofhydrodynamic foam, sometimes containing a ridged spine called a 'stringer'. Bodyboarders typically use swim-fins for additional propulsion into and control while riding a wave.
The boards are shaped to the rider's specific needs such as height, weight and riding style. Those styles include prone (layout flat on your belly), dropknee (one foot forward and flat on the deck of the board and the back leg has its knee to ankle on the deck), and stand-up (both feet on the deck). Bodyboarding originated in the Hawaiian islands on "Paipo" (PIPE OH) boards. The decades from 1970 to 2010 has seen the birth and rapid growth in popularity of the modern foam based version of this sport that predates the first stand-up surfing by hundreds of years.
But a diversion the most common is upon the Water, where there is a very great Sea, and surf breaking on the Shore. The Men sometimes 20 or 30 go without the Swell of the Surf, & lay themselves flat upon an oval piece of plank about their size and breadth, they keep their legs close on top of it, & their arms are us'd to guide the plank, they wait the time for the greatest Swell that sets on Shore, & altogether push forward with their Arms to keep on its top, it sends them in with a most astonishing Velocity, & the great art is to guide the plank so as always to keep it in a proper direction on the top of the Swell, & as it alters its direction. If the Swell drives him close to the rocks before he is overtaken by its break, he is much praised.—James King, Journal, March 1779
Prior to 1971, bodyboards were made from wood or fiberglass and foam, and called paipo boards (pronounced PIPE-OH). Paipos made from wood generally do not have fins, but fiberglass/foam boards usually do.[1] Modern popularization of the sport was made possible by Tom Morey who designed the first mass-produced bodyboard coined the "Morey 'Boogie' Board". Though the initial rider for Morey was Mike Stewart, as the years progressed and the sport went to higher levels, competing became a larger aspect of the sport.
The board
The bodyboard differs from a surfboard in that it is much shorter and made of foam.Body boarding has been around since ancient hawaiian days, it was called"Paipo" and was made out of koa wood.the new board consists of a foam 'core' encapsulated by a plastic bottom and a softer foam top known as the deck. The core is made up from dow/polyethylene, arcel or, more recently, polypropylene. Each type of foam gives the bodyboard a different amount of flex and control for the rider. Dow/polyethelene cores are best suited to cooler waters as they can be too flexible in warm water and the board does not flex properly. The type of foam is also consistent with the ride on the wave. Stiffer foams provide the rider with suitable riding conditions to make sure the bottom of the board does not turn out and snap in half.
Some boards contain one or two rods (usually of carbon or graphite) called stringers to strengthen the board, reduce deformation, and add stiffness and recoil to the core, giving greater speed from bottom turns. 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. Knowing the number of stringers and their placements is important to prevent damage to the board when punching a hole for a leash plug. Adding a stringer to a polypropylene/arcel core can make it too stiff for cool water. 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.
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 greater wave hold and control. The use of these channels also means that the tail of the board is free to move. Occasionally, skegs are installed to decrease slippage on a wave face. However, it also decreases the looseness and maneuverability required for many moves, leading to a decrease in their use. Skegs are very rarely used and even then almost exclusively by drop-knee or stand-up bodyboarders.
Crescent tails provide the greatest amount of hold (keeping a rider on the board) in steep waves but make it difficult to slide the tail deliberately. Crescent tails are generally preferred by drop-knee riders because the shape interferes less. A bat tail is better suited for prone riders because it is easier to slide the tail. The bat tail also makes the bottom of the board slightly longer in the middle, helping to keep the rider's legs out of the water, reducing drag.
Glued, or more recently, bonded via a hot air lamination technique, to this core is a thick plastic bottom (known as the 'slick') which gives the board strength and speed. Two main types of 'slick' are present in modern day bodyboards: the first and better-performing of the two is surlyn providing much more strength and projection. Another cheaper type of slick is known as High-Density Polyethyleneor HDPE, which does not perform to the same standard.
The top of the board (the 'deck') is made from a softer foam to give grip and cushioning to the rider. Bodyboarders frequently wax their boards to increase the coefficient of friction on contact surface areas.
The shape of the board affects how it works. If the wide point of the board is near the nose, the board is best suited to prone riding as the riders weight is further up on the board. Boards with rails that are more parallel or ones with a wide middle and a narrow nose are ideal for drop-knee and stand-up riding as the rider's center of gravity is further back. Some magazines have an annual Board Test where unsigned riders test the new season boards and give a review, such as Movement magazine's Board Test. and RiptideMagazine's Board Guide.
Invention of the modern bodyboard:
On July ninth, 1971, Tom Morey invented the modern bodyboard. 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 tidepool, 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.
Dropknee
Dropknee is another form of wave riding on a bodyboard. It consists of putting one's preferred foot at the front of the board while the other knee rests on the tail of the board. Its origins are generally unknown, however it has been suggested by various pioneers of the sport that Jack "the Ripper" Lindholm was one of the first to surf Hawaii and implement this stance. Peruvian rider Cesar Bauer is the reigning world champ of 2010 in his 1st year as a pro.
[edit]Stand-up
Stand-up style is another form of wave riding on a bodyboard. It consists of standing upright on the board and performing tricks on the face as well as in the air. It is not as popular today as it was in the 1980s.
[edit]World championships
From 1982-1993 the winner of the International Morey Boogie Bodyboard Pro Championships at Pipeline was considered The World Champion. Since then The World Tour has determined the Champion and has undergone a few changes in names and regulations.
[edit]World Champions
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 | |
| 2001 | GOB Super Tour | Guilherme Tamega | Brazil | |
| 2002 | GOB Super Tour | Guilherme Tamega | Brazil | |
| 2003 | IBA Tour | Damian King | Australia | |
| 2004 | IBA Tour | Damian King | Australia | |
| 2005 | IBA Tour | Ben Player | Australia | |
| 2006 | IBA Tour | Jeff Hubbard | Hawaii | |
| 2007 | IBA Tour | Ben Player | Australia | |
| 2008 | IBA Tour | Uri Valadao | Brazil | |
| 2009 | IBA Tour | Jeff Hubbard | Hawaii | |
| 2010 | IBA Tour | Amaury Laverne | Reunion Island |
source: wikipedia.com
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