Cornwall Surfpoint - History of Surfing

History of Surfing

Originally developed by Hawaiian islanders (see Ngaru), before the 15th century, "he'e nalu" spread in the early 20th century to the mainland USA and Australia, where heavy timber "plank" boards were ridden directly towards beaches.

The sport exploded in popularity in the 1950s and 1960s, when cheaper, more manoeuvrable, and lighter boards made of fibreglass and foam became available and the teenaged baby boomers headed to the beach in droves to enjoy the manoeuvrability and stunts made possible by the new boards. Surfing in Cornwall didn't kick off till much later! The sport has spread to most places where waves of sufficient size and shape appear, including Brazil, Costa Rica, France, Ireland, México, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, and many island states including Barbados in the Caribbean and Tahiti in the Pacific. Long Island is also a very popular spot for surfing.

Equipment used in surfing includes a leash (to keep a surfer's board from washing to shore after a 'wipeout', and to prevent it from hitting other surfers), surf wax and/or traction pads (to keep a surfers feet from slipping off the deck of the board), and "skegs" (also known as fins) which can either be permanently attached ("glassed-on") or interchangeable. Check out other sections of this site fo find certain suppliers of surfing equipment in Cornwall. In warmer climates swimsuits, surf trunks or boardshorts are worn; in cold water surfers can opt to wear wetsuits, booties, hoods, and gloves to protect them against lower water temperatures.

Surfing's appeal probably derives from an unusual confluence of elements: adrenaline, skill, and high paced manoeuvring are set against a naturally unpredictable backdrop—an organic environment that is, by turns, graceful and serene, violent and formidable. Surfers' skills are tested not only in their ability to control their board in challenging conditions, but by their ability to execute various manoeuvres such as the 'cutback' (turning back toward the breaking part of the wave), the 'floater' (riding on the top of the breaking curl of the wave), 'off the lip' (banking off the top of the wave), the 'aerial' (arcing through the air above the wave) and, if the surf conditions allow it, tube riding. This is the holy grail of surfing, where the surfer manoeuvres into a position where the wave curls over the top of them, forming a "tube" (or "barrel"), with the rider inside the cylindrical portion of the wave. However, such situations do not exist if the waves 'dump' or 'close-out', meaning that they break in large parts at a time.

The drama of surfing obscures the sport's mundane aspects. Most people only see the pros riding and miss (when televised) or ignore the time-consuming paddling out and waiting required to get a surfer into position. In recent times national media has portrayed surfing in Cornwall in a very lame way! Either boogie boarders, or "Newquay, Newquay, Newquay"!!

Competitive surfing is a comparison sport. Riders, competing in pairs or small groups, are allocated a certain amount of time to ride waves and display their prowess and mastery of the craft. Competitors are then judged according to how competently the wave is ridden, including the level of difficulty, as well as frequency, of manoeuvres. There is a professional surfing world championship series held annually at surf beaches around the world.

Although competitive surfing has become an extremely popular and lucrative activity, both for its participants and its sponsors, the sport does not have its origins as a competitive pursuit. It is common to hear debate rage between purists of the sport, who still maintain the ideal of 'soul surfing', and surfers who engage in the competitive and, consequently, commercial side of the activity.

A non-competitive adventure activity involving riding the biggest waves possible (known as "rhino hunting") is also popular with some surfers. A practice popularised in the 1990s has seen big wave surfing revolutionised, as surfers use jet skis to tow them out to a position where they can catch previously unrideable waves (See also: tow-in surfing). These waves were previously unrideable due to the speed at which they travel. Some waves reach speeds of over 60 km/h; jetskis enable surfers to reach the speed of the wave thereby making them rideable. Jetskis not only allow surfers to ride these waves but allow them to survive 'wipeouts'. In many instances surfers would not survive the battering of the 'sets' (groups of waves together) without drowning. This spectacular activity is extremely popular with television crews, but because such waves rarely occur in heavily populated regions, and usually only a very long way out to sea on outer reefs, few spectators see such events directly.