Thank you gentlemen (?) … moving on now, does anyone remember those dandy red-white & blue baby pintails that the U.S. Team rode in the 1968 World Surfing Championships at Rincon, Puerto Rico? As I recall, it was Hemmings, Abellira, Nuuhiwa that rode those slices of patriotic pintails. Hemmings won, but I may be wrong that Midget was 2nd… memory fails me now (too much peyote, LSD & foam dust).
Pretty sure that was 1968 and Midget represented OZ…not sure who else was on Team Australia, or as they said in those days the “Australian Team”, this being before everone went dyslexic.
Reno might have been riding a little 6’8" sliver or something that he would “swim stroke” out to the waves?
I’ll hunt for a pic of this and hope I’ve refocused everyone off Huie’s crash course of deposing at least one aging surf celebrity that probably can’t even remember his throngs of self imposed, inexperienced, passion from the sudden onset of puberty.
By the time the 1970 World Championship took place in Australia, the boards and surfing styles had evolved markedly. Here are two examples. Backside: Corky Carroll, frontside cuttie… Midget, who took second behind eventual winner Rolf Aurness.
Bruce------- Thank you for this thoughtful and balanced post. There was a lot going on during that time frame. I spent a great deal of time in Ventura/SB county at the end of MP and the beginning of William-Dennis on Front St. In '69 I moved to San Diego where Down-railers and Eggs ruled until we started seeing lots of Twinnies that year. the 18"-19" down-railers were all in the 6’6—7’10 range. The Eggs were mostly 7’0- 8’0. Alot of the Twins were sub 6’0. Hank Warner was shaping the shortest boards in town, down at San Diego Surf Shop in Mission. There were alot of people shaping and the better shapes could be seen at Select Surf Shop in PB. Nothing over 8’0 during that period. And the shapes had begun to “clean up” and refine. Rails were better. Thinkness flow etc was more refined. The Mactavish style V-bottoms were on their way out by then. It was an inspiring time for Backyard shapers. Thanks for mentioning “Ike”. So many people fail to mention him in the Sant Barbara surfboard evolution
Ike shaped the bulk of Renny’s Spoon back in the day. Both have heavy duty design chops and I always found it curious that SB surfing history doesn’t place Ike in the place he richly deserves.
8’ x 21" x 3" . A Peter Collins shape [wollongong , n.s.w. australia] … From the “summer of love” ?
It has an 11" [!!!] deep [fairly flexy] ‘Greenough template’ fin , on it …
This seems to have become my brother’s favourite board , of late . He’s riding it a lot ! [ These are shots that he took up north , back in August this year … ]
Farrelly placed second behind Hemmings. The finals included Russel Hughes, Farrelly, and Young from OZ, Hemmings and Abellira from HI, and Mike Doyle from CA. Lynch and Nuuhiwa didn’t make it past the semis. Reno was one of the few who rode a really small board. Hemmings rode a more traditional style longboard. Margo Godfrey, just fifteen at the time, won the women’s event.
Here’s a quote from Warshaw’s encyclopeia website:
"Hemmings was never a popular champion among surfing’s tastemakers. “He won the world contest,” surf journalist Drew Kampion wrote, “the same way Richard Nixon, a week earlier, won the presidential election: a triumph of the past over the future.” "
Each day, during the event, the contest director (Rudy Huber?) would announce “The surf today will be at Domes.” The waves were pretty small and lackluster until the final day. Many claim the conditions hindered performance during the early rounds and that was given as a ‘reason’ that some of the media darlings failed to advance.
If you can find a copy of Witzig’s “Evolution”, there is footage of the '68 contest in it.
bruce i was not including you in that remark’’ just stating fact as you well know surfing history has been corupted by the people with something to gain as with most things these days but by f!!!ck i dont have to agree
**i will not discuss who was first who was this or that but just read some of the rubish that has been posted since you started **
bruce i was not including you in that remark’’ just stating fact as you well know surfing history has been corupted by the people with something to gain as with most things these days but by f!!!ck i dont have to agree
Huie, I KNOW you weren’t talking about me!
The comment was made in reference to your jag on whether Mr. Munoz had ever graced OZ terra firma.
The board is approx 1946, found in Las Vegas of all places,…she’s known as a “breaker board”,…double “R” had one up for auction in his 2009 in Vintage Auction, that was the first one I’d seen, that one was 5’ 3".
First, Fins,…No I’m not double “R”,…however, he’s always been full of aloha to me and a far better craftsman/restorer --his secret passion, collecting minature military tanks, who’d ever guess?
Secondly, SammyA,…Griffin snap back pins on ebay with surfing eye–best of all CHEAP
and the Trifecta, Deadshaper,…Reno Abellira, board at Worlds was shaped by RB,…had the privilage to be part of “Surfing Through Life”, and several reshapes made by RB, including Reno’s World board and Joey C’s Ghost
ALL HAVE A GREAT TURKEY DAY BROTHERS! Aloha, Randy
pic in front of Hammerheads, collection of remakes by RB and wood remakes by Jim Phillips(BuzzyTrent board and Uncle Wally’s Hot Curl) Colin Herlihy snapped the Hot Curl, and Mark Healy lost the Trent, swam 2 miles in and ran up the beach for more beatings!
That ‘‘regular crew’’ included such luminaries as, Jim Fisher, Alan Nelson, Wayne Land, Ronald Patterson, Bobby Patterson, Del Cannon, Dick Mobley, Butch VanArtsdalen, Carl Ekstrom, Mike Diffenderfer, Woody Ekstrom, David Chaney, Ricky Naish, and Pat Curren. Just to name a few, that you may have heard of. These were the guys that were in the lineup on a daily basis. These were the guys I surfed with, on a daily basis. It seemed quite normal. It took me a few years to realize how special it was.
