HISTORY

In 1999 Avalon’s Toby Player scored the cover of US Bodyboarding magazine . Aussies on the cover of America’s top mag in the early days was a very rare occurence. Toby’s perfect Tahilian pit helped change all that.

Throughout the 80′s and early 90′s next to the World Title competition held at Pipeline before the World Tour was set up and in motion the next prestigious series of events was The Morey Bodyboards National tour held in the US. Throughout the years Mike Stewart had a virtual stranglehold over this circuit  but in ’94 Brazils Guilherme  Tamega is hot on his trail and wins the ’94 Pipe World title as he establishes himself as Stewarts main rival.

Danny Wall a virtual unknown from Plymouth in the United Kingdom rocked up to the North Shore around the mid 90′s as a young wide eyed grommet. After this session at Waimea Shorey his picture was plastered around the bodyboard media world wide. Danny went on to become the main dominating force in British bodyboarding for the rest of the decade. Danny taking the drop pic Stroh

The Smor-gas-board video was the follow title to the very popular Boogie Knights movie by John Mckinney. The new VHS vid was more of the same, mixing red hot action with commedy skitsthis time around introducing us to the legendary Bubba. Starring Maligro, Harnsberger, Jacob Reeves and all the top pro’s, it hit the market  around 2000 just before DVD’s took over from tapes.

Guilerme Tamega from Brazil has notched up an impressive contest portfolio. 6 times World Tour Champ, 3 times Shark Island champion and countless other titles since he first began competing in the late 80s. Since those early days Tamega along with Mike Stewart together are the most dominant competitive riders the sport has seen to date and both are still competing on the World circuit even today. Below Tamega in his prime dominating at Pipeline mid 90′s Photo Stroh

One of the very first boogie boards, this board was acquired personally from Tom Morey in 1972 by Rus Calisch, who was then the advertising director for International Surfing Magazine. It even predates the Morey Boogie name, which was trademarked in 1973. The board measures about 47″ long, 25″ wide, 2.25″ thick, and 3.75 lbs. Early boards like this allowed the rider to feel the wave through the board much more than with today’s stiffer, improved bodyboards. Photos courtesy of Rus Calisch.Check out this board and others on the new website dedicated to Vintage bodyboards at   http://www.vintagebodyboards.com/brand.asp

Morey Boogie Advertisement ’87 pic by Brian Bielmann

Throughout the 80′s Scott Hawaii was a major player in the bodyboard market going toe to toe with Morey Boogie for their slice of the pie.Here’s the Scott Super Fin.

In the early days the ground roots level of bodyboarding in ’82 in Oz was a series of low budget comps up and down the coast attracting bodyboarders from near and far. 

From the first article in Surfing Magazine dedicated to a bodyboarder in ’79. Jack  “The Ripper” Lindholm creates a new fad around the world when his charging at Pipeline gains new fans world wide… photo John Jones.