HISTORY

Ryan grew up surfing around the wave drenched Margaret River area in West Oz . Following in the steps of his older brother Gene “Charger” Hardy he was soon dominating the break known as The Box which at the time became the best known bodyboard wave on the West Coast. Rhino was leading the pack of  talented West Oz kids and he soon took his act and unleashed it on the rest of the world. In a few short years he had become one of the most respected and revered riders in the world today.

Scotty was one of the first Californian dropknee standouts in the late 80′s.  Carter went on to produce several videos including Enough Said, The Inside, Fumanchu and Crave The Cave. His films are regarded some of the best of  the 90′s era.This pic taken in 87 showing Scotty in full flight.

Jack Lindholm seen blitzing Pipeline in Hawaii in the 8o’s was an awesome spectacle. His Jackstance riding was revolutionary at the time and when his image began to circulate around the world he became bodyboardings first superstar. Cool and casual Jack was riding substandard equipment compared to today’s standards but still managed to get the job done.

Steve “Bullet” Mackenzie grew up at Maroubra one of the most heaviest  localised surf zones in the world. Macca was probably the only bodyboarder to be given a  get out of jail free pass as the local surfers loved him and he was one of the boys. The shot below was taken in the Maroubra shorey in the 80′s where Bullet at the time was still a youngster honing his skills. Macca would soon become one of the best tube riders and most respected bodyboarders on the planet. Photo Stroh.

Ross “Hellman” Hawke built his reputation  by charging hard in Hawaii, one of Australias first international stars. Taking the drop at Pipe early 90′s.

Shot snapped around 1990 of Dave Ballard who was  already showing heaps of potential with his powerful Dropknee moves. Photo Stroh

Fast Eddie grew up in Orange County in California and soon earned a love for charging heavy waves. While others chased the Pro comp circus life Eddie began chasing the kind of waves that can bend you in to. Throughout the 90′s he became a regular out Waimea Shorey and Keiki every mutant swell. Working with Andre Botha the pair scored numerous amazing photos of their tube rushing. Eddie started up 666Mob.com and now owns several Bodyboard only stores. He is also involved heavily with USA Bodyboarding Mag. Of late Eddie has been dealt a bad hand when he was diagnosed with cancer. However the guy who can talk at a million miles an hour is one tough hombre and like many of the horrendous barrels he has pulled into , he will pull through.

Claudia grew up in Brazil in Sao Paulo and began surfing at Guaruja Beach. She owned one of the first bodyboards in Brazil in ’83 and  went on to dominate local competitions with numerous titles under her belt. Claudia next became a regular on the Northshore of Hawaii each winter. In 1990 she was runner in the World Title held at Pipe.In 1995 she went one better and became GOB/IBA World Champion. She continued to compete at top level as well as moving to Hawaii permanently. In 2007 she again won at Pipeline and in 2008 she won the USA National Title.Claudia continues to be a standout on the Northshore and well appreciated for her involvement in promoting and organising Womens bodyboarding.

This pic appeared in Surfing Mag in 84 featuring a young Mike Stewart who was just setting out on his quest to totally dominate ever aspect of the sport for the coming decade and then some. His list of achievements are just too many to name.This shot putting it on the line with a power carve.Pic Chang.

This photo was shot in ’84, it captured the 6 hottest riders of that era. From left to right, Daniel Kaimi, Jack Lindholm, Ben Severson, Pat Caldwell, Keith Sasaki and Mike Stewart. From an article titled “Soft Core” in  Surfing Magazine.