Surfboard, Shops, and Clothing

Surfing is an exciting sport that continues to grow in popularity the world over. LCS Surf is here to keep you up to date on this fast-paced ever-evolving pastime. From surf clothes, windsurfing boards, and surf shops you can find it all here.

First invented by the native peoples of Polynesia and Oceania, surfing was more than just a sport. It was an art form that defined not only social status, but a spiritual communion with nature. Europeans aboard the Dolphin first witnessed natives of Tahiti riding waves on large wooden surfboards that could be as long twenty feet and weigh well over a hundred pounds.

On assignment in Hawaii in 1866, writer Mark Twain remarked “In one place we came upon a large company of naked natives, of both sexes and ages, amusing themselves with the national pastime of surf-bathing.” This nude cavorting of both sexes combined with the near-religious aspect of the sport offended European sensibilities and nearly lead to its extinction through various missionary efforts.

Though a Christian himself, the humorist Mark Twain also wrote “How sad it is to think of the multitudes who have gone to their graves on this beautiful island and never knew there was a hell.” Despite efforts to eradicate the sport, accounts by men like Mark Twain, Jack London, and many others romanticized the sport and helped keep it alive until its modern revival. For a first-time spectator, it’s near impossible to watch the sport and not fall in love with its seemingly effortless grace and majesty. Yes, the surfboard would prove that it’s here to stay.

Early in the Twentieth Century, the sport experienced a resurgence of popular interest as Hawaii became a more important U.S. Territory and eventually a state. World War Two even played a role in introducing many young mainlanders stationed in Hawaii to the native sport. After the war, California and Hawaii became the two main hubs for surfing culture in America, not without sometimes bitter rivalry. This rivalry actually served a positive function for the sport by pushing newly formed surf shops and riders to outdo one another both in riding-styles and in innovative new board designs.

These mid-century pioneers also married form and function by creating new styles of surf wear and equipment to compliment their lifestyle. These surf clothes could be as functional as a wet-suit or as fashionable as an aloha shirt. The late fifties and early sixties brought surfing to national attention with the explosion of youth culture movies and music such as 1959’s Gidget and The Beach Boys. Now kids far from any ocean embraced the style and culture seen in movies and some even found surf spots in nearby rivers, lakes, and even irrigation ditches.

By the end of the twentieth-century, surfing had spread across much of the globe, in large part due to the surf-odyssey documentaries that have been popular since the 1960’s. These films feature prominent surfers traveling the world in search of new waves and new riding styles. The natives of these exotic locales often have never heard of surfing and are immediately enchanted by it. After these visits, surf shops began springing up even in remote locations. Surfing began as a form of Polynesian religious ecstasy before it was forced into the shadows of a few centuries. But when it re-emerged, that same feeling is still present. Ask any surfer, regardless of race, religion, or creed, how they feel about their sport, and see if they don’t describe holy rapture.

 

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