History of British surfing » Culture and History
Whilst the Hawaiians invented surfing, it was a British sea Captain who discovered it. No doubt the greatest legacy of Captain James Cook’s explorations of the Pacific islands was his encounter with the surfing Kings of Hawaii. Surfing was a sport of Kings in Hawaii and the first person to have ever ridden a wave breaking on British shores is rumoured to be the Hawaiian Princess Victoria Ka’iulani, who stayed for some time in Brighton during the year of 1892.
During the years 1900-1930 the sport or surf bathing grew in popularity as seaside holidays became more available and affordable. The earliest photo of a man with a surfboard was taken on a Devon beach and dates from 1904. In 1910 a London newspaper had a surfing illustration on its front page. Images of surfers became more and more common and begin to feature in advertising by train companies and holiday firms. However up till 1928 all of this surfing activity was done on wooden belly boards. This changed in 1928 when Australian Charles demonstrated stand up surfing for the first time, and in 1929 the first ever-moving image of a stand up surfer was recorded.
The sport of surfing continued to flourish in the 30s with even a surfing wave pool being built in London in 1934. However the dark times of the Second World War left little time for leisure activities and the growth of surfing was curtailed for several years.
After the war surfers began surfing what we might today recognize as “long” boards made of wood, this did not change until 1961 when Doug Mcdonnell brought over the first fibreglass surf board to the UK. The next year the production of fibreglass boards begins in Britain. From this point on Surfing really begins to establish itself as a sport and lifestyle in coastal towns and habitats, it is no longer mostly a holiday pastime for tourists. The next few years sees the birth of modern surfing culture. In 1965 Bilbo, Britain’s first ever company that is purely focused on surfing is founded in Newquay and in 1966 the British Surfing Association is created. The same year British Surfer Rod Sumpter manages a respectable 5th place finish in the Surfing World Championships. 1969 saw the publication of the first British surfing magazine.
The 1970’s see a technological revolution take place in the waves as short boards become the wave-riding vehicle of choice for Britain’s surfers. Many more surf companies spring up to service the rapidly growing numbers of surfers and surfing is seen as a counter cultural life style choice during the 70s. In 1978 Britain produces its first professional surfer, who ironically given its heritage, is a member of the British aristocracy: Viscount Ted Deerhurst.
The start of the 80’s sees another technological revolution in the waves with the introduction of Simon Anderson’s three fin thrusters, a fin configuration that remains dominant to the present day. Other patterns are experimented with such as 4 fins and even 6, but these do not stand the test of time. Also 1981 sees the publication of Wavelength magazine, another innovation that survives to the present day, unlike its magazine predecessors. Surf culture is entering a period of maturity. Change becomes less common and surf design starts to encounter optimal limits. In 1989 Martin Potter is the first Britain to win the world professional title, albeit that he grew up in South Africa.
1990 Sees surfing culture and the environmentalist movement combine as surfers became more and more concerned about pollution in the line up. The pressure groups Surfers Against Sewage is born and goes on to win several key campaigns on behalf of surfers and is also responsible for annually hosting the highlight on any surfers calendar: The SAS ball. The 90s also sees the first publications of two important surfing magazines, “Carve” and “The Surfers Path“
Surf culture is now mature enough to experience the phenomenon of retro. Surfers in increasing numbers return to surfing long boards and there is period of innovation in long board design. However short boards still remain dominant in the line up. However this domination is threatened by a massive explosion in the popularity of body boarding or boogie boarding as the number of these short foam boards resembling bath mats increases exponentially.
The new millennium sees a period of stability in surfing culture and technology, with no new radical innovations or surfing organisations having any real impact on the surfing status quo. There is though one interesting development; 2007 saw the start of work on an artificial reef at Boscombe Pier in Bournemouth. Perhaps in the new century surf technology will begin to focus more on creating better surf, rather than on better ways to surf waves.
