Short History Of Surfboards

Like the sport of surfing itself, surfboards were
originally developed in Hawaii. Though the first records of
surfing were by Lieutenant James King who was rewriting
Captain James Cook’s journals in 1779, surfing was already
a part of Hawaii’s history for generations.

The first surfboards were usually made from Hawaii’s local
Koa tree and reached lengths of 16 feet long. Although
extremely buoyant these surfboards were also extremely
heavy.

A 14-foot board would weigh as much as 150 pounds. Modern
surfboards are made of polyurethane or polystyrene and are
covered in fiberglass sheets and coated with epoxy resin.

The result of these materials being used to create the
surfboards ensures a much lighter and even more buoyant and
maneuverable board.

Modern surfboards are also much shorter. They range from 5
to 7 feet and have a more pointed nose than the original
rounded nose of the earlier long boards.

They are not nearly as wide either and this feature is what
makes them more maneuverable. The short board is what you
will see professional riders on during competitions.

Another advancement from the long board to the short board
is the introduction of fins. Fins help the board to -stick-
to the wave.

Fins are placed differently on boards and thus causing
different advantages to their placement.

The most common placement is called the Thruster. It
consists of three fins. One is placed nearest the tail and
the other two slightly forward towards the nose.

The idea behind the placement is to have the
maneuverability of a twin fin and the stability of a single
fin board.