Surfing is a surface water sport that involves the participant being carried by a breaking wave.

Overview

There are multiple kinds of surfing, based on the different methods or vehicles used to ride a wave. The basic categories include regular stand-up surfing, kneeboarding, bodyboarding, surf-skiing and bodysurfing. Further sub-divisions reflect differences in surfboard design, such as long-boards versus short-boards. Tow-in surfing involves the use of motorised craft to tow the surfer onto the wave; it is associated with surfing huge waves that are extremely difficult, if not impossible, to catch by paddling alone.

  Click on picture for video.

Surfing's unique relationship with nature afforded it a mythic quality, which set the stage for its commercial simulation.^[1] However, there remains a vital core to the culture, which is both local and global in scope. These "hard core" members of surf culture are united in their dedication to the sport's essential practice of riding waves. A disciplined surfer will check local surf conditions at dawn when the wind is calm, having already assessed the day's prospects based upon weather reports, swell predictions, and tide tables.

When surfing conditions are ideal, social commitments can be relegated to secondary priority. In this way, surfers can be said to defy the temporal order imposed by capitalist culture. Their subculture is founded on the aesthetic appeal of naturally occurring patterns and processes. The obvious contradiction between the surfing experience and its depiction as serving commercial interests highlights the contemporary western history of separation from the natural world, its utilitarian valuation and exploitation. Through direct involvement with nature, surfers appreciate the intrinsic value of the biosphere in a way that is gaining exposure through the recognition of ecosophies, such as deep ecology and ecophenomenology.

History

People were surfing in Hawaii by AD 400, but nobody knows when, or precisely where, this practice started. Captain Cook, a British sea captain and explorer, was the first European to witness surfing in Hawaii in the late 1770s.

When the missionaries from Scotland and Germany arrived in 1821, they forbid or discouraged Hawaiian traditions and cultural practices, which included leisure sports like surfing and holua sledding. By the 20th century, surfing, along with other traditional practices, had all but disappeared from widespread practice. Some Hawaiians continued to practice the sport and art of crafting boards from local woods.

At the start of the 20th century, Hawaiians living close to Waikiki began a revival of surfing, possibly in protest to the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom and soon re-established surfing as a sport. In 1908, the sport of surfing reached California, and it then began to spread to other parts of the United States and other countries. Duke Kahanamoku, "Ambassador of Aloha", Olympic medalist, and avid waterman, rightfully introduced surfing to the world, although authors like Jack London wrote about the sport after having attempted surfing on his visit to the islands.

Surfing progressed tremendously in the 20th century and primarily in three locations: Hawaii, Australia, and California.

Up until the 1960s, it had only a small following of dedicated participants.Gidget helped popularized the sport and surfing soared.B-movies based on surfing and Southern California beach culture (Beach Party films) formed most American's idea of surfing and surfers.

Regardless of the hype or distorted views in mainstream (American) society, surfing continued to evolve as a sport, and as a way of life to many. The evolution of board design, techniques and the pressence of competitive surfing have kept surf culture vibrant and intact. Renowned surfer George Nguyen wrote about American surf culture in the 1990s, "It's come of age. It's finally arrived."