The Surfboard
4 March 2024
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Sebastian Bujnowski
We start by speaking to Sebastian Bujnowski, ACT’s Head of Commercial who reveals his passion for surfboards and why he finds their design fascinating. We dive into the history, culture and art of shaping boards with him.
How and where did surfing begin?
Surfing is said to have originated in ancient Polynesian culture, with cave paintings from the 12th Century showing people riding on waves. At this time, surfing had a religious significance: making a surfboard was a spiritual experience and a great deal of care went into its construction. The choice and species of tree used was vital, and religious rituals were practiced during the surfboard shaping to serve as protection and secure the gods’ goodwill. The most skilled surfers were highly respected in society: it was said the top surfer was also the chief of his local community.
The first written description of surfing was found in the journals of James Cook dating from 1778-79. The British navigator, explorer, and cartographer and his sailing crew sighted people riding waves in the Pacific Ocean long before surfing was even considered a sport or hobby.
How were early surfboards made?
Tahitian settlers took surfing to Hawaii, using early surfboards that were a simple piece of solid wood, carved flat and smoothed by a skilled wood-crafter. These ancient “Olo” boards were extremely heavy, with more length added to create buoyancy on water – measuring up to 6m long and weighing as much as 90kg. Unlike modern boards, they were not designed to surf across a wave and only went straight. Despite their impracticalities, solid wood surf boards were used right up until the 1930’s.
In 1926, an American surfer named Tom Blake, the “founder of California surf culture” invented the very first hollow surfboard. In doing so, he changed the whole sport by making surfboards much easier to transport.
(Image credit: Duke Kahanamoku and his hollow board, Waikīkī in about 1935 © Bishop Museum Archives)
Tell us about the art of surfboard design and shaping
Since Blake’s game-changing innovation, surfboards have been through constant iterations as passionate surfers look to continually enhance their design and construction.
Sebastian’s appreciation of the surfboard stems from when he first started learning to surf in 2018. He tells us:
“Very small changes to the shape of a surfboard can affect the performance and handling of a board. Everyone has their own preferences, and different conditions call for different design solutions.”
From adding and removing fins, to narrowed tails, round noses, curves and rockers, new light-weight materials, laminations and adhesives for strength and durability, the design options are endless and have made incredible new surfing manoeuvres possible.
Sebastian brings us up-to-date with today’s techniques:
“Modern day surfboards are generally made from a polyurethane core with a fibre glass skin. A surfboard starts as a big block of polyurethane that is carefully shaved down to achieve the desired shape. Currently, there’s a movement towards using sustainable materials such as cork, and bamboo, and making fins from ocean-recycled plastics.”
Final thoughts
Sebastian ends by concluding:
“There really is no such thing as the perfect surfboard. There are an endless number of elements that can be altered in the board’s design. Especially when they are shaped by hand, it really is an artform to get the most out of the board. This is why in my opinion, surfboards are a Class Act.”
[Additional photo credits: With thanks to Dendy Darma Satyazi and Nicolas Pereyra (via Unsplash)]
