Cowps Productions's video: Gisborne Longboarders Surfing 1995 - 2003

Longboards are the original, and very first variety of board used in standup surfing. Ever since the sixth-century the ancient Hawaiians have used 8-to-30-foot (2.4 to 9.1 m) solid wooden boards when practicing their ancient art of Hoe he'e nalu. Subscribe for more videos http://www.youtube.com/cowps1 http://www.youtube.com/gisborneherald Surfing was brought to the Hawaiian Islands by Polynesians and has since become popular worldwide. The ancient boards were carved and fashioned out of solid wood, reaching lengths of 10 to 14 feet (3.0 to 4.3 m) long and weighing as much as 150 pounds (68 kg). Both men and women, royalty and commoners surfed. But the longest of boards (the Olo) was reserved for royalty.During the 19th century, some extreme western missionaries actively discouraged surfing, viewing it as sinful. Surfing almost died out completely. In recent times replicas have been made of Olo's and alaia's by experienced surfers and shapers wishing to explore the roots of the sport. By the early 20th century, only a handful of people surfed, mostly at Waikiki. But there, it started to grow again. Beginning in 1912, Duke Kahanamoku, a Hawaiian Olympic swimmer in the early 1900s, brought surfing to mainland United States and Australia. Because of this, Duke is considered the "Father of Modern Surfing". From that point on, surfing became an integral part of the California beach lifestyle. In Malibu (in Los Angeles county), the beach was so popular amongst the early surfers that it lent its name to the type of longboard, the Malibu Surfboard. In the 1920s boards made of plywood or planking called Hollowboards came into use. These were typically 15 to 20 feet (4.6 to 6.1 m) in length and very light. During the 1950s, the surf trend took off dramatically as it obtained a substantial amount of popularity as a sport.The design and material of longboards in the 1950s changed from using solid wood, to balsa wood. The length of the boards still remained the same at an average of 10.5 feet, and had then become widely produced. Filmed and Edited by Ben Cowper Cowps Productions cowpsproductions@hotmail.com