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	Table of Contents
	What is a Paipo? Who Are The Paipo Water Brothers? Historic Paipos (museums, collections...)	My Paipo Boards Other Info on Paipos Links of Interest
	Paipos in the Media Magazine Articles Magazine Advertisements (future) They Built Paipos (early working draft)	The Paipo Interviews Bibliography for Research My Annotated Bibliography
Cocoa Beach Surfing Museum Waterman's Challenge Special Event: Paipo Expression Session June 5-6, 2010 More info on the MyPaipoBoards Forums
	Other Paipo Boarding Links of Interest
	pods for primates: the paipo catalogue pods for primates: the paipo pods for primates: the paipo images	The League of Lamaroos vagabondsurf.com
	John Nevin riding a hollow, finless balsa paipo at Porthmeor, St Ives in Cornwall. Andy Bick's (Paipo Glide) first built of this type. Balsa sourced locally - grown in the Eden Project Tropical Biome (giant greenhouse). Photo by Mike Newman of Ocean-Image.com

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In John R. K. Clark's research he traced some of the possible transition to the modern day usage (at least sometime in the 1950s through the present) of the word, paipo, to describe the method of riding waves on a board prone style:

"In the days of old, Hawaiians referred to bodysurfing as kaha (or kaha nalu) and pae (or paepo'o). During the early 1900s, the term paepo'o was commonly used in Waikīkī, and it meant riding a wave with only the body. After World War II, this particular word took on an alternate definition, referring to bodysurfing with a small board. The pronunciation of the original word, paepo'o, was altered, and now even the spelling is changed to paipo. Today "to paipo" means to go bodysurfing with a "bellyboard." The board itself is called a paipo board."

Source: page 9 in The Beaches of O'ahu, By John R. K. Clark. Published by Honolulu: University Press of Hawaii, 1977. [There is also a 2005 Rev. ed, Beaches of O'ahu. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.]

 
In a forthcoming book, Hawaiian Surfing: Traditions From the Past, John R. K. Clark identifies and describes the types of surfing that native Hawaiians did, one of which was pae po'o, or prone board riding. He notes that while it's true that "paepo" can be translated as "night landing" (as noted in the mo‘olelo by Alfred Solomon), Clark has since learned that the original word was actually "pae po'o". The following is from the manuscript:

In the earliest descriptions of surfboards by Hawaiian scholars, the smallest boards, those that were shorter than six feet in length, were generically called papa li`ili`i, or "small boards." During the early 1900s, the name papa li`ili`i was changed on two fronts with non-Hawaiian surfers calling them bellyboards, because they were most often ridden prone, the rider laying on his or her "belly," and with Hawaiian surfers in Waikiki calling them pae po`o boards.
Pae po`o is an interesting word. It does not appear in any Hawaiian dictionaries, Hawaiian language newspapers, or writings of the prominent Hawaiian scholars of the 1800s, such as `I`i, Kamakau, Kepelino, and Malo, who described traditional Hawaiian surf sports. The term appears to have been coined by Hawaiian surfers in Waikiki circa 1900, where it was commonly used to mean bodysurfing or bodysurfing with a small wooden bodyboard. The literal translation of pae po`o is "ride [a wave] head-first", or in other words, bodysurf, and a papa pae po`o was a bodysurfing board, or what surfers today call a bodyboard.
In everyday conversation, pae po`o was often shortened to pae po, which is common among Hawaiian words that end with double "o's," such as Napo`opo`o on the island of Hawai`i, which is often pronounced Napopo. The popular spelling used today, paipo, was coined by Hawaiian surfing legend Wally Froiseth, who, besides being an excellent surfer, was an exceptional paipo board rider who was famous for standing on his twin-fin board while riding big waves. From 1956 to 1986, Froiseth made approximately 150 paipo boards, which he sold to friends and other surfers, putting a decal on each board to identify it as his product. No one before him, however, had ever spelled pae po, so without the benefit of seeing the word in print, Froiseth spelled it as he heard it, pai po. His decals read, "Hawaiian Pai Po Board. Mfg. by Froiseth." Froiseth sold some of his boards to surfers from California, which helped to introduce the word and its spelling outside of Hawai`i, and today paipo is the accepted term for wooden bodyboards.
Source: Forthcoming book, Hawaiian Surfing: Traditions From the Past, By John R. K. Clark. Published by Honolulu: University Press of Hawaii, 2010.
Additional note by John Clark: "Wally made his first Hawaiian Pai Po Board in December 1955, but he didn't like the way it rode. He re-designed it early in 1956 and applied for a patent on it on May 9, 1956. The decal was used only on his paipo boards, not on his surfboards. Wally and many other Waikiki surfers from the early 1900s, especially native Hawaiians, used the term paipo to mean both bodysurfing and bodyboarding." Source: John Clark e-mails of June 2009. Photograph courtesy of Malcolm Gault-Williams, from the chapter, Wallace "Wally" Froiseth: Legendary Hot Curl Surfer, in Legendary Surfers: A Definitive History of Surfing's Culture and Heroes, By Malcolm Gault-Williams. Updated: 10 April 2005, accessed on the Internet on June 19, 2009. Also see The Surfer's Journal, Volume 6, Number 4, Winter 1997. Wally Froiseth holding one of his paipo boards

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The Redwings Memorial Contest also uses the term paepo board. For the purposes of the contest it defines a paepo as "any wave riding device with a core of natural materials that is less than 55 inches (140 cm) long and is used without a leash or skegs."

Sources:
Legendary Surfers, "Surfing's Origins" by Malcolm Gault-Williams, Chapter 1.
Pukui, M. K., & Elbert, S. H. (1986). Hawaiian dictionary: Hawaiian-English, English-Hawaiian. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.

Early Period Paipo Riders Checking the Line-Up and Riding the Wave

The First Description of Surfing is of Paipo Boarding!

"But a diversion the most common is upon the Water, where there is a very great Sea, and surf breaking on the Shore. The Men sometimes 20 or 30 go without the Swell of the Surf, & lay themselves flat upon an oval piece of plank about their size and breadth, they keep their legs close on top of it, & their arms are us'd to guide the plank, they wait the time for the greatest Swell that sets on Shore, & altogether push forward with their Arms to keep on its top, it sends them in with a most astonishing Velocity, & the great art is to guide the plank so as always to keep it in a proper direction on the top of the Swell, & as it alters its direction. If the Swell drives him close to the rocks before he is overtaken by its break, he is much praised."

Source:  Lt. James King, 1778, Kealakekua Bay, Hawai`i, from King’s unedited log of 1778. Reprinted in "The Voyage of the Resolution and Discovery," by John C. Beaglehole (1967); as quoted in "Surfing, a History of the Ancient Hawaiian Sport," by Ben Finney and James D. Houston (1996, Pomgranate Artbooks, San Francisco).

Paipo rider named Sean Ross having fun at the Pipeline. He is riding one of Paul Lindbergh's Hawaii Paipo Designs boards. Sean was a life guard at the Ehukai Beach (Pipeline) for years in the 1970's. Photo: Alan McCray, Hawaii.

John Galera riding his NOFIN paipo at Jocko's on Oahu's North Shore, January 2003. John's boards are make of surfboard foam or balsa. Dimensions:  56"X 21"x 5/8". The rails and bottom have a double layer, that creates a channel on the bottom 9" wide, 1/2" deep, no need for a skeg. Photo by: Jamie Ballenger

Birthplace of the Paipo Board?
Forced to migrate into the vast region by the push of population and the pull of the horizon, the first Polynesians arrived in the Hawaiian Islands in the fourth century A.D. The Polynesians who made the arduous journey from Tahiti and the Marquesas to Hawai'i were necessarily exceptional watermen and women who brought a deep love and knowledge of the ocean with them. The Polynesians who made it to Hawai'i also brought their customs with them, including playing in the surf on paipo (belly) boards. Although Tahitians are said to have occasionally stood on their boards, the art of surfing upright on long boards was certainly perfected, if not invented, in Hawai'i.  [Source:  From Polynesia, With Love -- The History of Surfing From Captain Cook to the Present,  By Ben Marcus] While paipo boarding continued its evolution in Hawaii it is not the only place where the paipo was ridden in ancient times. Research suggests that paipo boards of one form or another were used by people in New Zealand (Maori), Peru and Africa. Certainly, Oceania, if not Polynesia, was the center of wave riding since ancient times and into the present. In ancient Hawaiian times "the construction of the few remaining papa he'e nalu (pa-pa HAY-ay NA-lu) -- the wave sliding boards of ancient Hawaiians -- still show sophisticated parabolic contours, demonstrating a high degree of development.  Four types of papa he'e nalu rode upon the waves of long ago. Listed in order of length, from longest to shortest, these surfboards were the: super-long olo (O-lo), kiko`o (key-CO-oo), alaia (ah-LAI-ah) and paipo (pipe-oh) bodyboard. Like the other shorter boards (alaia) the paipo boards were made from either koa wood or ulu (breadfruit)."  [Legendary Surfers, Malcolm Gault-Williams] Pictured to the right are examples of the olo, alaia and the paipo (labeled as a bodyboard) boards commonly ridden in ancient Hawaii, scaled to height and with illustrative cross sections. It is not clear to me whether the Bishop Museum or Ben Finney used the designation of bodyboard in the figure, or the article from which the figure is taken. In the article, Surfing in Ancient Hawaii, Finney struggled with how to address and categorize the board used for riding kipapa (prone), sometimes calling it a surfboard, an alaia of 5 feet or less, and at other times as a bodyboard. In his discussion on alaia boards, Finney states, "The kioe is referred to as a small surfboard." Perhaps the term kioe was used by ancient Hawaiians in referring to the shorter alaia style board that was used for bodyboarding. The only other mention of kioe in this article is in the glossary (kioe-A small surfboard. [Pukui, Mary K., and Elbert, Samuel H., 1957. Hawaiian-English Dictionary. Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press. p. 142]).		Source: Finney, Ben R. Surfing in Ancient Hawaii. Wellington, N.Z.:   Journal of the Polynesian Society. Vol 68 No.4, Dec. 1959. pp. 327-347.   Accessed on the JPS Internet site. (Click on pic for a larger version.)

Two pre-1920s boards that were for sale by Jamie Durwood, New Zealand. The small board on the left is made of Hawaiian Koa wood. It was left in NZ in the 20's & has inscribed initials.  The board on the right is made of Kaurie wood.

1934 Adaptation of paipo design, solid wood with steamed advanced scooped nose. Later models used laminated ply, fins (sometimes twin) and sometimes
a nose grip.  X Surfworld #17 and #25  [pods for primates: The Paipo Catalogue]
 
 

Two rental bellyboards, circa 1920's Long Beach, redwood *	Hawaii Bellyboard circa 1930's pine, redwood rails, nose rocker *	Hawaii Bellyboard circa 1930's redwood, pine rails, nose rocker *

 * as shown for sale at Pacific Coast Vintage Surf Auction

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Bodyboarding North Carolina, ca. 1907

Skipper Funderburg, author of Surfing on the Cape Fear Coast, recently discovered a 1907 surfing
photo postcard view of people surf bathing on the ocean side of the Sea Shore Hotel, including
a surfer on a Hawaiian styled body board on Wrightsville Beach. For more info see the article from Global
Surf News [reprinted as a PDF file here].
Post card image courtesy of New Hanover Public Library, Robert M. Fales Collection.
See Funderburg, Joseph. Surfing on the Cape Fear Coast. Carolina Beach, N.C.: SlapDash Publishing, LLC, 2008.

Paipo Board Riding in Honolulu, ca. 1915

Post card image courtesy of Mr. Mike, Coronado, CA


Bodyboarding England, 1920s

Pete Robinson of the British Surfing Museum has unearthed some great shots of bodyboarders
surfing English waters in the 1920s. Source: http://www.thesurfingmuseum.co.uk/history.asp


Bodyboarding England, ca. 1920s

Post card image courtesy of Mr. Mike, Coronado, CA

Bodyboarding North Carolina, ca. 1920s

The post card is identified as being printed sometime in the 1920s. Exact date is still being researched.
It clearly shows kids riding wooden paipo's (bodyboards) and at least one alaia-sized board.
Posted on the Legendary Surfers Blog, February 22, 2009. Post card image courtesy of Skipper Funderburg.
See Funderburg, Joseph. Surfing on the Cape Fear Coast. Carolina Beach, N.C.: SlapDash Publishing, LLC, 2008.
 
Bodyboarding South Africa, ca. 1920s

Jigsaw puzzle image courtesy of  Henry Marfleet, Tunbridge Wells, UK
(Henry is known as "bluey" on the paipo forums)
See more paipo jigsaw puzzle information in Paipos in the Media

Hansen Bellyboard as shown for sale at aloha-cruz.com			1960's Dextra Belly Board as shown for sale at aloha-cruz.com				60's Jeffrey Dale Bellyboard as shown for sale at aloha-cruz.com
Some 1960s Era El Paipo Boards
The two boards on the left would probably be classified as kneeboards and the ones on the right as paipo boards. Chet's Collection (Rehoboth, Delaware). Photo by: Rod Rodgers
Click on pics below for a larger image
1960s era Chuck Dent			1960s era Newport Paipo				Fish paipo board shaped by Sean Rotella, North Shore, Oahu (ca. 2006)

The introduction of the Morey Boogie Board in the early 1970s set the sport of "boogieboarding" on a path to becoming one of the fastest growing sporting phenomena of modern times.  The emergence of this "soft paipo" board led to a quick decline in the "hard" fiberglass and foam paipos.  The benefits of the Boogie Boards were many:  safe for grommets (and geezers), economic (cheap!), and they could be ridden at beaches where hard boards with skegs were prohibited.  [multiple sources-to be corroborated]

In Australia from pods for primates: (pod links need updating)
1972 Coolite - a coarse bubble foam molded juvinile/beginner board, usually ridden prone, 4 ft 10" X 19"  [pods for primates]

1971 Morey Boogie Flexible foam bellyboard invented by Tom Morey as an offshoot of his experimentation leading to the Morey-Doyle flexible surfboard.
Based on the Hawaiian paipo and incorporating flex and ‘vacuum track rails’ (Greenough / Brock hull design). Soft construction circumvents bodysurfing area restrictions. Originally offered as a buyer assembled mail order product. Extensively imitated.  [pods for primates: the Leg Rope] [redated from 1974 to 1971 by myself based on correspondence with Tom Morey's son and other sources]

    * Since the 1950s, Tom Morey has also introduced to the surfing world professional surfing contests and in partnership with his University buddy Carl Pope, they owned the Morey-Pope Company in Ventura, California.  From this venture they invented and developed removable fins (notably the W.A.V.E. Set Fin System), the Morey-Doyle soft surfboard (the soft surfboard was basically a dud but has gone on to make a perfect rental board for beginning surfers), down rails, concave under nose, turned down nose, and a three section breakdown travel board (today perfected by Carl Pope with Pope Bi-sect).  Y continues to innovate and currently has a new design longboard called the "Swizzle."  For additional information on Tom Morey, see Paul Gross' article:  "Inventions: Tom Morey." The Surfer's Journal. Vol. 8, No. 3 (Fall 1999): 80-89.  Also see Neal Miyake's interview with Tom Morey at http://www.hisurfadvisory.com/views/tommorey.html.

Rediscovery: The Reemergence of the Wooden Alaia Paipo Board
During the first decade of 21st Century there has been a resurgant interest in the building and riding of ancient surfing boards made of wood. In the paipo community you will find board builders and riders experimenting and adopting a wide variety of paipo board designs fashioned from a variety of woods, including plywood, balsa, redwood, paulownia and others. One of the popular forms has been the ancient alaia bodyboard. John Clark, author of several Hawaiian beach books,  a bodysurfer and paipo rider, told me that as he started research for his forthcoming Hawaiian surfing book (2010, Hawaiian Surfing: Traditions From the Past), that he "decided to ride something closer to what traditional Hawaiians rode than the standard paipos that are common today. My paipo partner, Bud Scelsa, makes our boards, so I asked him to make me an alaia-shaped paipo. He ended up making me two, one out of redwood with pine stringers and one out of wiliwili with koa stringers, so that's what I've been riding for the past couple of years. Both boards are about 5'2", 3/8" thick, flat-bottomed with no fins. They're too thin to stand on, at least for me, so I just ride them prone ("kipapa"). I really like them, and I think they've helped me to understand the pluses and minuses of traditional boards, and why the waves at Waikiki were especially well-suited to the old styles and equipment."		Examples of Modern Alaia Paipo Boards Based on Traditional Designs. Compare these to ancient alaia paipos for auction in July 2009.

from the BodyGun's Product Summary:  "The BodyGun is a body surfing system developed in South Africa. The  BodyGun harnesses to the user's chest and torso by means of integrated waist and shoulder-toggle, harness subsystems. This gives BodyGunners buoyancy, speed, maneuverability and freedom of movement. These benefits combine to afford a longer, more versatile, enjoyable, exciting and safer surf-riding experience. The Cornish-made board consists of a Surlyn "slick" bottom, profiled Dow ethafoam 220 core and Softlon deck and HiSeal nose, rails and tail. The Multi-point 4-way adjustable harness is in hard-wearing nylon and polyester materials.  The BodyGun derives its name from the Hawaiian Gun, a long surfboard with a narrow tail designed for riding large steep waves, and the handgun: a hand-held body surfing accessory.  The BodyGun has true family appeal, especially among those who have difficulty penetrating the surf line with other forms of surf craft."  [BodyGun tm UK] Also see this Popular Mechanics article.
More Evolution:  The Handboard "More maneuverable than body surfing.  More portable than a Boogie Board... "  The innovative promoters of the handboard say, "Designed and developed in Hawaii, these durable, wooden, twin finned handboards, over the years, have been to many of the breaks in the islands and also have been slipped into suitcases and backpacks to enjoy fun little waves all over the world... California, Mexico, Tahiti, New Zealand."  For more info, read "A Brief History of the Handboard," by John Hazen, Jr. [Need updated link or file.] Also visit the French handboarding web/blog page. Shown to the left is the Woody Armstrong Signature Model Picture by permission of  The Handboard Company, Copyright ©2002.
More Evolution: The Surf Mat "This adventure began in the winter of 1982, when an Oregon surfer & inventor,  Dale Solomonson, created  the original 12 ounce nylon & polyurethane surfmat for two highly skilled, multi-talented surfers: Paul Gross & George Greenough. That  first nylon mat was a success, & since then, the best airmats for fast, high-performance surfing have never been the same." [from Dale Solomonson's "Neumatic Surfcraft" webpage.] Read more here. Earlier surf mats included the surfoplane which would be superseded in the 1970's by the Coolite, the Zippy Board and/or the Canvas Mat. In the 1980's the dominant prone board would be the Morey Boogie. A 2001 model of the Surfoplane is under development from a Newcastle consortium. [from pods for primates : a catalogue of surfboards in australia since 1900, the catalogue #146, at http://surfresearch.com.au.] Also see the informative article on surf mats in The Surfer's Journal, "Inflatable Dreams," Vol. 9, No. 2  (Late Spring 2000) and the surf film/documentary "Crystal Voyager" (with "Echoes" by Pink Floyd). George Greenough Discussing Surf Mats on YouTube. Mat Mania on the Internet: Visit the SurfMatz web site and forums at: http://surfmatz.com/ SurfMatters from the NZ: http://surfmatters.blogspot.com/	Dale Solomson's Neumatic Surfcraft The Surfoplane ca. 1933 Source: pods for primates : a catalogue of surfboards in australia since 1900, the catalogue #146.
Technology Leap:  The Hydrofoil Paipo Board The hydrofoil represents a revolutionary jump in paipo boarding design. According to Terry Hendricks, the primary design goals of this board (the Super Slicer) are: (1) high maneuverability, (2) paddle-in (vs tow-in), and (3) flight elevation "autopilot."  A secondary goal is to achieve at least as fast a speed as a state-of-the-art conventional board with a planing hull. Pictured to the right is a side view of the Super Slicer.  For more info on this board and additional pictures, click here. Another hydrofoil paipo board innovator is Gilbert Lum, of Oahu.  See the article written by Neal Miyake.

Bodyboarding and Kneeboarding Links
There are numerous web pages on bodyboarding and kneeboarding, both commercial and personal.  Links to many can be found at my general links page under the heading of "Kneeboarding, Boogie, and Skimboarding!"  Some other good sources include: Kneeboard Surfing USA (KSUSA), Surfinfo.Australia,  Alan "Bud" McCray's Blast Kneeboards Hawaii, Dean Cleary's Kneeboards, the American Kneeriding Club (AKC), and NetBodyBoarding.  See a succinct review on the anatomy of a bodyboard (courtesy of eBodyboarding.com).  Skimboards are also used to ride a wave breaking upon the shore (check out Skim Online).

Two of the better bodyboarding shops in the USA are Turbo Surf (Honolulu, HI) and eBodyboarding.com, an excellent on-line shop owned by Jay Reale (formerly of Ocean City, Maryland) and his wife Vicki.  We sincerely miss the Shoreline Board Shop (Ocean City, MD, ceased business operations summer of 2003). In Australia, you can check out http://www.bodyboarders.com.au.

Bodyboarding Links
Be sure to check the bodyboarding community's magazine A-Frame. (Option rip Oct. 20, 2004.) An East Coast USA bodyboarding forum: EastCoastBodyboarding.com.

Wave Riders:  Intimacy or Evolution -- It's All in the Eye of the Beholder
Look and see for yourself:  Is your surf riding vehicle a "step forward in evolution" or is it a "step backward from intimacy with mother ocean?"
Click here.

The Tool Essential to Paipoboarding, Bodyboarding, Kneeboarding, and Bodysurfing -- The Surf/Swim Fin
Finding some flippers or swim fins for catching your waves can sometimes be a real challenge. Depending upon your style of riding, frequency and foot shape you may have some special requirements. Personal preferences rule the day when it comes to swim fins. Visit this page for some links and info.

Need a Board Bag?  If you need a travel bag you'll know they are hard to come by -- even day bags aren't easy to find.  Visit this page for some links and info.

I've acquired a paipo during each of the past four decades and used it for any number of years before retiring the poor, beaten up specimen.  Paipo-60 was made from a stripped down long board ca. 1969.  I called it my Green Machine I, probably a blatant rip-off of something from the period, but it was green and used in the emerald Caribbean waters of Rincón and vicinity.  Paipo-70, plain white but called Green Machine II, was made ca. 1978.  My truly disgusting glassing abilities are evident in that board but it brought he great pleasure over the next 10 years at assorted breaks from DELMARVA to Puerto Rico to La Jolla and up to Ventura.  Both boards were tear drop shapes with single fins.  GM-I was potato chip thin with easy round rails, great on the crisp waves of PR and when I was a much lighter rail (5'9", 130#).  GM-II was thicker and transitions from easy rails forward to has very hard rails from the midsection.  My next two boards, Red Machine III and Red Machine IV have parallel lines, contemporary surfboard rails, 3-fins, and additional rocker in the nose area.  These boards are better suited to the waves on the U.S. East Coast but have performed well in surf up to 8-10 feet in Puerto Rico and Hawaii. My newest board, the Checkered RPM, moves me back to a thinner, narrower and lighter board, and one more optimized for good surf rather than a board optimized for all waveriding conditions.

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See some quick pics of my Paipo Boards.
 See a description, the vital statistics, and pictures (future item) for each paipo at these links:

[Paipo-60 Green Machine I]  [Paipo-70 Green Machine II]  [Paipo-80 Red Machine III]  [Paipo-90 Red Machine IV]
 [Paipo-XP04 Green Disk V] | [Paipo-El Chillito VI] | [Paipo-XP07 Orange Disk VII] | [Paipo-XP09 Checkered Disk RPM VIII] | [Spec Sheet for your paipo]

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The Newest Members of My Quiver

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El Chillito	Orange Matter	RPM Checkered Disk

OTHER INFO ON PAIPOS

Random Pics, Scans, Interviews and Articles

"Skinners Brewery World Bellyboard Championships in Cornwall" -- SIBA News Article: The surfing scene of yesteryear was re-created at Chapel Porth Beach near St Agnes, Cornwall, when the clock was turned back in style for the Skinners Brewery World Bellyboard Championships... Click here for the news article in PDF format.

"Rabbit Kekai: First Hotdogger, Last Beachboy -- 1930s Paipo Beginnings,"  Legendary Surfers, by Malcolm Gault-Williams.

The Wedge Story, an awesome story about paipoboarding the Wedge and Huntington Beach in the early-60s, written by David Richards and Tod Brown, as told by Mike McKerracher. Read more about the "Big Wednesday" at that site (hope you have a broadband connection - long loading).

"Gliding Gilbert" -- paipo boarding on a paipo with a hydrofoil, by Neal "Sponge" Miyake

Gaylord Miller's Hydrofoil Paipos of the 60's -- Info provided by Terry Hendricks

"Wooden Bellyboards-Cornwall 9/92" -- by Neal "Sponge" Miyake

"Homegrown Pocket Rocket" -- a story about a bodyboarder's finest creation -- by Foondoggy

Neal Miyake's InnerView of Russ Brown (aka "Captain Turbo") of Turbo Surf Designs Hawaii (4/13/98), innovator of the stiff bodyboard in 1983:

"We realized that bodyboards back then were just flexible piece of foam.  Having ridden paipos (paipo boards) at The Wall, right away I knew the boards should be stiffer, and if it was stiff, then you could put skegs on them. So began the line of Turbos."

Paul Lindbergh's (Hawaii Paipo Designs) "Paipo Boards Story" (an excerpt--go to the link for the complete story):

"I remember in those days that Makapuu was the place to paipo. All kinds of home made paipos everywhere. Ehukai, on the North shore was another Paipo place. Very hip place too I should add. This all took place before Boogie boards were invented. When Boogie boards came out the Paipo almost disappeared. People were attracted to the new materials (i.e., polyethylene), and with peoples creative levels going down, it seemed easier (and, or, more decadent) to buy a Boogie board than to build your own Paipo.

As far as I'm concerned, the surfboard, and later the boogie board, were modeled after the boat (or canoe, same context). The surfboard has evolved from boat designs and is really a scaled down, redesigned, and much improved version of the outrigger canoe and the Boogie board the same. Of course there have been many improvements in shapes and materials, Surfboards are designed for the rider to paddle around on and float around on, much like a small boat. The same with Boogie boards, a main factor is its ability to float, like all good boats. If it don't sink, it's good. People feel safe when it don't sink. Surfing the waves was very much like the old canoes did. Of course it's been around for many years now and a lot of things have changed, but not the basic boat origins.

My opinion is that surfboards and boogie boards are improvements on an old theme, not a design synthesized, after thought and observation. The paipo is just that. It was not designed to float; it was designed with hydraulic dynamics in mind only. Previously the comfort of the rider was not even considered. The rider laid on the hard surface of the board, and often took a pounding. This board will take off easier than surfboard, Bogie board or boat, go faster, and has the ability to dive under outside sets with great ease. It's a good feeling, I tell you."

Surfer Magazine, Letters to the Ed - Post (1996), In the Water is Fun at Makaha!

"...I don't think the guys at Windansea have anything to complain about. Windansea guys have trouble with boogieboarders and kayakers? At Makaha we have bodysurfers, guys on surfboards, longboards, bodyboards, paipo boards, kayaks and canoes. We've got things in the water the Windansea guys have never heard of. At Makaha everybody shares and everybody has a good time. Yeah, we got some huge guys who will take action if somebody gets out of line, but nobody gets out of line and everything goes pretty smoothly." - Sunny Garcia, guest editor.

Kiah Interviews His Dad, November 1997, by Kiah Imai (excerpts)

How did you learn to surf?
We were in the water a lot from when we were young. First we just swam. Then we used a foam board and body surfed. They didn't have boogie boards then. The foam boards would fall apart and give us a rash on our stomachs. They we started using and making paipo boards. Paipo boards are pieces of plywood that we cut and shaped just like a surfboard. We sanded the edges and painted them with marine paint. The Paipo boards were about 4 feet long. This was in 1967.

My dad came with us paipo boarding off of Port Lock. Then we got into surfboards. We started with used boards and then made our own boards. I surfed with my friends and my brother.

Did surf boards change [from] when you were young?
Yes they did. Now surf boards are shorter. They have leashes. There are also more fins. On our paipo boards we just had one big fin.  Boards now are also lighter, they have less fiberglass so they are lighter and also weaker.

Sam Mokuahi, ‘Mayor of Waikiki,’ By Helen Altonn, Honolulu Star-Bulletin.  [Excerpt from an obituary on Sammy "Steamboat" Mokuahi]

"In those days, Kevin Mokuahi said, his uncle would cut a piece of plywood and tell kids, "Here, take this out and catch some waves." The "piper board," as kids called it then, was the forerunner of the boogie board and much more difficult to use, he said."

from the Wedge Guestbook Entries [The Wedge] posting by mike, the mackman, Location: Seattle, WA. USA, September 27, 1997

ache for the ocean,,,, in 1962 I had made a paipo board with 2 skegs out of wood. When we were kicked out at 11 for no surf times, I would go back in with fins and my original paipo. No one else had one. September of 62 we had a huge swell. closing out every where but the wedge.  I went out with my paipo. Was I the first to boogie board the wedge. Morey's didn't come out till 63 or 64. Would love to know. I think I was. I would start on the left backwash and cut across the bowl,,, a little dangerous but you hit the bowl with enough speed to blow out over the top on the other side.,,,,,,,anyone know,,, the macman,,, ps still surfing,,,

from the Mike Stewart Guestbook, posting by Don Andrade, on 08/24/99

I can't tell you how stoked I'd be if there were a possibility of getting one of your boards in a custom length. I've been riding body boards and body surfed since I was a little kid in southern California, I remember the first "body board" I ever rode; it was a thing my brother had called a Paipo board, and it looked to have been the front end of a long board, cut off with two skegs attached to the bottom at the time. I realized later on that this thing was made that way, it was a lot of fun and needless to say totally lethal, I quit riding it after it whacked me for the fifth or sixth time & continued to mostly body surf the beach break between Bolona creek and Hermosa. I am thirty-one and still enjoy charging nice waves & currently live on the Central Coast near San Luis Obispo, in a little town called Los Osos. We get some pretty nice waves in here for body boarding, and surfing. I currently ride a 46" custom Turbo board and am pretty stoked on it, it's a lot different from an old Turbo I had in the early 80's, however it is a really good big wave board. I've gone through quite a few of our local Toobs boards and would like to try something with a little more snap to it, something that the Turbo has only in big swell. So let me know if it is at all possible to have one of your boards made special for me. Thank you, sincerely Don   P.S. I really wish I knew where that 'ol Paipo board went, it would be a cool thing to hang on my wall and look at & remember the beginning of this sport.

from the Mike Stewart Guestbook,, posting by Allen "wrench" Pantaleon, on 12/28/99

Aloha again Mike. Got cut off. I need some help from the "best". I'm seriously thinking of purchasing a new bodyboard but confused as to which one is best for me. No laugh now. I have surfed for over 35 years on paipo, shortboards, and longboards at mostly on the Westside of Oahu. I've also been an amateur competitor in the local HSA, HSF, and HASA surf meets. I was a member of the old Makaha Surfing Association and Makaha Surf Team along with Rell Sunn, Bird Mahelona, Johnny Boy Gomes, Sunny Garcia, etc. My trademark surfing maneuver was and is the "Allen Wrench" which uncle Buff named after he first saw me doing it back in the Eighty's. But now I'm fully into bodyboarding and having sooooo much fun.  I'm 52 years old now and have been bodyboarding about a year now and still learning. Most of my surfing buddies think I'm crazy or I got hurt surfing. But really I know I'm getting an all around physical workout; every wave is overhead; almost every wave is potentially a barrel; and I don't have to worry too much about skegs and pointed noses of my own. I'm 5'6"; 140lbs; and have been using an original Lance Ronquillo Morey 42.5 x 12.5 x 22 x 18.5 board. It has a few wrinkles on the bottom and rails are separating a little where my hands are at. I still like it but I think I'm ready to go to the next levels of this sport. Please help me out with some of your best respected ideas. Allen "Wrench".

from The Surf Connection, an excerpt from "One Step Beyond (Hanging Five in the Tube, on Short and Big, Loose Boards)" by John Orr

"...I I was born and grew up in Hawaii (Oahu), started surfing or paipo boarding (like a Boogie Board, but made from, like a 1/2" plywood, usually with a single or twin fins) at the Wall, by the Zoo, in Waikiki. I remember paipo boarding with Eddie Aikau, his brothers (Sol and Clyde, etc.), Hawaiian, Palakiko and Val Ching, they were standing up on little plywood boards, and surfing good, at the Wall (before they surfed on regular Big surfboards).  My brother Ron and I finally got into standing up and surfing our little paipos, too. About that time my brother talked my Dad into buying us a couple of new pop out Velzy's. ... ."

from a alt.surfing autobiographical posting about when "Doc" saw the light, "Re: Selling Out To The Man (Long)" by Doc, on 1999/11/02

<slice> Going back further...

I learned waves back in about 1966...with one of those heavy single fin boards. A 9'6" or bigger, depending on what I could borrow. Anything smaller...didn't exist. For kids and girls, 9'6" was as small as it got.  Real, full grown guys used bigger boards.

It wouldn't turn. Leash? We didn't have them, and I have El Roca to back me up on that. Takeoffs were...interesting...on hollow days, as early as we could make it into them because those %$#@&!! pigs wouldn't turn fast enough. Eat it and hanging onto your board was a dicey proposition, lose it and 40+ pounds of round railed thing loose and moving got respect from peers and elders all right, stark bleeding terror more like it 'cause that THING was coming with a wave behind it and if they didn't get the hell out of the way they were dead meat.

Elegance? Naah. Slow. Hell, an elephant looks elegant if it's slow enough...and they often are. Range of motion was point it and trim, that's all. No other choices.

You ever think about the old, double-glassed boards you see, with ding repairs in 'em? What it would take to ding one of those suckers that would only star a bit if you smashed a baseball bat into it? And what that would do to your gourd if it smacked you?

We thought about it a lot.  The fixed dings you see on those things came from other boards. Meat isn't hard enough to make a ding in one. One of the first boards I used had an aluminum plate for a skeg...I won't attempt to call it a fin, it was a skeg, a not especially blunt instrument that would do a very nice job of slicing and dicing or just plain ax murder with that heavy, ugly, unmaneuverable bloody THING it was attached to.

Uh huh.... and that, my friend, was no golden age. That was the stone age.  Getting munched by dinosaurs. The thrill of surfing wasn't from the waves, it was from coming out undamaged. But, we didn't have anything else.  Until....

One day, I may have been thirteen or fourteen, 120 lbs, if I'm lucky, walking up a cliff with a 9'6" double glassed Spoiler under my arm...and on my back...and under my other arm...and..... I watched somebody coming down the cliff with a paipo.

Little bitty thing. How's he gonna paddle it? Fins...TWO fins? Whassat?  Lemme siddown a minute and watch this. (and I can set down this GODDAMNED HEAVY TANK for a GODDAMNED MINUTE!).

The guy goes out....and I'm watching....and he goes for a wave ...and I'm watching.....and I wanna yell HEY BUDDY, TOO LATE........and he GOES LIKE HELL! He gets to the end of the wave where any good longboarder is gonna just head straight for a while and wait for the mush so he can do his poses for the beach crowd, what they called a 'cutback', then....WOW! He RIPPED that turn! He's headed BACK? INTO IT? And now he's gonna make ANOTHER GODDAMNED TURN! Just RIPPING IT UP!!!

I carried the GODDAMNED HEAVY TANK to the top, later. Much later.  Never wasted my time with another one. Scored me a paipo, later a kneeboard. Nat had hit the scene, Greenough. It all changed. It came alive.

The Stone Age was dead.

from "Surf's been up for 40 years," an article in The Florida Times-Union, 07/19/2000, by columnist Bill Longernecker

"Forty years ago, a part of my growth was stunted. Finding surf became a consuming passion. In 1960, I strapped on a pair of swim fins and took a 5-foot slab of wood out into a northeaster and became a surfer.  Wooden boards like that were called paipo boards. I still have my original board. Today, they are called belly boards and boogie boards, and are made of soft foam. My definition for a "surfer" is anyone who rides waves, not just one who stands up."

from "The Original Surfboard Company," sourced from book citations, on July 28, 2008:

"Long before people started to stand up on ‘Malibu’ surf boards in Britain in the 1960s, they surfed the Atlantic rollers lying down on thin flat wooden boards - a design based on the ancient Hawaiin “paipo” boards (paipo - meaning short or small board).

They are more often called belly boards these days, but originally they were called surf boards or surf-riding boards. Until recently a number of surf historians claimed that this type of surfing began in Britain in 1918 when the first world war veterans returned home - but The British Surfing Museum has recently discovered the existence of a photograph of a man with a short board in 1904.

In "The Art of Surf-riding" (1934 edition) author Ronald S. Funnell writes ‘ A new and exhilerating sport is rapidly gaining many fans in England - surf-riding and deservedly so, for its health giving as well as invigorating relaxation and pastime. The 1953 ‘Coronation edition’ claims that “the keen interest in surf-riding has become intensified owing to excellent photographs” which had appeared in recent years in the national press."

from the Team FLI Blog, "Wood is Good!," posted by Charl van Rensburg on February 18, 2009, excerpts:

"I have been bodyboarding for almost 20 years now, and I must admit, about 12 – 18 months ago, I just got so jaded with the sport… I’d find more reasons not to go Bodyboarding than to actually paddle out, you know that “been there done that” feeling. This prompted me to start looking around at what is currently going on in the Surfing World / Industry, and in so doing have found some inspiration, and with it have started exploring some alternative wave-riding craft... this inspiration has not come from line-ups packed with kids who have sun-bleached hair, industry Sponsorships and a lot of attitude. My lifeline for Bodyboarding came from the periphery, the edge, the place where Heretics, Hippies and Intelligentsia reside (or have been banished to).

One of the most inspiring short-films I have seen recently is “The Life of Ply” by Ocean Motion Pictures. I just love the stoke of the person in the clip, it resonates with wave-riders all over the world. Dot, featured in the clip, lives in the UK and I recently met someone who knows her, named Sally Parkin. Sally owns a company called 'The Original Surfboard Company' ( http://www.originalsurfboards.co.uk ), a UK based business manufacturing traditional plywood boards. In the pic above, my Son Neo is holding an Original Surboard. Wow, they are amazing to ride. Not made for tricks, just down the line speed and pure joy. I now ride waves all the way to the beach." (read the PDF file of "Wood is Good!".)

from Paipo Days: Paipoboarding, Bodysurfing and Brotherhood, by the brothers Malcolm & Frank Orrall, excerpts:

"Our family grew up walking distance from the ocean in Hawai'i Kai in the 60's and 70's, back when there where still pig farms out there. The ocean was our playground, & my brother Malcolm taught me how to body surf at Sandys, Makapu'u and Waimea.  I used to love to follow what he was up to 'cause he was always doing cool stuff in the ocean like; spear fish diving, cliff fishing, surfing, riding Paipo & paddling canoe. I asked Malcolm if he would write about this period, and specifically about body surfing and Paipo boarding, which are two of the most classic, mystical & soulful styles of surfing.

My love of wooden paipoboarding began like it did for many other kids in Hawaii, as a wave-riding sport you could engage in for little or no money.  Surfboards were so expensive, and all you needed to paipo was a piece of exterior plywood, a borrowed jigsaw, and maybe a resin finish coat or some glass if you were patient enough to wait for it to dry.  It is the perfect wave riding sport for the masses.  And since it is one of the best kept secrets about surfing, there is a kind of mystique about it to me, and a connection with the real old style Hawaiian wave riding that you don’t see represented in surfing culture in general."

from the MyPaipoBoards Forums, by HIpaipo, posted on October 26, 2009:

"My first experiences riding a board of anysort was a morey bodyboard in the 90's. Like all kids here in hawaii that came after the Boogie Board Era, I would play by the shore, catching the soup by pushing off the bottom when the wave came (like British Bellyboarding) at White Plains Beach. After growing up to the age of about 11, and getting tired of occasionally getting drilled into the sand face first (the result of not bottom turning), I moved on, going out to the line up with my Morey Bodyboard from Costco, and my old pair of blue and black Duckfeet I used for snorkeling. It was out in the lineup, in slightly more serious waves, I learned the concept of bottom turning.....the hard way. However, I could never dive the bodyboard really well, and one day at White Plains stands out: I had just caught a wave and was headed back out to the line up(because there are no channels at White Plains to go back out through, you must dive under every wave on the way back out) and a seemingly endless set came in, I kept diving and kicking forward, only to get pushed back. The set finally ended, and I eventually got back to the lineup. This went on until I was about 14 and a half years old, and I saw my mom and dad's old guitar pick style paipos when my dad and I were cleaning out the garage. I asked about it, and he told me it was an old skool bodyboard. I handled it, noticing how heavy and thin it was. I was skeptical, and thought it would never work. Curiosity got the better of me, and I brought my mother's paipo with us one day we went to the beach. Paddling out felt odd, and everyone looked at the board trying to figure out what it was (I love when people do this Laughing ). I tried for a couple of waves, and missed them, but I didn't give up, and finally caught one. I was amazed by the speed once I got on the wave, and when my ride finally ended, I noticed how easy it was to dive under waves. I was hooked. I made a wood board for me a couple of months later (my "bullet" board), and currently at the age of 16 still have and ride my "bullet" board and a HPD SR flex paipo, and usually ride at White Plains, Big Rights, Cunhas, and The Wall (Walls)."

from comments on an article by Neal Miyake, "Alternative Waveriding Methods," by Bob Sanchez, posted on February 11, 2004:

"I was happy to read your article. I have been an avid waterman my whole life. My dad was a police officer and my mom worked in town. Living in Waianae my family made friends with neighbors who had a built a place on Makua beach across from the Army Shooting range. We surfed at Makaha and body surfed Pray for Sex and Yokohama. When I went to high school I bodysurfed Sandy Beach and Makapu'u regularly and knew everyone. We used McDonalds trays from the McDonalds in Hawaii Kai. As I am 36 now its been YEARS since I have been in the water like I was in my youth but I remember bodysurfing, using home made hand boards, paipo boards and yes, the McDonald's trays. I actually was in competition against Mike Stewart and that guy totally rips bodysurfing and he won that contest. I also met Mark Cunningham before he won the Pipe contest. Thank you for letting me remember how fun it was."

another comment on the "Alternative Waveriding Methods" article, by Katoanui, posted on February 20, 2004:

"I could not stop laughing about the Mcdonald's tray. It brought back so much memories when I used to be a 'Waikiki Wall Rat'. I remember Mcdonalds yelling at us for taking their trays. It even escalated to the point where they would have people watching to make sure none of us 'wall rats' would make a run for the simple but effective hand boards. Great stories and pictures! I enjoy the pics very much as my background! Keep it coming!!" and Neal's reply, "Katoanui: Glad the story brought back memories. I remember people used to even put leashes on their trays. So funny when you think about it."

another comment on the "Alternative Waveriding Methods" article, by Bobby Thompson, posted on April 30, 2004:

"I stumbled on this site and took me back to small kid time. Our weekly drive from Kalihi valley over the pali (the old road) to Bellows field in waimanalo. The waves weren't big but the rides were long and fun on our home made plywood paipo boards. I was probably 8 years old when I started- this was our ritual until I was about 12 years old. this was over 45 years ago. I now live in louisiana... mahalo for the memories."

---

PAIPOS IN THE MEDIA: MOVIES, VIDEOS and BOOKS
Random Citations of Paipo Riding Captured Live

Books:
See a listing of books and journal articles, organized by author, that include references to or provide insights to the sport of paipo boarding, in An Annotated Bibliography of the Paipo Board.

Surfing Magazines and Other Magazines:
See the developing list of magazine articles and advertisements. (A work-in-progress.)

Newspaper Articles:

• Gordon, Mike. (2009, December 13). Soul Surfers: North Shore waves a lifestyle for some devoted residents. The Honolulu Advertiser. Retrieved December 14, 2009, from this link. You can also read the article in the MyPaipoBoards.org John Galera Paipo Interview.

Jigsaw Puzzles:
The first addition to this on-line collection is from a South African series of jigsaw puzzles dating to the 1920s. See the Paipo Jigsaw Puzzles.

Interviews:
The Paipo Research Project started interviewing "paipo people" during 2009. Interviews from earlier times will be added as they are made available. Click on this link for the The Paipo Interviews. Many thanks to our worldwide volunteer community of paipo historians, researchers and fans.

Videos on the Internet:

• "Proto Kneelos: History of Kneeboarding in Santa Cruz, the Early Years." Home movie by Bob DuBois, film by Scott Wessling and posted by babybonzais. This segment has a thing about oldskool kneeboarding and has a nice bit about paipo-riding. Appearances include John Manss, Gordie, Bob Du Bois. Click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S58kY5jsLTI
• "Plywood Paipo Surfing." Posted by bawean3w. Free your mind and the plywood will follow! Click this link to view the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAGhZuxNnpk      
  
• There's also this one about Tom Wegeners alais (somewhere towards the middle): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7T1Io7_Cwk
• "Bellyboarding 1964 by Barry McGuigan." Video editing by Bob Green. Bellyboarding and paipo. Surfers include Leigh Tingle. Click this link to view the video:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lss-QILYwGc
• "Point Panic Hawaii Bodysurf and Paipo Surfing." Posted by bevertw. Free your mind and the plywood will follow! Click this link to view the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnzMMWMMYfg   
  
• Pipeline video, Patagonia Surf Video: Talkin' Pipe w/ Gerry Lopez Pt. 3, includes a radical paipo shot at Pipeline at the very end of the talk (minute 7:50). Believe it is Sean Ross they are referring to in the picture. Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHTeBFQAUKo 
  
• Traying Sickness, traygnar, posted by Barnslice. Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lBkN8XDTLY
  
• Making and riding a wood paipo, Chad Waldren Paipo pt. 1 and Pt. 2, posted by Barnslice. Using simple handtools and piece of paulownia wood, filmmaker Chad Waldron makes a bodyboard-style paipo for he and his friends. Posted on: September 18, 2009. Link for part 1: http://www.korduroy.tv/2009/waldron-bros-paipos-1; Link for part 2 http://www.korduroy.tv/2009/waldron-bros-paipos-2
• Big Island Surf, posted by PaipoTed on Feb. 13, 2010. Ted says, "I left the camcorder running on the shore Thursday afternoon (Feb 11, 2010) and got some decent, but distant, video of some Austin Paipo rides. First ride going right is the Austin Paipo; second ride going left is my buddy on his sponge. I did get a nice RH barrel, but the tape had run out. (Honest.)" See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUl5VrpRLmE 
  

Movies and Videos:

• Surfing Hollow Days. By Bruce Brown. A paipo ride.
• Hydrodynamica. By Richard Kenvin. There should be some paipo action in there as well.
• A Sunshine Sea, by MacGillivray Freeman Films, features some paipo riding in the first couple of minutes taken at the Waikiki Wall. The movie was from 1970/1971, but the footage is probably a bit older. It was pre-boogie, pre-leash, smiling happy surfing... when surfing meant riding waves in any way, shape or form. There is mat surfing, bodysurfing, real traditional paipo surfing as well as the bulk of the show being what we now call "transition era" surfing. It ends (footage chronologically) with Lopez in ascendency at Pipeline. Pure paipo content is small Waikiki Wall... can't for the life of me remember if they show any paipo on the north shore. (Comments by Nels Norene).
• Cool Wave of Color,by Greg MacGillivray. Paipo footage includes MacGillivray narrating, “There is Chuck Gardner, "Kng of the Wedge," getting tubed.”
  

Music:

• Belly Board Beat by The Music Convention (1968). The Music Convention also recorded the soundtrack to one of New Zealand’s first surf movies, Children Of The Sun.

OTHER LINKS

							Legendary Surfers, by Malcolm Gault-Williams
Hawaii Paipo Designs by Paul Lindbergh			pods for primates: a catalogue of surfboards in australia since 1900, by Geoff
	Austin Surfboards by Austin Saunders Austin stated making custom paipo boards during the Summer of 2007. He "cloned" my design and made a paipo for his father, and then proceeded to make paipos for himself and his glasser. More were built and orders continue to trickle in. More on Austin's paipos on MyPaipoBoards and More....
						has picture of a number of old craft ranging from surf mats to paipos to kneeboards
Hybridz Kneeboard  -  Soft Surf Designs Soft kneeboards by Rob DiStefano. For more info click here.
			Gus Acosta makes a paipo in Hawaii that "is a mini trimaran or a triple hull outrigger. By defining the three hulls two channels were created and the three hulls appear."  Learn much more about his board design and story at: http://www.wavearrow.com/
			vagabondsurf.com is an open forum for the entire surfing world, featuring articles and pics of alternative surf riding vehicles and an alternative view of the surfing industry
The League of Lamaroos - is a club for paipos, bellyboards, surfmats and other alternative prone-riding craft that are shared at periodic paloozas. The League of Lamaroos is dedicated to promoting camraderie and a spirit of experimentation amongst prone riders.						Red Wings Memorial Website - The purpose of the Redwings Memorial World Championships Events is to promote the bodysurfing, handboarding and paipo sports among the people.
						Swaylocks is the premier waveriding design forum on the Internet, covering anything and everything used for riding the waves.
Grain Surfboards builds wood paipos. Olosurfer. Traditional handcrafted oiled Hawaiian  Empress wood paipo by New Zealand shaper, author and researcher, Roy Stewart. Hand crafted in the traditional way - making every board unique. Designed in Cornwall & made in Devon. Each board is individually handcrafted from plywood, hot steamed in a traditional surf board press and then hand painted or varnished. Our original designs are then applied with waterproof boat vinyl to give them that twenty first century twist. The Original Surfboard Company						Interesting Paipo Logo Gallery at Stanley's Surf Crazy site. Kenu Custom Boards specializes in making unique custom bodyboards, especially for the bigger rider, including fins (skegs) and vinyl wrap rails. Prone to Belly A Blog to all those who refuse to stand up bellyboarduk Xylem Surfboards Joshua Klein says his paipos are designed to be ridden prone, are fun and fast. Lengths are short. These are what most people rode way back when. Kapaau, HI 96755
			J.Blair Professional Surfboards 365 N. Hwy 101 Solana Beach, CA 92075 858.755.6629, 760.809.9074 For inquiries contact: dave@jblairsurf.com Joe Blair crafts a Rocket Boogie Quad Fin.
Since 2005, Bick Paipo Boards has been buidling hollow paipo, or bodyboards, using plywood, glass cloth and epoxy. These boards are lighter than the traditional solid wood boards.
PaipoGlide. A user's site on what is great about paipos. Andy will also accept commissions.

Historic Paipos
Museums, Surf Shops and Such

Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, The State Museum of Natural and Cultural History, 1525 Bernice Street Honolulu Hawai`i 96817-2704 USA

California Surf Museum, 308 North Pacific St., Oceanside, CA 92054  Phone: 619-721-6876
-- 10 AM to 4 PM, Five Days a Week, Closed Tuesday/Wednesday & Holidays; FREE Admission
-- The museum devotes a room to pay tribute to bodysurfing and paipo and kneeboarding California Surf Museum

Leucadia Surfboards, 1144 N. Highway 101, Leucadia, CA  92024, Phone: (760) 632-1010.  The shop is located in Leucadia (near Encinitis). Geoff Myers is the owner and paipo collector.

The World Wide Web of Paipo Boarders
"People who paipo"

• Tom Hackett, [web page] Honolulu, Hawaii
• John Galera,  [Riding the Boards] Oahu, Hawaii. Shaping and surfing finless paipos for 30+ yrs (see pic atop the page).
• Paul Lindberg, [web page] Keaau, Hawaii
• Albert Oyamot, Kapahulu, former paipo board wall rat, lives to surf, lifelong member of the Kaiser Surf Crew, WBA Lifeguard Crew
• Erin K. Smith, Hawaii
• Eric Nordskog, California
• Greg Lawrence, Bay Area,  California [a new paipo nui boardrider]
• Wayne Ernzer, Bay Area,  California [pics of his paipo collection coming]
• Nels Norene, [web page] Ventura County, California
• Ken Cullings, Ventura, CA  (formerly of Half Moon Bay, CA). The proud new owner of LarryOB's "Skeletor" paipo. His newly shaped (2006) blue fish board shaped by a guy on the North Shore, Sean Rotella.
  
• Donald Schoubye, Huntington Beach, CA. Proud owner of a paipo board, 4 feet long, 22 inches wide and 3 inches thick. Its the funnest board I've ever had. Faster then any boogie board Ive ever had and for down the line speed it can't be beat.
• David Richards and Tod Brown, the PaipoDudes, Huntington Beach, California.
• Mike McKerracher, the MackMan, Huntington Beach area, California. Look for me at T Street when big, or SouthSide Northside of HB Pier depending on swell direction..... 50 and still surfing.
• Larry OB, San Diego, CA  [League of the Lamaroos] See his "Skeletor by Axis" and "Butterfly Fish" models (dead links).  Shared some small surf with Larry in the Sunset Cliffs area and rode his bitchen' butterfly fish [July 2000].  Paipo boards by The Green Room Surf Shop (or http://www.surfshot.com/directory/main/282) shaper, Rich "Toby" Pavel -- Axis and Choice surf riding vehicles -- 1963 Abbott St., Ocean Beach, San Diego, CA.  The "Skeletor" has since been sold to Ken Cullings.
• Scott Ghiz,  [web page] Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Rod Rodgers, [web page] Baltimore, Maryland
• Chet Halleck, Jr., Washington, D.C. Paipo & kneeboard rider and collector. Surfs the DelMarVa beaches.
• Christopher Harazda, Indian Harbour Beach, FL. [The Boards] My wife and both ride our 4'6", wide swallow tails, twin fins. I love my little paipo.
• Gary Steinborn [The Boards]
  
• Chris Fifield, Holford, Birmingham, United Kingdom [The Boards]
• Rick Boufford's Black Sheep Surfing and his special page, Making a Paipo Board. [The Boards]
  
• Brett Curtis, Australia [The Boards]
• Evert "Eef" or "smallwaves" Willem [Monsterboards.org], Alkmaar, The Netherlands
• Andy Bick [paipo glide.com], Falmouth, England
• Michael Richard, Ventura, CA [Surf Crazy aka Stanley's Surf Gear]
• Tim Chastain, Cocoa Beach FL. Owner of a Choice fish purchased from Poobah of San Diego
• Terry Newcomb, Mechanicsville, VA. Surf locally in Virginia Beach. Owner of a Romanosky paipo and now an Austin R2 model.
• Mr. Mike, San Diego, CA. [The Boards]
• Soul Glider, Point Loma, San Diego, CA [The PaipoPaipo Blog]
  
• Chris Ryan, Chapel Porth, Cornwall, UK [World Bellyboard Championships]
• Henry Marfleet aka "bluey", Cornwall, UK [Some old surf craft]
• Gus Acosta, Hawi (The Big Island), Hawaii [The Boards] and [The Wave Arrow]
• Austin and Troy Saunders, Virginia Beach, VA [Austin Surfboards] and [The Boards]
  
  

WHERE TO GO
Oldest known postings to newsgroups citing a paipo:  

An internet-based usenet newsgroup for waveriders from around the world.  alt.surfing is an unmoderated, text-based discussion forum. It used to an active discussion group (1990s until about 2005). See the FAQ before posting.

Where to Ride?
Where are the paipo boarders riding the crests?
Worldwide!!!

Where can you expect to find today's paipo boarders?

• Makaha-All of the traditional and fun loving waveriders are welcome here--within limits.  Also you'll find tandem riders and outriggers.
• Makapuu Beach-This is an excellent beach, some call it a "paradise," for body surfing, paipo and body boarding.
• The Canary Islands:  "Surf. Este deporte, de origen hawaiano y de difusión americana que se implantó en las Islas hace 20 años ha crecido espectacularmente desde hace tres años. En sus diferentes estilos (surf, boogie y paipo) cuenta con más de 4.000 practicantes."
• The 1977 edition of The Beaches of O'ahu, lists several beaches around the island that were popular paipo boarding spots, including Wāwāmalu Beach Park, Sandy Beach, Kūhiō Beach Park, Mākaha, Yokohama Bay, 'Ehukai (next to Pipeline), Turtle Bay (Wild Beach), 'Aukai Beach Park, and Makapu‘u. 
  

Where can you expect to find surfing competition for today's paipo boarders?

Point Panic, O`ahu, most recently at the "1st Annual Royal Richard Memorial World Championships of Paipo Boarding" on Sunday June 25, 2000.

• June 2009. Some Pictures of the Boards, the Riders and the Waves from th 8th Annual Royal Richard World Championships of Paepo Boarding (The Redwing contests)
  

Chapel Porth, Cornwall, UK, where the 7th World Bellyboard Championships are due to take place on Sunday 6th September 2009. Visit the Website at: http://www.bellyboarding.co.uk/.

	The World Belly Boarding Championship (WBBC) was first started in 2003, at Chapel Porth, by Martyn Ward (RNLI Lifeguard Supervisor) and Chris Ryan (Chapel Porth National Trust Car Park Attendant) as a memorial contest to the late Arthur Traveller, a Londoner who holidayed with his wooden board at Chapel Porth every year.
From its humble beginnings with only a handful of competitors it has now grown into the World Championships we see today with over 100 entrants. From the beginning it has been a very simple, back-to-basics comp – no wetsuits, no leashes and no swim fins.  A bit of wood and a swimsuit is all you need, you don’t even need to bring money as the entry fee is free although a donation would be massively appreciated! Even parking is free if you’re a National Trust member, and there’s a free tea or coffee for each competitor thanks to Robin Ross of Chapel Porth Beach Café. Photos courtesy of http://www.bellyboarding.co.uk/. See a picture sampling of the contestants, the boards and the 2009 bellyboarding festival site.
Check out the many boards and paipo riders from The Great Big Honking Paipo Gathering, July 31-August 2, 2009 in Big Sur, California MyPaipoBoard Forums and My Report

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Acknowledgments, Sources, Places, Citations, Contributors...
Many mahalos go out to the surfriders who made many of the contributions through original source material, sent suggestions, scanned articles, or assisted in some other way in helping me form this page for paipos. Please see the Bibliography for Research and My Annotated Bibliography for more information.