Category Archives: History

Surfing was born in Hawaii. Long before the rest of the world knew what a wave could be, Hawaiian ali’i and commoners alike rode wooden boards as an expression of skill, status, and pure connection to the ocean. The history of surfing in Hawaii stretches back over a thousand years, and this is where we tell it.

From the ancient alaia boards and their evolution into the modern thruster to the Waikiki Beach Boys who carried aloha to the world, from the Hawaiian princes who first brought surfing to the mainland to Laird Hamilton’s millennium wave at Teahupo’o, every story here is grounded in the archival record and told with respect for the culture that gave this sport its soul.

Explore the legends, the shapers, the pivotal moments, and the watermen who made surfing what it is today.