Surf Culture

Surfing Culture

What do you know about surfing? Well, first of all we knew that surfing is a sport, an extreme sport actually.  Okay, do you think that’s enough? No, not at all. Let’s see the history first, I will tell only the brief history, I don’t want to make you bored about history, I know you got enough about history at school.

According to what I’ve read (hopefully it’s right), surfing first found in Polynesian cultural community, around 1500 BC until 400 AC. Records on written documents shown that these Polynesian people immigrated to Hawaii on the 4^th century by sea . Because of their skill and ability to stand on big waves, they managed to arrive at Hawaii and preserved this tradition. Usually their head of the tribe does this sport to show their powers and authorities, and the commoners do it for popularity. The boards they use were very heavy so that not everyone can do it. But with the invention on finding the lighter materials for the board on around year 1940, surfing became favorite sport on various countries like Hawaii, America and Australia.

Around 1950s and 1960s surf culture spread quickly and somehow evolving very fast. What is surf culture? Surf culture is something unexplainable yet somehow understood. It’s includes the people, language, fashion and life surrounding the sport of surfing. The surf culture itself affected fashion, music literature, films, jargon and more. Surfing soon gained popularity among teenagers and Surfer Magazine was published. The Aspects of 1960s surf culture in Southern California where it was popularized including the woodie, bikinis and other beach wear such as board shorts or baggies and surf music.

We’re going to narrow it to the fashion. The surf fashion itself can’t be separated from the lifestyle. Because they affect each other. The lifestyle of surfers invented their own fashions. Identically with the beach, the fashion surely reflected the connection with the surrounding.

Women surfers wear bikinis and the men wear shorts, they prior the comforts, they wear them on everyday life, yet some people take it as a lazy style. Some teenagers who don’t understand wear them just because it looked cool, they wear them as an expression of freedom.

Soon, after surfing getting more popular, lots of those clothes rife with logos and brands and images that may represent the surfers, their fans or people who just adored the product started to wear them too. The surfers fashion itself becomes globally and trending.  Yes, admit it, we always adore those style. We love how the comforts they give when we wore them, we love how they give us confidence, we love them.

But there’s this one thing I should remind you all, back to the surfing itself, it’s not about the clothes we wear, nor the style. You know if you possess the style when you commit yourself to the life. You get drawn to the beach not only for perfect surf. You understand that it is the experience that keeps you alive, that shows your existence. Surfers who come are bound by the hunt for great waves, the desire for the ultimate ride and life around the ocean.

lotsaaa thanks for Ficka for the pics ^^ and mr. photographer Al ... ehehehehhe