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All about surfing
A short history of surfing Surfing is one of the oldest sports on earth. Many
consider it an art form that is a blend of athletic ability and the
comprehension of the power and beauty and power of nature. Surfing is also
one of the few sports that creates its own culture and lifestyle.
The act of riding a wave on a wooden board first happened in Western Polynesia over 3000 years ago. The first surfers were fishermen who found riding waves as an efficient method of getting to shore with their catch and was a lot of fun as well Eventually catching waves evolved from being part of everyday working life for the fishermen to being an enjoyable pastime. There is no exact record of when stand-up surfing became a sport. Historians know that during the fifteenth century, kings, queens and people of the Sandwich Isles were involved in the sport of "he'enalu" or wave-sliding, in old Hawaiian,. "He'e" means to change from a solid form to a liquid form and "nalu" refers to the surfing motion of a wave. |
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Early historical records of surfing appear in the late 1700s, when Polynesians and Europeans made 1st contact in Tahiti. Navigator Captain James Cook described how a Tahitian would catch a wave with his outrigger canoe just for the fun of it. The 1st Polynesian settlers to land in Hawaii were very likely quite skilled in simple surfing techniques, and after a few hundred years of riding the waves of Hawaii, the well-known Hawaiian form of the sport slowly developed. The Hawaiians who surfed, the ali'i or high class, claimed the highest reputation for skill with boards on waves. They developed their own prayers, board shapers, wood and beaches where a select few could surf with people of their talent. No one dared to drop in on their wave in fear of getting punished and quite possibly killed. The surfboards underwent a sacred ritual before being built. Only 3 types of trees were used to make a surfboard. The board maker would dig the tree up and around the roots place fish in the hole as a sacrifice to the gods for the tree. |
The resurrection of surfing in the 20th century is credited to the efforts of 2 men, Duke Kahanamoku and George Freeth . George Freeth was one of the original Waikiki beach boys, a group of talented individuals who still practiced the then rare sport of surfing. In 1907 in Honolulu, Freeth was introduced to an American writer called Jack London who became totally absorbed by the sport and later wrote a magazine article which was published on the United States mainland and helped make Freeth a minor celebrity. George Freeth then relocated to California and gave exhibitions his surfing skills at Venice beach and later at Redonodo beach where he was called "The man who can walk on Water". Duke Kahanamoku's influence led to worldwide acceptance and recognition of the sport. Duke Kahanamoku was also a Waikiki beach boy who by 1905 was breaking swimming world records and in 1912 he represented the United States swimming team in Stockholm winning multiple gold medals. Duke traveled the world spreading the Aloha spirit and introducing surfing to countries like New Zealand and Australia who quickly adopted the sport as their own.
Stroke development is the focus of most good swimming and diving camps. The aim is to improve the technique of campers in each of the four competitive strokes.
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Escoba is a game for 2 to 4 player and is a trick taking type of card game that came from Spain. The game is played with the traditional Spanish Deck of playing cards also called naipes.
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