This is a list of people associated with surfing or surf culture.
Bodyboarding is a water sport in which the surfer rides a bodyboard on the crest, face, and curl of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore. Bodyboarding is also referred to as Boogieboarding due to the invention of the "Boogie Board" by Tom Morey in 1971. The average bodyboard consists of a short, rectangular piece of hydrodynamic foam. Bodyboarders typically use swim fins for additional propulsion and control while riding a breaking wave.
Mark Richards, known as MR, is an Australian surfer who became a four-time world champion (1979–1982).
Big wave surfing is a discipline within surfing in which experienced surfers paddle into, or are towed into, waves which are at least 20 feet high, on surf boards known as "guns" or towboards. Sizes of the board needed to successfully surf these waves vary by the size of the wave as well as the technique the surfer uses to reach the wave. A larger, longer board allows a rider to paddle fast enough to catch the wave and has the advantage of being more stable, but it also limits maneuverability and surfing speed.
Tom Hugh Morey, also known by the moniker Y, was a musician, engineer, surfboard shaper, and surfer responsible for several technological innovations that have heavily influenced modern developments in surfing equipment design.
Greg Noll was an American pioneer of big wave surfing and a prominent longboard shaper. Nicknamed "Da Bull" by Phil Edwards in reference to his physique and way of charging down the face of a wave, he was on the U.S. lifeguard team that introduced Malibu boards to Australia around the time of the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. He produced a "legendary" series of five Search for Surf films.
Patrick Shane Dorian, or "Shane", is an American surfer from Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. He spent 11 years touring on the World Championship Tour as a professional surfer. Dorian quit competition surfing in 2003 to focus on big waves. He is currently a big wave surfer and one of the best in the world at big wave riding.
Martin "Pottz" Potter, is a former professional surfer.
The International Surfing Association (ISA) is the world governing authority for surfing, SUP racing, SUP surfing, para surfing, bodyboarding and all other wave riding activities. The ISA is recognized by the International Olympic Committee.
The Duke Kahanamoku Invitational Surfing Championship is named in honor of the "Father of Modern Surfing", Duke Paoa Kahinu Mokoe Hulikohola Kahanamoku. The contest began in 1965 by invitation only at Sunset Beach on the North Shore of Oʻahu until it was replaced by the Billabong Pro in 1985. The championship was the first surfing event to be broadcast on a regular basis by ABC's Wide World of Sports.
Hobart "Hobie" Laidlaw Alter was an American surf and sailing entrepreneur and pioneer, creator of the Hobie Cat catamarans, and founder of the Hobie company. He created the Hobie 33 ultralight-displacement sailboat and a mass-produced radio-controlled glider, the Hobie Hawk.
Bernard "Midget" Farrelly was the first world surfing champion.
Dane Reynolds is an American professional surfer from Ventura, California. He is known for his "go for broke" style of surfing that includes many experimental and aerial maneuvers.
David Earl Weber, known as Dewey Weber, was an American surfer, a popular surfing film subject, and a successful surfboard manufacturing businessman. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, he distinguished himself with a surfing style unique at the outset of that era. Out of the water, he had already become a national yo-yo champion and a CIF champion in wrestling, then appeared in several feature films, and eventually established a successful surfboard manufacturing company. On November 14, 2015, the city of Hermosa Beach unveiled at its Community Center a sculpture inspired by a photo of Dewey Weber taken by surf photographer Leroy Grannis.
Taylor Knox is an American professional surfer.
Peter Townend, also known as PT, is an Australian surfer and first IPS/ASP World Surfing Champion.
Gary Elkerton, known as Kong is an Australian surfer, three time world masters champion, three time world professional runner-up, twice Hawaiian Triple Crown champion and Australian amateur champion (1984). He is regarded as an iconic big-wave rider and is highly respected by his peers for his unique, powerful surfing style. In 2009, Gary was inducted into the Australian Surfing Hall of Fame.
Sean Mattison is an American former professional surfer and current professional surf coach, known mostly for designing "The Nubster", a fifth surfboard fin. Mattison is also the designer of his own alternative high performance surfboards and surfboard fins named Von-Sol.
Donald Moke Takayama was an American professional surfer and surfboard shaper. Originally a longboard surfer, Takayama won the Master's division of the United States Surfing Champions in 1971, 1972 and 1973. Hawaiian born, Takayama learned to surf at Waikiki Beach and moved to California in the mid-1950s. Takayama died of complications from heart surgery; he is survived by his wife and four daughters.
Surfing in the United States is a popular hobby in coastal areas, and more recently due to the invention of wave pools, inland regions of the country. It contributes to a lifestyle and culture in which millions participate and which millions more have an interest. USA surfing is the governing body for the sport of surfing in the United States, with surf leagues such as the World Surf League available in the country. Surfing can be traced back to 17th Century Hawaii and has evolved over time into the professional sport it is today, with surfing being included for the first time in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
George Downing was an American surfer based in Hawaii. In 1951, he created the first surfboard with a removable fin.