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Tag: surfer

  • Kelly Slater: Pro-Surfer Watches Friend Get Attacked By Shark At JBay Open

    Coco Beach’s Kelly Slater was left in shock when he saw his good friend, Mick Fanning, get attacked by a large shark during the JBay Open at Jeffrey’s Bay in Eastern Cape Province.

    Slater was watching the boats and skis proceeding to the lineup when he happened to notice the shark attack.

    The surfer ran up to the beach to assess the situation and was happy to see that Fanning wasn’t harmed at all.

    Nevertheless, Slater admitted that he was upset and speechless by the whole event because he was close to witnessing a shark eat his friend.

    As soon as Fanning came up to the beach, Slater gave his friend a hug.

    Slater actually lost to Fanning in the semi-finals in South Africa, though his ranking has risen from 11th place to sixth.

    Meanwhile, Fanning was in position for the final contest between him and fellow surfer Julian Wilson, when the attack happened.

    According to Fanning, he was waiting for his turn when he felt something tug or get caught in his leg rope, and he automatically jumped away from his board.

    The Australian surfer only saw fins going after his surfboard as he kicked and screamed.

    When Fanning felt the shark come for him, he hit it at its back and swam away.

    Only the Australian surfer’s board sustained injuries, with a small indentation and bitten leg rope.

    Fellow surfer and finalist Wilson also saw the whole thing happen, from the time the shark appeared behind Fanning and bumped him off his board. Fanning and Wilson were both vying for first place but the contest was cut short due to the shark attack.

    Eventually, both surfers were awarded second-place and received cash prizes.

    But Wilson exclaimed that he doesn’t care about the outcome of the finals, as he was just pleased to know that Fanning was alive.

  • Surfing Innovator Hobie Alter Passes Away At 80

    Surfing Innovator Hobie Alter Passes Away At 80

    The world of watersports lost a great man on Saturday.

    Hobart “Hobie” Alter, the man responsible for turning surfing and sailing into popular water activities passed away in his home in Palm Desert, California. He was 80 years old.

    Alter is best known for making a lightweight and high-performance sailboat, which he named “Hobie Cat”, as well as the mass production of foam core surfboards. California surfer and creator of Surfer’s Journal Steve Pezman dubbed Alter’s work as “the Henry Ford of the surfboard industry” for the superb quality of his polyurethane foam surfboards.

    It was in the early 1950s that the self-taught innovator began making surfboards in the garage of his family’s home in Laguna Beach. In 1954, Alter opened up his own surfboard shop in Dana Point, the second surfboard store in existence at the time, next to Dale Velzy’s store in South Bay. Together with Alter’s friend, Gordon “Grubby’ Clark, he developed the concept of using polyurethane foam in creating surfboards because they offered better flexibility and price compared to wooden surfboards.

    Four years later, Alter’s operation focused on the full-time production of foam core surfboards. The shift from balsa to foam core construction was painstakingly difficult, and took more than a year for Alter and Clark to perfect. By the end of the 1960s, Alter’s surfboard business had grown so successful that he was able to open another shop in Honolulu. Shortly after launching the shop in Hawaii, Alter also began selling his goods in shops on the East Coast. In 1964, he was able to establish his own line of skateboards called “Hobie Skateboards”.

    Another significant contribution that Alter made started in the late 1960s when he launched the development of the “Hobie Cat” – a fiberglass catamaran that was lightweight and easy to transport. The following years marked a newfound love for sailing among people who would not typically think of purchasing big and pricey sailboats. The 16-foot catamaran was affordable, capable of being launched at the beach, and can be sailed by one person.

    In an interview with Alter that took place in 1977, he said that making surfboards allowed him to earn a living by making things that gave him “pleasure” and it also enabled him to do exactly what he has always wanted to do.

    The Hobie Story

    Image via YouTube