First published in September of 1983, this article was indicative of the feature writing I did for GAM On Yachting mgazine. A little dated today, but still an enjoyable read.
“Everybody’s gone surfin’, Surfin’ U.S…,” well, you know where. If those lyrics tug on your nostalgic heartstrings, making you wish you were back in the early ‘60s watching Frankie Avalon ride the surf in “Beach Blanket Bingo,” fear not. The return of the surfboard is upon us – only now there’s a sail attached to it.
Gone are the crew cuts and the Brylcreem, but the fever-pitch excitement remains, proliferating even faster than the original surfboard rage because of the product’s adaptability to various climates, wind and water conditions.
Boardsailing, the correct generic term for this flourishing sport, is simply a combination of sailing and surfing. Developed and introduced in 1969 by surfing enthusiast Hoyle Schweitzer of California, the sailboard soon began springing up on beaches across the United States
Like the common cold in its swift and unsuspecting attack, the not-so-common sailboard quickly infected other surfers, who in turn spread the fever eastward and beyond. Was there no end to the delirium?
Obviously not, as the fever broke down the defences of a money-conscious society bent on climbing the ladder to success. While people dreamed of living the good life, owning a sailboat and seeing the Toronto Argonauts win the Grey Cup, the sailboard cast its lure – small investment cost, ease of care and little instruction time required. The result was an epidemic, as thousands of people became the skippers of their own vessels. The lack of a cockpit and only 12 feet of “vessel” beneath them may have turned off many “old salts” of the sea, but the sailboard fever continued undaunted.
Spurred on by contagious enthusiasm, many boat manufacturers began producing sailboards of varying size and design, which in turn spawned a new fever of rivalry. With so many boards on the market at this point, it was only natural that a competitive sport would soon evolve, just to satisfy the ego of the human being.
There was no cure for this now-international infatuation with boardsailing. Television coverage of major races and events introduced thousands more to the sport, increasing unit sales dramatically each year.
Avoiding your T.V., if it was at all possible, would also have been to no avail as the fever grew, spilling over into the hands of advertising agencies, which used boardsailing as their new promotional tool. Why even McDonald’s is giving away sailboards as a promotion for their new products! (Yes sir, would you like to use your McBoard here, or is that to go?)
The spectacular jumps and tricks performed by free-stylists has captured the imagination of the consumer, lifting boardsailing from the ranks of a regular sport to that of an international pastime.
In fact, boardsailing has become so widely publicized and accepted that the government is getting involved as well. Heaven forbid, you say? It’s not as bad as it sounds. Wintario, the provincially-operated lottery, will be making grants available for one competitor in each weight class for the World Open Class Championships in Guadeloupe, December 1 to 10, as well as the North American Open Class Championships in Chicago
The boardsailing fever has now made a complete circle, from manufacturer to consumer to business to government and back. The money flow has also gone this way, which suggests a healthy and prosperous future for the industry. The fever is strong and you can stay out of the circle if you wish, but if you do jump in and catch the fever, you’ll probably be happy you did.
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