Hello, This old mid 60s photo is a popular one. The surfboards tell the time line. The era was beyond the longboard build styles. Now, the surfboards were slightly narrower, faster and shaped with sharp pointed noses. There was usually a "v" shape in front of the longer, narrow skeg on the bottom. That allowed better flow of water underneath while planing across the wave or turns. If anyone surfed at the Huntington Beach Pier during the early 60s, you could not help but see this shop directly across the street from the beach and pier. Very few knew about the Greek tag, except that it was from his grandparents. Bob Bolen, "The Greek", as he is known in the Surfing Industry, started surfing in 1958 and began shaping in 1959. In 1960, he opened a surf shop in Huntington Beach which he owned and operated until 1980. The shop could not have a better location for the locals and tourists. His shop was one of the early innovators to start a “team.” Those guys surfed in most of the contests all along the So Cal coastline. Other manufacturers caught on and also started their own teams for the competition. It was good for “advertising wars,” in the local magazines and newspapers. Similar to the cam wars in drag racing in the late 50s-early 60s. Jnaki The photo made all of the newspapers and became a “talk around the beach” story. We were out of town surfers, but since we surfed the Pier almost every week and daily during the summers, we were considered locals. Our boards were made by one of the Greek’s main rivals in Huntington Beach, the legendary, Gordie Surfboards. Gordie was one of the "original" Huntington Beach surfers/shapers located on 17th Street and PCH. These days, it is also gone and there is no trace of the shop. It was considered a historic place, due to the fact that actual surfboards were shaped in a surf shop. (not in a separate industrial building located elsewhere.) But, due to the distinct aroma of fiberglass/resin/and other finishing products, that portion of an "old" surf shop was history...YRMV A row of narrow homes and condominiums now line the street for many blocks...
Thanks J. The Bren,widely reputed to be the best light machine gun at the time. (if some Yanks say it,it must be so. )
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