Where does Lighting Bolt fit into this riddle? Recently(re)x10 watched Busting Down the Door - it seemed like during that era Light Bolts were ridden by almost all the top guys on the North Shore. Are all these NS boards brain child’s of Dick Brewer? (Owl, Lopez, Jimbo).
Lightning Bolt was more of a PR stunt — a nakedly commercial enterprise — designed to promote a brand (and clowns like Lopez). It's like comparing apples and oranges, in my mind. Aloha.
Lightning Bolt was indeed a "nakedly commercial enterprise" as you say, but the boards were all directly linked back to the Brewer/Chapman lineage I imagine. There had to be some good boards among the lot! And why "clown"? 'Cause he was part of the selling of surfing? I think there are far more egregious examples of surf sellouts out there. Just look at the scene today!
After reading about Lopez's contention that he had the first shortboard, according to Gary in Part IV, perhaps therein lies the reason for the clown label. I don't doubt Gary, but you mention Gerry as part of the minigun development and over the years perhaps he overinflated his influence in his own mind. I don't know if it was the same interview, but I remember Gerry saying that Mike Hynson invented the tucked edge on rails and that was one of the most important contributions to the modern board.
Where does Lighting Bolt fit into this riddle? Recently(re)x10 watched Busting Down the Door - it seemed like during that era Light Bolts were ridden by almost all the top guys on the North Shore. Are all these NS boards brain child’s of Dick Brewer? (Owl, Lopez, Jimbo).
Lightning Bolt was more of a PR stunt — a nakedly commercial enterprise — designed to promote a brand (and clowns like Lopez). It's like comparing apples and oranges, in my mind. Aloha.
Lightning Bolt was indeed a "nakedly commercial enterprise" as you say, but the boards were all directly linked back to the Brewer/Chapman lineage I imagine. There had to be some good boards among the lot! And why "clown"? 'Cause he was part of the selling of surfing? I think there are far more egregious examples of surf sellouts out there. Just look at the scene today!
After reading about Lopez's contention that he had the first shortboard, according to Gary in Part IV, perhaps therein lies the reason for the clown label. I don't doubt Gary, but you mention Gerry as part of the minigun development and over the years perhaps he overinflated his influence in his own mind. I don't know if it was the same interview, but I remember Gerry saying that Mike Hynson invented the tucked edge on rails and that was one of the most important contributions to the modern board.