As a kid growing up in Osborne Park in the 60’s and 70’s I was living amongst most of the WA Surfboard Industry at the time.
In 1973 my old surfing buddy, Daryl Baillie of Doubleview and I were obsessed with traveling to the East Coast to surf the many breaks we saw on surf films at the Regal Theatre in Subiaco. We had Noosa as our goal, and I set about by getting my old EJ Panel Van ready to survive the Nullarbor Plain crossing (still 250 miles of dirt at that time).
We also needed some boards that would be suited for the trip and after visiting Tom Blaxell’s surf shop on the corner of Selby Street and Scarborough Beach Road in Innaloo we were sold on a couple of boards shaped by visiting NSW surfboard shaper Chris Young.
How could you pass up a couple of boards shaped by former World Champion Nat Young’s brother?
If you ask Tom about shapers in those days and trying get them in the shaping bay 5 days or even 3 days a week you would you would find him wondering! All depended on either the surf conditions or the night life whether they would turn up.
I would also like to add that WA surfboard shapes in the early 70’s followed trends and styles and not necessarily functionality. When we got to Noosa we found that these boards were not what the Doctor ordered. These boards were shaped for fast hollow waves and the Noosa points were far from Fast and Hollow unless there was a huge cyclone swell running at the time (very rare).
On that trip we spent time at Cactus on the SA/WA border and enjoyed fast hollow waves and Hawaiian Surfing Royalty in Gerry Lopez and Reno Abellira who were there for a surf movie shoot.
That trip cemented a lifelong friendship to this day and Daryl and I look forward to catching up each year at the Geraldton Winter Classic where Daz is one of the main organisers of the event.
Glad to see he finally beat me this year in our division.
Image: 1972 Gaz’s EJ Panel Van & quiver preparing for trip down south.
Image: 1972 Gaz’s EJ Panel Van negotiating Gallows bush track
Image: 1970s Gaz’s EJ Panel Van negotiating Gallows bush track
Image: 1970s Gaz and his mate with EJ panel van at Gallows beach.
Footnote:
The original Blaxell boards that we took East are long gone, however, a number of years back I bought a 1973 7ft Blaxell board found in Toby’s “Ocean Style Longboard Shop”. I bought it out of fond memories of that trip.
It was after I paid the $260, that I let on to Toby about the history of Nat Young’s “never mentioned” brother and how he did a stint in WA around some of the surfboard shops in 1973/74.
I recently loaned the 1973 Blaxell to surf historian Bill Gibson for display at the WA Surf Gallery.
Images: Gary’s 1973 7’2” Blaxell swallow tail with single fin (deck & bottom images). Bill Gibson pics.
Images: Gary’s 1973 7’2” Blaxell swallow tail bottom logo & shaper details. Bill Gibson pics
Left: Blaxell’s Nookenburra Hotel Statue Logo.
Right: Shaper Chris Young’s pencil markings on stringer line.
The only Blaxell board Bill Gibson has in his surfboard collection, that has the Nookenburra Hotel Statue Logo was shaped by Tony Hardy. That Statue over the Drive through Bottle Shop was regularly painted white from time to time!
As a kid growing up in Osborne Park in the 60’s and 70’s I was living amongst most of the WA Surfboard Industry at the time.
In 1973 my old surfing buddy, Daryl Baillie of Doubleview and I were obsessed with traveling to the East Coast to surf the many breaks we saw on surf films at the Regal Theatre in Subiaco. We had Noosa as our goal, and I set about by getting my old EJ Panel Van ready to survive the Nullarbor Plain crossing (still 250 miles of dirt at that time).
We also needed some boards that would be suited for the trip and after visiting Tom Blaxell’s surf shop on the corner of Selby Street and Scarborough Beach Road in Innaloo we were sold on a couple of boards shaped by visiting NSW surfboard shaper Chris Young.
How could you pass up a couple of boards shaped by former World Champion Nat Young’s brother?
If you ask Tom about shapers in those days and trying get them in the shaping bay 5 days or even 3 days a week you would you would find him wondering! All depended on either the surf conditions or the night life whether they would turn up.
I would also like to add that WA surfboard shapes in the early 70’s followed trends and styles and not necessarily functionality. When we got to Noosa we found that these boards were not what the Doctor ordered. These boards were shaped for fast hollow waves and the Noosa points were far from Fast and Hollow unless there was a huge cyclone swell running at the time (very rare).
On that trip we spent time at Cactus on the SA/WA border and enjoyed fast hollow waves and Hawaiian Surfing Royalty in Gerry Lopez and Reno Abellira who were there for a surf movie shoot.
That trip cemented a lifelong friendship to this day and Daryl and I look forward to catching up each year at the Geraldton Winter Classic where Daz is one of the main organisers of the event.
Glad to see he finally beat me this year in our division.
Image: 1972 Gaz’s EJ Panel Van & quiver preparing for trip down south.
Image: 1972 Gaz’s EJ Panel Van negotiating Gallows bush track
Image: 1970s Gaz’s EJ Panel Van negotiating Gallows bush track
Image: 1970s Gaz and his mate with EJ panel van at Gallows beach.
Footnote:
The original Blaxell boards that we took East are long gone, however, a number of years back I bought a 1973 7ft Blaxell board found in Toby’s “Ocean Style Longboard Shop”. I bought it out of fond memories of that trip.
It was after I paid the $260, that I let on to Toby about the history of Nat Young’s “never mentioned” brother and how he did a stint in WA around some of the surfboard shops in 1973/74.
I recently loaned the 1973 Blaxell to surf historian Bill Gibson for display at the WA Surf Gallery.
Images: Gary’s 1973 7’2” Blaxell swallow tail with single fin (deck & bottom images). Bill Gibson pics.
Images: Gary’s 1973 7’2” Blaxell swallow tail bottom logo & shaper details. Bill Gibson pics
Left: Blaxell’s Nookenburra Hotel Statue Logo.
Right: Shaper Chris Young’s pencil markings on stringer line.
The only Blaxell board Bill Gibson has in his surfboard collection, that has the Nookenburra Hotel Statue Logo was shaped by Tony Hardy. That Statue over the Drive through Bottle Shop was regularly painted white from time to time!
Regards
Gaz
Thanks for sharing your story and pics Gaz
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