What began as a rather naive idea six years ago to create an online platform for the promotion of a longboard SUP movement in Australia has now developed to form part of a significant worldwide movement and appreciation for the art of riding a longboard SUP.
The Facebook site “Longboard SUP Revolution” a.k.a. LSR has become a voice, resource and home for the movement. The amalgam of both traditional and performance manoeuvres, developed by the LSR crew in Australia became the judging criteria that has been the accepted format in all comps local, State and National events throughout the country with the inaugural Longboard SUP National Title being held in 2019 at Phillip Island in Victoria.
The reasons for the rise of the longboard SUP popularity is the massive fun element and all-inclusive nature of this SUP genre. Across all age demographics, the appeal is widespread. On the back of that appreciation we have seen many shapers and manufacturers refining the longboard design developing quivers of boards to suit all skill levels from the learner to the elite longboard SUP surfers.
In Australia the movement has developed a huge following. It's a fun scene. It’s a social scene, it’s also a hugely competitive scene with many events now being held around Australia.
Whether you're surfing off the back foot with performance manoeuvres or riding the nose of the board, the longboard SUP movement caters for all surfers. In 2020 a few LSR crew members organised what was to be the first International Longboard SUP event on the island of Bali. The event details were shared over 75 times, some 15,000 people viewed the information, we had up to 50- 60 surfers lined up to attend from all over the Globe then the Pandemic hit the world. The official event was cancelled; however, a “non event'' was held with about 15 surfers who had already arrived in Bali for the contest and were keen to surf some of the beautiful waves.
(See attached story of the event)
The longboard SUP surfers are the core of the LSR (longboard SUP revolution) movement from its inception in Australia. Each of them has contributed to the growth of the sport through their abilities, their passion and their commitment to the development of longboard SUP movement both here in Australia. Worldwide too!
This is the story of the true believers:
Paul Jones and Steve Morley from the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast Queensland; Andrew Cassidy and Pete Cox from Sydney and Newcastle New South Wales; Chris Clarke and Michael Jenkins from Point Leo and Melbourne Victoria; Scott McKercher and Mike Galvin from Margaret River and Fremantle Western Australia.
We hope you can feel the vibe too. It’s a revolution!
Andrew Cassidy a.k.a. "Casso"
My addiction to longboard SUPs began on day one of my SUP journey in 2008. Back then, most SUP boards were over ten feet. I went down to my local surf shop and they were having a special on 11ft Oxbows. I don’t own that board anymore, but it still may be my all-time favourite. It was just so easy, fun and versatile.
I think the 10’+ division is awesome for the sport. The pointy end of the competition scene is so hard if you aren’t sub 25 years old, aren’t sub 70 kilograms and don’t ride a sub seven foot board. The 10’+ division opens the sport up to such a bigger market of competitors of all different ages, and body shapes. Contest organisers get more registration fees, retailers sell more boards, competitors have more fun. It's a win-win for everybody. Bring on the Longboard SUP Revolution!
I’ve got a lot of different sized SUPs, but my current two favourites are my 10’0” Sunova Style (a 10’ that I take everywhere and surf everything) and my 12’0” Sunova Search (super fun board in 10” surf or 10’ surf).
My most memorable longboard SUP surf session was on a day in the deep south of Tasmania. The surf was epic, clean with a head high swell wrapping into a picturesque bay. It was early in the morning and I had it to myself for almost all of the session. I was surfing a brand new ten-footer and it was so well suited to the rippable walls that day.
Mike Galvin a.k.a. "Galvo"
Galvo, without a shadow of a doubt, has done more for the sport of SUP surfing in Western Australia than any other individual.
He’s also one of the promoters to push the longboarding aspect of stand up paddling out west. He didn’t get the nickname “The Whopper King” for nothing. He certainly is. The vertical reo’s he could pull on that 10’x 34” wide behemoth truly defied gravity.
Here’s a little story to highlight a few aspects of Galvo, along with our native competitive nature, which has endured for thirty-eight years when we started competing against one another. We’ve competed on windsurfer one designs, while wavesailing, playing golf, squash, canasta, or even at a raffle. Whatever it is, we’ve been bitching at each other for a lifetime. He brought it to my attention this morning that it was 3-2 in the laser racing. Thanks, Galvo!
This particular story is set at the Rottnest Classic, an event sponsored by his shop: The North Freo Stand Up Surf shop. The Rottnest, along with pretty much every other stand up event in Western Australia, is sponsored by the shop. It’s kinda the way Galvo works. He sponsors events that he thinks will be fun, but it also helps promote the sport.
We’ve all had a lot of laughs and classic waves doing the Rotto Classic over the past several years, as Kai Bates, Justin Holland, Wes Fry, Shakira Westdorp and Iballa Ruano Moreno will testify. If it weren’t for Galvo’s financial support, none of these good times and contests might have occurred. Along with the Wedge, the Shaka Longboard event, King of the Cut Downwinder, plus many more.
To the crux of the story: Mike and I were in a heat against each other at the Rotto Classic. It wasn’t one of the best Australian surf days, but the waves were clean and fun with plenty of the rights and lefts that Strickland Bay offers. So, what did The Whopper King do? He paddles out on his 10’ x 34” inch Starboard Whopper in a SUP shortboard heat against me.
Bang. He won the psychological battle then and there. My thoughts went immediately to, “Sheesh, I can’t be beaten by Galvo on the bloody Whopper!” As per usual, he starts throwing that massive board around like it’s a shortboard and I’m like ‘Aww funk. Here we go!” Sure enough, I buckle under the pressure and choke.
It took me years to get him off that thing, until finally he switched to the Hipster Twin that we built for him with a longboard nose on it. We designed it like that because when he’s on a shortboard, he still wants to get to the nose and do helicopters. Well, at least, we finally brought him to his senses.
As much as it pains me to admit, I’m going to have to hand the longboarding SUP competition of our life long saga to Galvo. He's got a wicked backhand attack on a longboard that can go to twelve o’clock, and he’s silky smooth in his footwork when getting to the nose. My only hope is that when the swell gets a bit bigger, the tables can be turned.
All this proves is that there is a huge difference between growing up and growing old, and I’m blessed to have this friendship and sport to keep me feeling like a kid forever.
Paul Jones a.k.a. "Jonesy"
What is my motivation to continue to surf on a 10ft SUP or what I prefer to call “Longboard SUP” after 11 years? It’s simple. It’s bloody FUN.
Longboard SUP surfing is not as cut throat as regular surfing. I can just cruise, float around, look at the fishies, the bottom contours and chat to anyone willing. When the moment is right, I can pull out an old school turn, hang 10 or even smack the lip with a massive wrap around cuttie to finish. Then, it’s a casual paddle back out to the line up without a care in the world. Yep that’s cool!!
I also love the design aspect of longboard SUP’s. I feel we still haven’t quite gotten the right balance yet. I see a lot of Longboard SUPs that are either too performance-orientated or too wide and have too much rocker for nose riding. I have been privileged to work with Dale Chapman on the current NSP SurfX and just recently with shaper/designers Tully St John and Alain Teurquetil on some new shapes.
NSP is committed to making the best longboard SUP on the market and that excites me. Riding a prototype is cutting edge and I also learn a lot about my own surfing. I’m working hard to get the SUPs permanently back at the Noosa Festival of Surfing with SUP racing and extra divisions for longboard SUP surfing in 2022.
This year, in 2021, Noosa allowed the open longboard SUP division and what an amazing event it was! We had old school longboarding legend Ray “The Godfather” Gleeve and young “Bull” James Cassy going head-to-head in the final. That was really something special to watch.
Next year, the event will be even bigger and better with an Open Women’s SUP division and an Open oOer-60 division included for the first time in the festival’s history.
I am super passionate about the evolution of longboard SUP’s. If we get the development of the sport right, it will flourish for everyone. If we get it wrong it will be like longboarding back in the late 90’s. In my opinion, it just makes sense to make it 50/50: 50% traditional and 50% performance divisions.
Viva the SUP revolution!
Pete Cox a.k.a. "Coxy"
There is a central question that dominates the opening storyline of the SUP surfboard discussion. Surprisingly, it has been asked since my involvement started in the sport just after the turn of the century flicked over. I vividly recall an email to HQ during testing of new board sizes that revolved around my belief that a certain length board ensured that - no matter the conditions - the rider would return to the beach with a smile and a sense of stoke.
Looking back, I remember the years when new sizes literally meant cutting stand up paddle boards in half to “see if we could still ride them”. But then we realized some of the magic was lost every time we did. Landing at a number north of 9’’and south of 11’ pointed this paddler’s compass straight back to where I found that initial joy of surfing a 10’6 stand up paddle board.
For me personally, I was torn between wanting to show surfers that stand up paddle surfers were equals in the lineup while the other half of me wanted to stick it to them while giggling to myself knowing I had found the magic as I rode mysto swells in locations that were simply not even on anyone’s radar because regular shortboard surfers couldn’t paddle to the spot.
There was a sticker I adhered to my paddle blade for when I became tired of trying to reason with the ego-driven surfer. It simply read, “I ride what I like bcoz I like what I ride”. With that, I would simply take my spot on the peak. I would wait my turn and ensure the paddle blade came in view of the surfer’s glaring eyes. After all, there I was in Indonesia attempting to claim a place in the most incredible lineups on the planet via SUP while constantly being reminded that we, as paddle surfers, shouldn’t be there?
Stand up paddle surfing has afforded me the option to paddle to new locations and share the stoke as people start to take up the sport. It is something of a flashback similar to the original days of surfing, when you saw someone walking down the beach with a surfboard. Then, you excitedly paddle past one another, greet each other with smiles and the familiar head shake knowing that you were sharing something cool and special.
As stand up paddle surfboard sizes originally shortened, that magic was lost in the lineup. We became more like shortboarders, frustrated by lack of waves ridden, unmotivated unless conditions were better than average and squabbling over waves as we felt compelled to compete on while performing manoeuvres and no longer thinking of sharing those glides.
Around that time, again my compass returned to the magic of a 10’ board. My quiver filled out with a trusty 10’5” longboard style SUP, a 9’1 pointed nose performance SUP and 7’11” travel SUP that ensured I at least arrived and had a board to paddle the first day on some remote location in the Indo archipelago.
I would often find myself paddling into solid waves and drawing deep bottom turns as the waves chased me down the reef on a 10’ SUP. I recall the long lines on the wave’s surface that single fin surfers would draw back in the day and those same lines seemed to flow from rail to rail. This feeling, on a SUP, allows me to return to the beach with my smile and a satisfied sense of stoke which is the magic I want as a surfer.
As board shapes & sizes continue to be cut, tucked, tricked & turned, I still remember the early days of swapping smiles with strangers with a shared understanding that we are onto something special. Now, in SUP surfing’s current state of evolution, I am grateful the cycle allows me to continue sharing a 2’ wave on a mid-north coast point break with friends, all of us learning to glide with smiles that simply say the magic is still there.
As the Longboard SUP Revolution unites the global community of paddle boarders once again, let’s enjoy the question: What size board do you ride?
Scott McKercher a.k.a. "Scotty"
I’ve never been a longboarder. I’ve always been an all-boarder.
I always had a Mal, surfboard, windsurf, scurf and shortboard during the pre-SUP era. Then, SUP came along fortuitously as my hip deteriorated. Back then, all SUPs were longboards. We got caught up in the search for as short a board as possible thinking this would make us better paddle surfers. That was the Star philosophy: Take things to the extreme.
To be honest, I’ve always loved the glide and drive of the longer rail. Perhaps it has something to do with my windsurfing background, but I love the feel of a long rail.
I still believe in the mantra of “Horses for courses”, meaning, certain days are good for the right surf craft. For example, a Hipster Twin asks you to get back on the tail for the board to come alive. That is where you really feel the twin hip and concaves combining for the ultimate squirt, or acceleration through tight arcs on the wave face. The Style Lord is a more traditional board shape for middle turning along with a central “V'' along with the wider nose and bevelled rails for supreme nose riding. The Bonza just handles juice. It is known for speed and drive with acceleration through a carved turn with wicked rail-to-rail transition. The Hipster Twin is by far our best selling SUP board, but there’s a lot of love for the longboards.
Galvo started his shop after checking out a surf and paddleboard shop at the first Noosa Longboard Festival. He saw it, believed in it, and the rest is history. His story is amazing as we went from humble beginnings out the back of an existing windsurf shop, to taking over the shop and then growing to become the biggest SUP shop in Australia. Mike too, has given back to the sport in spades. He and Galvo are responsible for sponsoring the Doctor Paddle race, Rottnest classic, Shaka Longboard event, all of the State rounds and the downwinder race King of the Cut.
Michael Jenkins a.k.a. "MJ"
I’ve been surfing for over 55 years. It’s what I do. It’s how I live. This is an addiction for me. I’ve surfed short boards, longboards, short SUPs and now longboard SUPs. Throughout my years in Australia, I’ve been an advocate for the inclusion of having over 50’s and 60’s age categories in SUP events. I’ve also been instrumental in helping create the longboard SUP movement in Australia and beyond.
Passion for the sport is my driving force and I’m proud of the Longboard SUP Revolution legacy which has become a product of that passion. Whether you’re surfing the longboard off the tail or taking a walk to the nose, the longboard SUP style provides both exhilaration and maximum fun. For me, nothing surpasses the pure joy of going surfing. The zone, the NOW moment and the me-time get all rolled into one that provides, for this longboard SUPer, the magic elixir to maintain fitness and youthfulness in order to continue to go surfing.
Steve Morley a.k.a. "Steve-O"
A solid 8-10’ Cloudbreak and a mistimed take off on an undergunned 6’ fish equaled a ruptured ACL and four days of sulking on a boat in Fiji while watching my mates having a blast in pumping waves. A 10’ JP on the deck was the only thing that kept my sanity on those days that I spent paddling over the reef spotting fish, turtles and other sea life trying to enjoy the rest of this trip. It was a lightbulb moment for me. As soon as I got home I bought a 10’6 Naish Nalu and the rest is history.
My passion for riding SUPs began after that trip. Coming from a shortboard background, I tried to be as aggressive and progressive in style as I could, riding the SUP tight in the pocket and belting the lip as hard as I could on the approach. Noseriding for me wasn’t and still really isn’t on my “to do list”. However, being part of the comp scene, I have learned to twinkle the toes whenever the wave allows.
Living on the Gold Coast in QLD, we are fortunate with some epic point breaks on offer which are ideal for 10’ SUPs. The mood in the water is generally OK toward SUPs with “The Alley” being the premier SUP wave around here.
One thing I would strongly advocate is for SUP surfers to join a club in your local area. Clubs can get you surfing with like-minded people and assist in helping your surfing progress. The comp culture here in OZ is pretty active with our local SUP surfing clubs through to state championships and then the Aussie Titles. This gives us a fairly stacked calendar and a clear pathway to be able to showcase our skills and keep us SUP surfers competitive throughout each year.
The LongBoard SUP Revolution has started. It will continue to grow for the main reason that they are such fun and versatile surf craft. Whether going for a surf at your “local” or packing it up and heading off for a holiday with the wife, you can surf most breaks or just enjoy paddling them around river lakes or reef systems wherever you go.
Pics by Pieter Plooy ( SUPworld mag )
Chris Clarke a.k.a. "Clarky"
I grew up on the beach at Point Leo, in Victoria, Australia and am still here after fifty years. While growing up at Point Leo gave me the opportunity to learn to surf, it was only part of what the coast had to offer as diving and fishing are all a part of my life.
Competition surfing, for me, started early at the age of ten with the Peninsula Surfriders Club (PSC) and progressed to state rounds throughout my junior years. The competition life slowed in my mid-twenties and eventually stopped soon after having kids in my late twenties.
While I retired from competition surfing, I continue to surf and base all my travel around surfing places like Fiji, Bali, Java, Sumatra, Mentawiis, Lombok and all over Australia, of course.
My stand up paddling career began at the age of thirty-seven when a mate suggested we should both try it. I agreed as my surfing had gotten a bit stale as I’d given up surfing in marginal conditions. Instantly with SUP, I was drawn in and became addicted. It was a challenge to learn how to surf again on a paddleboard; however, within two months, I entered my first state titles since my mid-twenties s and managed to get a spot in the Vic team for the Australian titles later that year.
My paddling life of the last ten or so years has included not only surfing long and shortboard style SUPs, but SUP racing as well. Longboard SUP surfing is where I began. I quickly dropped from the 9’6” longboard to a 7’10” more progressive shape. But once I added a 10’1” longboard SUP to the quiver, I never looked back.
These days if I am surfing on a SUP, you will see me on the longboard nine times out of ten. Paddling a 10-footer opens up even more surf spots I would never take my regular surfboards or shorter SUPs. I can also surf bigger waves using the same board. The longboard style is really the one SUP I would keep if I could only choose one.
The freedom the longboard gives is unmatched to any other surf craft. On it, I paddle surf just about every reef and beach break, and the option of being able to paddle in between surf breaks allows me the freedom to surf alone more than I otherwise would be able.
It has been an absolute pleasure and honour to be part of the Vic team for all these years, but also part of the Deep Team, 1SUP1, Ke Nalu and APSU which have all been much more like a family to me than a team. The whole SUP community including LSR has changed my life and I am forever grateful to everyone that is a part of it, including my own family who has supported me all the way.
I don’t know what I would do or where I would be if it was not for the ocean. I will continue to surf, fish, dive and paddle until I can’t anymore. Let’s all keep surfing and paddling.
