SURFING SUBCULTURE

08
Fall
Jessica Zehr

University of Mississippi
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SURFING SUBCULTURE
This paper discusses the sport of surfing and its corresponding subculture, which is made
up of fiercely dedicated surfers who are passionate about the sport. I will begin by discussing the
history of surfing and how the sport originated and spread around the world. Next, I will discuss
the specifics of membership in this subculture, which will lead to my discussion of gender and
womens participation in the scene. I will end by discussing the stigma surrounding those
involved in the scene and the commodification of the sport and subculture.















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SURFING SUBCULTURE
Dude, that was such a gnarly wave!
Yeah man, so rad. Im totally stoked!
To many people, this may seem like a fairly typical conversation between two surfers. However,
this is a highly stereotyped view of those who are involved in the surfing subculture. Hollywood
and the mass media popularized this view of surfers through many popular movies and
advertisements. Given this stereotype, many people stigmatize surfers and do not view them as
typical members of society. Drew Kampion (2003:46) puts it well when he states that surfing
takes place beyond reach of the usual societal boundaries, so it has assumed an unusual
prominence in the collective imagination. It has a mystical aura about it, because the sport is
relatively unusual and dangerous, which sets those who partake in it apart from those who do
not. Surfers are also different from other athletes because the sport becomes more of a lifestyle
than just a sport, and therefore forms a subculture.
Though many people stigmatize the scene, it has not always been this way. Surfing began
as a sport in which kings participated, and it was a very important aspect of the culture in many
ways. The sport has obviously changed over the years, and the way it is viewed has changed as
well (Kampion 2003). I will begin the paper by discussing the history of the sport and how it
began, as well as how the sport spread to different parts of the world and how this changed the
sport. I will then discuss how one participates in the subculture and what it requires to become a
real member of the surfing subculture. This will lead into my discussion of gender and my
examination of how women participate and are viewed in the scene. Next I will discuss the
stigma that surrounds surfers and the scene as a whole and why these exist, and finally, I will end
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with a discussion about the commodification of the surfing subculture and what that has done to
change the sport as a whole.
HISTORY OF SURFING
Surfing is an ancient sport that originated in Polynesia as early as 2000 BC. However, the
date of its origin is based off of accounts from European explorers, which may not be completely
accurate. It is more probable that surfing reached its full technical and ritual development
hundreds of years later (Reed 1999). Before the Europeans discovered and invaded Hawaii,
surfing was a central aspect of the culture. This makes sense, because the islands were
surrounded by water, and the natives derived much of their livelihood from this water, so much
so that the Hawaiian people were deeply entrenched in surfing and the powerful energy of the
vast ocean that surrounded them (Kampion 2003:34). It is also known that everyone in the
culture participated in this sportmen, women, and even children. People of all classes were
able to participate as wellfrom the island royalty to the commoners (Kampion 2003). At this
stage in the development of surfing, the entire community was involved in a so-called surf
cultureit was not exclusive to one gender or social class. This demonstrates that surfing did
not originate as a subculture, but as a cultural way of life. Although surfing is considered a sport,
which implies that it is used as a pastime, the Hawaiians relied on the sea for much of their
livelihood and their relationship to the sea was probably the most important element of their
spiritual life (Reed 1999). Native Polynesians obviously saw surfing as more than a pastime or a
recreational activityit was more a way of life and even a ritualistic or spiritual activity. One of
the most important aspects of the culture was the crafting of a royal surfboard. There was a
special process in choosing the perfect tree and then praying and dedicating the surfboard in
several different ceremonies (Kampion 2003). The lengths to which these natives went to craft
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the perfect surfboard for their leaders show just how important surfing was to the civilization.
However, many aspects of the sport and culture would soon change with the arrival of Europeans
in Hawaii.
Captain James Cook wrote the first descriptions of surfing from his early encounters with
the natives when he discovered Hawaii in 1778. The concept of surf riding was completely
foreign to these Europeans, for they had never seen anything like this before. They were very
shocked at what they were seeing (Kampion 2003). After Captain Cook, more and more
Europeans who were conquistadors, explorers, traders, and racists arrived in Hawaii bringing
many changes to the culture of the islands (Kampion 2003:36). One major detriment to the
natives was the numerous diseases that the Europeans unwittingly brought to the population of
natives who had no immunity from such maladies. From the arrival of Captain Cook, when the
population was around 400,000, to 1890, the population was hugely reduced so that there were
only 40,000 remaining natives (Kampion 2003). This lead to a direct decline of native influence
and culture in the newly European populated Hawaii. As mentioned earlier, many missionaries
arrived in Hawaii, and they were probably shocked at the state of the native peoplebarely
dressed, running around, playing in the ocean, and worshipping Ocean Gods. Many of the ways
of life of the Polynesians were nothing like the Europeans way of life, so the missionaries set
out to change this. They confined them to modest attire, forced them to speak in a new tongue,
and discouraged them from casual sex, gambling, and playing in the ocean (Kampion 2003:36).
The Europeans were changing a way of life on the islands, taking away some of the most
important aspects of the native culture.
Along with diseases and a new religion, the new Europeans brought their Western ideas
and judgments with them. Often, when the waters were perfect for surfing, all daily tasks would
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be immediately suspended, and the entire community would swim out to enjoy the waves. Not
surprisingly, the Europeans saw this as unproductive and lazy; it seemed as if the natives would
rather play around in the ocean than do the necessary daily tasks (Reed 1999). The Hawaiians
were not being lazy; they were just celebrating what they had been givena perfect wave to
surf. Since this was associated with their spiritual lives, they saw no reason to forgo this
opportunity to praise nature. According to Drew Kampion (2003:37), the Polynesian
relationship to the sea was beyond European comprehension. To the islanders, the ocean meant
life and joy and freedom. But by 1900, disease, religion, and a new plantation work ethic had all
but exterminated Hawaiian culture and the ancient sport of surfing. Although surfing was on the
brink of extinction, it was resurrected thanks to several haoles - white people or foreigners. Jack
London, a famous author, wrote an article about his experiences of surfing in Hawaii, which
brought some attention to the sport. Another prominent figure was Alexander Hume Ford, who
soon after created the first surfing club in Waikiki, Hawaii. It was named the Outrigger Canoe
and Surfboard Club, and its stated purpose was to promote Waikiki and Hawaii as the only
islands in the world where men and boys ride upright upon the crests of waves (Kampion
2003:37). Although this was good for the revival of the sport, it also demonstrates the beginnings
of the changes that the Europeans brought upon surfing. The sport was now being used as a way
to advertise a beach, and the Club clearly excluded women from participating (Reed 1999). Drew
Kampion (2003) also points out that this club was basically composed of only haoles. These
three aspects of the revival of surfing are the first signs of the European changes to the surfing
subulture.
Soon after the Outrigger Club was created, a group of mainly native Hawaiian surfers
came together to form the Hui Nalu surfing club. These two clubs often competed, which
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garnered a lot of attention from the general public and surfing was becoming somewhat popular
in Waikiki (Kampion 2003). Around this same time, thanks to a businessman named Henry E.
Huntington, who was searching for an interesting way to promote his Californian business,
surfing was beginning its move to the mainland United States. He decided to hire a very skilled
surfer from Waikiki, George David Freeth, to give surfing demonstrations in Venice Beach and
Redondo Beach in California, which attracted crowds of thousands of people (Kampion 2003).
These two events (Jack Londons Article and Freeths demonstrations) brought surfing back to
the public eye. It was something new and intriguing to many people, which means that it
garnered a lot of interest for those near the ocean, in both Hawaii and the continental United
States. Another major figure in the spreading of surfing to the rest of the world was Duke
Kahanamoku, who began surfing in Waikiki. He is known as the father of modern surfing thanks
to his huge role in introducing the sport to many different locations. He began in Hawaii, but
soon introduced surfing to Atlantic City and Nassau in New York, as well as several beaches in
California, such as Corona Del Mar. He even appeared in the Olympic Games in several
swimming competitions, after which his popularity skyrocketed. Duke was then invited to put on
several surfing demonstrations in Europe and even Australia. He often provided these people
with their first sightings of surfing. Thanks to Kahanamoku, many people were intrigued and
fascinated with this sport and in many of these places, he was the beginning of their own surf
cultures (Kampion 2003). Although the sport underwent some changes, surfing would have been
extinct without them and without the help of those who reintroduced the sport. Key figures like
Jack London, Henry E. Huntington, George David Freeth, and Duke Kahanamoku were
necessary to the survival of surfing. Without them, surfing would probably still only survive in
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small pockets of native Polynesians, if it even managed to survive at all. The resulting popularity
of surfing is what has caused the development of the surfing subculture in todays society.
QUALIFYING SURFING AS A SUBCULTURE
Just because a sport is popular does not automatically qualify it as a subculture. Surfing is
different from other sports in many ways, and has many reasons that it can be classified as
having a specific subculture. According to Ross Haenfler (2013:3), a subculture is defined as
being a social subgroup distinguishable from mainstream culture by its non-normative values,
beliefs, symbols, activities, and often, in the case of youth, styles and music. There are many of
these characteristic patterns that distinguish individual surfers from other members of a society.
Stephen Wayne Hull, a sociologist who studied the surfing culture in Santa Cruz, California, was
able to definitely determine that surfing constitutes a subculture. His findings conclude that
surfing has established stable, stratified patterns of interaction, a specialized culture in the form
of language, material symbols, knowledge, norms and values, several institutional forms such as
the Western Surfing Association, specialized media, economic interests, and a homogeneous
population segment (Hull 1976). He claims that the culture of surfing, unlike many other sports,
demonstrates all of these qualities, which are qualifying traits of a subculture.
Traits of the Surfing Subculture
Stratification: is defined as being a way of rank ordering people based on
characteristics deemed important by that society (Haenfler 2013:38). This is apparent in
the surfing scene because those with more skill have more privilege, prestige, and respect
from others than those who are new to the sport (commonly referred to as kooks). Hull
(1976) says that as the kook becomes socialized into the finer points of the surfer
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subculture and his skills improve, he can expect to slowly achieve greater status among
his fellow surfers.
Specialized Language: is very widespread throughout the culture, and specialized to the
point that an outsider may not even understand a conversation. French gives an example
of such a conversation: as the peak moves over the outside shelf and starts to feather,
hand in unless there are eight foot sneakers, because the peak holds and holds until,
nearly vertical, it hits the inside peak (as cited in Hull 1976). Along with this surfer
jargon, surfers are expected to know the proper surfer folk tales and all of the important
figures in surfing (ibid.).
Material Symbols: Hull (1976) discusses the important symbols of surferhood. A very
outwardly apparent symbol is surfers car. Respected forms of transportation include
vans, such as a Volkswagen, a pickup truck, often with a shell covering the bed for
transportation and sleeping, or an old, inexpensive junky car. Forms of transportation
that are frowned upon are large SUVs that require lots of gas, or any type of expensive
sports car. Another important symbol is the surfboard. If the surfer has a very old or run-
down board or one that is not of the current shape and style, it is clear that he is a either
old fashioned or a kook. Surfers with high prestige have up-to-date styles of surfboard
from a well-respected manufacturer.
Norms and Values: are important among surfers. A central value to surfers is the need to
find a perfect wave, which is the main goal behind surfing. Kampion (2003:117) points
out that surfers are people who appreciate travel, because to surf is to seek, and to seek
is to roam. A surfer is constantly searching to find a good wave [which] might require
traveling a good distance (ibid.). Surfers also possess a strong sense of territoriality
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when it comes to their surfing spot. They want the spot all to themselves and their crew
of surfers, and prefer that no tourists or beach goers invade their territory (Hull 1976).
Homogenous Population: among people involved in the surfing culture. Generally,
surfer crews are composed one specific type of person: a young male, with shaggy hair
bleached by the sunlong but not too longa tan, muscular body, wearing surf trunks or
a wetsuit while at the beach, and Levis and Hawaiian print shirts with flip flops while
away from the beach. The surfer has an appearance of carefully fostered casual,
ruggedness [that demonstrates] the independent, masculine, back to nature image
most surfers have of themselves (Hull 1976).
GENDER AND SURFING
As mentioned in the previous section, the typical surfer is a young male, and there is a
sense of masculinity and danger that pervades the entire sport of surfing. Until recent years,
women were not included in the sceneusually they were not welcomed to join at alland
surfing remained a predominantly male sport until the late 1990s. This male centered view of
surfing was completely different from the origins of the sport, when all sexes participated
equally. We have the Europeans to thank for thisthey saw surfing as an activity that brought
evil and sin to the community. The missionary Sheldon Dibble said that surfing resulted in the
constant intermingling, without any restraint, of persons of both sexes and of all ages, at all
times of the day and at all hours of the night (as cited in Booth 2001). The Europeans obviously
did not think it was appropriate to allow men and women to interact for long periods of time.
This was due to the fact that Europeans simply viewed gender differently than the Polynesians
did. The Europeans had morphed the definition of gender into something very important in their
society, and they obviously placed a lot of significance upon these classifications. Polynesians
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did not have this construction of gender in their society, so women and men were not viewed
differently. Imagine the Europeans horror when they encountered naked people of both sexes
playing together in the oceans. Surfing was seen as something that had to be stopped
immediately. The near extinction of surfing occurred soon after, and when it was resurrected, the
sport was completely transformed and women were no longer included. Although there were
several notable exceptions, a woman surfer was a rarity and was never a part of the subculture.
The exclusion of women from sports was common in the early and mid 1900s, and it
complemented the view of women during that time period: frail, delicate, passive, and neurotic
as compared to men (Booth 2001:7). This is known as female exscription, which is a process that
leaves women out of certain subcultures and leads to a primarily male scene (Haenfler 2013:64).
A well-known surfer, Buzzy Trent, stated that girls do fine when it comes to housework, raising
children, [and] doing office work and implied that women should not attempt to surf at the level
of men, saying that girls are much more emotional than men and therefore have a greater
tendency to panic. And panic can be extremely dangerous in big surf (as cited by Booth
2001:3). As shown by Trents quote, men in surfing believed that skill, muscular strength,
endurance, cunning aggression, toughness, and above all, courage were necessary to be a
successful surfer, and that women simply did not have these traits (Booth 2001:6).
Because women were usually excluded from the water sport, their role was to be a
passive onlooker who stayed on the beach, sometimes even being used by surfers as props.
This means that male surfers who wanted to impress their friends would bring an attractive
woman with them to the beach to sit and watch while he surfed. He was then able to brag about
being with that woman, in order to make other men jealous (Booth 2001). This was common for
women in subculturesthey were not usually welcomed as members, and were often seen as
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accessories to the males. Another role of women in surfing is to be used as sexual commodities
in various surf related media outlets (Booth 2001:7). Women were used in advertisements for
surfer clothing brands, but were objectified and used only for their bodies potential to attract the
real (male) surfers. Sociologist Leanne Stedman noted several techniques used, such as in an
ad when the models head had been cropped out completely, she had her back turned fully to
the camera and her swimsuit hiked up (as cited in Booth 2001:7). The woman was not even
displaying clothing that was being sold; she was just a decoration to the other male models in the
picture. This is an example of such an advertisement, although it is not the same one discussed.
As you can see in the ad, the woman is just a sexual accessory to the male surfersomething to
grab the viewers attention. Although women were regarded in this sense in the surfing subcultre
for many many years, the view of women has recently changed. Women are now regarded not
only as props, but also as legitimate surfers and competitiors. Lisa Andersen was one of the first
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well known and successful female surfers, who won four world championships. She was a huge
inspiration for many women and youger girls, opening many doors for them along the way.
Many more prominent women were seen in the surfing scene soon thereafter. This lead to a huge
boom in womens surfing in the 1990s (Kampion 2003). Successful women surfers now had the
respect of male surfers, and were more included in the sport as a whole. However, this does not
mean that women and men are now equal when it comes to surfing. The sport is still extremely
unbalanced when it comes to number of men in the sport vs number of women in the sport.
Many women surfers report that they are usually one of the only women in the ocean while
surfing. It is also said that many girls who want to get involved in the sport find the great number
of males intimidating, discouraging them from joining. Although women are now more
respected, that does not mean that they are not objectified and used for their sexuality in surfing
media (Booth 2001). There will always be some correlation between female surfers and
sexuality, however; that cannot be escaped when beautiful women are riding the waves in
minimal clothing. Overall, surfing has become more inclusive and accepting of women in the
recent years.
STIGMA AND SURFING
Stigma is defined as a discrediting attribute or mark of disgrace that lends others to see
us as untrustworthy, incompetent, or tainted (Haenfler 2013:94). In the case of surfing, surfers
would be stigmatized by being members of a tainted group. Surfing was initially stigmatized
by the early Europeans who first encountered surfing. As mentioned previously, they viewed it
as immoral and wrong, although it was a spiritual experience to the native Polynesians.
However, the Europeans associated surfing with nakedness, sexuality, [] shameless
exuberance, informality, ignorant joy, and freedom all of which are in opposition of their
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religious views (Kampion 2003:36). The Westerners overlaid their own views about how life
should be lived onto the Polynesians, which resulted in great amounts of judgement and stigma.
After the renaissance of surfing in the early 1900s, surfers were still stigmatized, but for
different reasons. When surfing was first introduced in the United States, it was initially
regarded as rebellious, even radical, by both surfers and outsiders (Reed 1999). The lifestyle of
a serious surfer was one spent constantly in the ocean, travelling around the world in search of
new waves to ride, often sleeping in cars and on beaches, saving every possible cent for the
necessitiesfood and surfing equipment (Reed 1999). Because of this way of life, there is little
room for an occupation and surfers will often work at jobs which maximize their free time if
they work at all (Hull 1976). A nine to five, five day a week type of job would not be acceptable
to a surfer. Along with this, skillfull surfing requires a dedication to nonproductive activites
which does not rest well with American economic ideologies (Reed 1999). Lots of time is spent
waiting in the water for a good wave, surfing wave after wave, day in and day out. This
impression that surfers are not productive members of society, and are people who spend the
majority of their time in leisurely pursuits has lead many people to stigmatize the surfing culture.
Hollywood has also enforced this by portraying dedicated surfers as societal dropouts (Reed
1999). Many Americans have values that laud people who are productive, hard working, and
successful members the working force. Surfers are almost the opposite of this, so it makes sense
that the general population would see them as a deviant or tainted group. They directly
opposed the traditional sedentary masculine roles of father, homeowner, and breadwinner
(Reed 1999). The subculture was full of people who rejected normal society and chose to follow
their passions, living their lives around the ocean, even though surfing provides little in the way
of accomplishment or achievement in the traditional sense (Reed 1999). Although society has
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stigmatized surfing and surfers for much of their history, in the recent years, surfing has been
incorporated into the mainstream culture, gaining massive amounts of popularity, and losing the
majority of the stigma that surrounded it in the process.
COMMODIFICATION OF THE SURFING SUBCULTURE
As with many other subcultures, a rise in popularity was soon followed by mainstream
commodification. This is defined as the process of appropriating, producing, marketing, and
selling a former underground or authentic cultural expression (Haenfler 2013). Mass media
knows exactly when to jump in and begin this process in order to maximize the benefits. Much
of this was carried out through the creation and dissemination of surf wear, especially for
females. Krista Comer (2004:239) discusses how since the early 1990s, the figure of the new
surfergirl has become progressively more valuable to fashion companies, and more recently,
could be said to proliferate well beyond the world of fashion advertising. This process began
first in clothing companies that were already established as surf wear businesses. Before the rise
in popularity of surfing, these companies aimed solely at male surfers, as seen earlier in my
discussion about gender and advertising. Now, these businesses discovered how to succesfully
market to younger girls, eseentially introducing surfing to a whole new gender and age group.
After this occurred among many surfing companies, other corporations realized the value of the
surfergirl image and began to use it in their advertising as wellcompanies such as Target and
Newsweek (Comer 2004). This commodification has lead to the further popularization of surfing,
and now, surfing is used to sell countless products, services, and places.
CONCLUSION
Surfing has experienced countless transformations throughout its history, morphing from
a spiritual ritual practice of native Polynesians, to an American sport and pastime with a
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subculture full of deviant members, and finally to a widespread symbol of happy, sunny places,
and relaxed island mindsets. The image of the mythical surfer lifestyle: the freedon and joy of
movement, the living out of an automobile, and the roaming, in the case of surfers, from surf
break to surf break, even from country to country has captured the curiosity and intrigue of
many youth over the course of many years, eventually bringing surfing to mainstream popularity
(Reed 1999). The pertinent issues in this subculture, gender, stigma, and commodification, are all
linked and work together to demonstrate how the sport of surfing has managed to survive and
even thrive through the many tranformations throughout its history.

TO LEARN MORE
Dogtown and Z-Boys
Directed by Stacy Peralta, 2002. Sony Pictures Classics.
A great documentary about the beginnings of skateboarding and surfing.

Surfer
Distributed by GrindMedia. http://www.surfermag.com/
A popular magazine among surfers that covers every topic imaginable within the sport.

Women in the Sub-Culture of Surfing
By Cori Schumacher, 2012.
http://www.genderacrossborders.com/2012/02/07/women-in-the-sub-culture-of-surfing/
An article published by Gender Across Borders: A Global Voice for Gender Justice, which talks
about the hypersexualization of women in present day surfing.
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Stoked! A History of Surf Culture
By Drew Kampion, 2003. Salt Lake City: Gibbs Smith, Publisher.
This book is a great general overview of many aspects of the culture. It is also a good source of
hundreds of pictures of surfers and surfing from its earliest days to the present day.


















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RESOURCES
Booth, Douglas. 2001. From Bikinis to Boardshorts: Wahines and the Paradoxes of Surfing
Culture. Journal of Sport History 28,1:3-22.


Comer, Krista. 2004. Wanting to be Lisa: Generational Rifts, Girl Power, and the Globalization
of Surf Culture. Pp. 237-271 in American Youth Cultures edited by Neil Campbell. New
York: Routledge.

Haenfler, Ross. 2013. Goths, Gamers, and Grrrls. Oxford University Press, Publisher.

Hull, Stephen Wayne. 1976. A Sociological Study of the Surfing Subculture in the Santa Cruz
Area. MA Thesis. San Jose State University. Web. Accessed 28 March 2013.
http://www.lajollasurf.org/srf_thes.html#intro

Kampion, Drew. 2003. Stoked! A History of Surf Culture. Layton: Gibbs Smith, Publisher.

Reed, Michael Alan. 1999. Waves of Commodification: A Critical Investigation into Surfing
Subculture. MA Thesis. San Diego State University. Web. Accessed 28 March 2013.
http://www.elcamino.edu/Faculty/mreed/general/Thesis/thesis.htm


Reef: Bobby Martinez Advertisement. Reef.com. Accessed 28 April 2013.
http://jtm2865.wordpress.com/2011/09/20/reef-ad-explored/