With Cronulla celebrating the centenary of surfing this year, another facet of the suburb’s trend-setting surfing history is about to be revealed on the world stage.
In the late 1980s a group of Cronulla friends called The Skid Kids brought the sport of bodyboarding to international attention.
The friends, Dave Ballard, Matt Percy and Nathan ‘‘Nugget’’ Purcell started surfing the previously unrideable waves off Shark Island using the newly developed bodyboard. It sparked international interest in bodyboarding.
Now, filmmakers Simon Bruncke, Trent Beattie and Chad Waldron are telling their story in Holding On, a feature-length documentary blending more than 30 interviews with archival footage.
Mr Bruncke said he had always been a fan of the group and felt they had a great story to tell.
‘‘It’s the story of a group of guys who were at the peak of their sport of bodyboarding,’’ he said.
‘‘What they did was change the sport from a kids’ game into a professional sport which they really put on the map.’’
Mr Bruncke grew up on the Central Coast where the waves are very suitable for bodyboarding.
‘‘They break really quickly and on shallow water, making it difficult for traditional surfboards to ride functionally,’’ he said.
‘‘Bodyboarders using fins on their feet were able to paddle a lot faster into the waves.
‘‘Waves like those at Shark Island are perfect for bodyboarding because they break so hollow and on such shallow reef.
‘‘In late 1980s and early 1990s surfing had a really clean-cut, professional image.
‘‘Bodyboarding was new on
the scene and these guys didn’t really have anyone to look up to.
‘‘They were more rock’n’roll than pop; they were a bit more out there, a bit more reckless. This set them apart.
‘‘When they shaved their hair it was a rebellion to the established surf culture at the time.
‘‘With the movie we wanted to bring to everyone’s knowledge the significance of these guys and their contribution to bodyboarding.
‘‘Before, it was just done in small pockets of the surfing world in Hawaii and San Diego.
‘‘These guys changed all that.’’
Mr Bruncke hopes to hold the world premiere of the documentary at Cronulla in November.
But people can see a preview of the documentary when the trailer is launched on Tuesday, May 5.(See above and more info at: www.holdingon-movie.com/
Do you remember how the sport of bodyboarding took off at Cronulla?