“They embodied that spirt of freedom and weren’t afraid of the ramifications of what they did.” – Mike Stewart
Back in the day, Cronulla was heaven. It was a close-knit community of surfers, a “band of brothers” so to speak. And it was only surfers. Then bodyboarders came along. However, it was only kids, so no one really had any issues with it. Soon, bodyboarding evolved to include a couple “cool older guys,” yet still no animosity or outward malice — Cronulla remained a close-knit community, simply now consisting of surfers AND bodyboarders. That wouldn’t be the case for long though… at least with how Tracks magazine and specifically photo-journalist Paul Sargeant would have it. In quite the call-out, they looked to destroy bodyboarding.
And in many respects, they did. Surfers grew pissed (even those who didn’t know they were pissed) and took it out on the supposed invaders with their “Esky Lids.”
But the Skid Kids barreled on unfazed. Essentially, they didn’t give a fuck. They instead embraced the sort of freedom that only comes with being truly free, a sensibility that wasn’t so prevalent in the relatively clean-cut late-eighties/early-nineties era of surfing.
Even when shit hit the fan and the major surf brands that previously supported the boogers dropped out of the business altogether, the Skid Kids kept on trucking. The original three in Dave Ballard, Matt Percy and Nathan “Nugget” Purcell were joined by Adam “Wingnut” Smith, Mark Fordham and Christian “Rissole” Rigucinni as they traveled the world, raged at big parties, and rode even bigger waves.
Their impact in shaping bodyboarding is unparalleled.
Holding On, an upcoming documentary on the sport, hopes to capture that spirit. With the likes of legendary bodyboarder Mike Stewart, Tracks magazine co-founder Alby Falzon, and STAB magazine co-founder/current Beach Grit patron-for-the-irreverent Derek Reilly lending their thoughts on the sport, it promises to be a good showing for sure. Seeing Derek’s smug face as he talks about the industry collapsing is enough to make me want to watch it.
That and the epidemic of neon wetsuits.
