Editor’s Note: Original Hawaiian is a new series powered by Primo Beer that highlights exceptional individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the rich history of Hawaii’s ocean culture.
Bertlemann became one of the most hyper-exposed surfing professionals in history. Photo: Art Brewer
Larry Bertlemann changed the game. The man can be credited with showing the world what was possible on a surfboard. One of the original shortboard pioneers, Bertlemann’s style was a radical antithesis of the soulful carving of the ’60s and early ’70s. He had a distinct, dynamic spring in his surfing, which earned him the nickname “Rubberman.” While the style at the time valued arcing carves, Bertlemann was one of the first to attack waves top to bottom with sharp turns in the pocket.
Larry Bertlemann was born August 7th, 1955 in Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii. The son of a former Air Force survival instructor and auto mechanic, his upbringing was similar to many kids from Hawaii. While he didn’t begin surfing until he was almost a teenager, hunting pigs and fishing were major pastimes. After a move to Oahu with his mother at age 11, a young Larry picked up a surfboard and soon became determined to master the famed Ala Moana bowl. As the years went by, Bertlemann progressed rapidly. He would transform both Ala Moana and the more rippable waves of the North Shore into the breeding grounds of modern high performance surfing.
Bertlemann. Sunset Beach, 1977. Photo: Art Brewer
Bertlemann worked closely with famed shaper Ben Aipa to develop and refine surfboards that allowed for his innovative approach. Aipa acted as Bertlemann’s coach, and together they redefined the standard for performance equipment. Aipa’s swallowtail and stinger designs of the mid 70’s facilitated some of Bertlemann’s best surfing.
On a personal level, Aipa discouraged Bertlemann from pursuing a professional competitive career in surfing. Despite Aipa’s advice and his own personal distaste for competition, Bertlemann turned pro in the early 70’s. Although he became one of the highest paid pros of the time, he experienced only marginal competitive success. Though he placed third in the 1972 Pipeline Masters and the 1973 Smirnoff Pro, won the 1974 Duke Classic, and managed to stay in the top 16 in both 1976 and 1979, because his style was such a radical departure from the norm, competition judges often didn’t know how to score his maneuvers. After all, how does one score something they’ve never seen?
Bertlemann’s competitive career was overshadowed by his dominant presence in the media. He became one of the most hyper-exposed surfing professionals in history. He was featured on a record nine magazine covers, and he was one of the first pros to secure major corporate sponsors like Pepsi, OP, Toyota, and United Airlines. And it wasn’t just his attention grabbing surfing that Bertlemann used to stay in the public eye. Frequently surfing in color-coordinated outfits along with his neatly maintained Afro, Bertlemann made sure the cameras followed him wherever he went. He even surfed Pipeline in a custom bell-bottom styled wetsuit. Bertlemann’s antics, while they left surfing purists discouraged, opened the doors to the modern convention of corporate sponsorship.
Bertlemann’s spotlight in the media made him one of Hawaii’s great ambassadors of the 1970s. Never before had the surfing lifestyle been so accessible to non-surfers across the globe. Images of Bertlemann circulated across the globe, and in a short time he became the unmistakeable face of Hawaiian surfing.
