Manly 13 year old John Smythe in 1962 on his Gordon Woods ‘Foley’ six footer, photo courtesy John Smythe
Received a whole pile of great pics over the weekend from Manly veteran John Smythe, who admitted he went …a bit ballistic on the scanner on this bleak Saturday with not much surf.
Here’s what John says about the short foam boards he and his mates were riding in the early 60s… Gordon Woods made mine and another friends 6ft 6″ board and Scotty Dillon made one for another friend. John Otton had a small board made for him around 1960 it was marble painted. Dave Treloar had the (6 foot?) Hobie his brother bought him in the states c1961. So there was, around 1962-63, a small number of (Sydney) grommets riding short boards.
This is Michael McCormack ‘Little Maca’. He is riding a foam board that was so full of holes that he’d have to stand it up against wall after a surf to let it drain out. This would have been 1960 possibly 1959 as it was already (a wreck?) when the photo was taken.
Big thanks to John Smythe for the photos and notes.