May 7, 2021
Craig Sugihara in the early days - Photo courtesy of T&C
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Hawaii-based T&C Surf celebrates 50 years in business this year. It’s one of the few industry brands with that kind of longevity that has remained both independently owned and authentic.
Founder Craig Sugihara did not have grand ambitions when he started. He just wanted to build boards.
“There was no grand plan,” he told SES in an interview. “Being young and dumb I just started. I was glassing boards for Greg Noll’s shop. The next step was I learned to shape at Mystic Surf Shop. After that, I felt like wow, I can do this. My dream was to do it on my own – to build quality surfboards, and that hasn’t changed.”
R.I.P. Ben Aipa (1942-2021)
Photo: Jeff Divine
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When Ben Aipa’s big heart finally stopped beating on Friday, January 15th after the man succumbed to multiple health issues including heart problems, diabetes, strokes and dementia, the surfing world lost one of its most remarkable characters and in some ways, one of its least-appreciated. Not due to any lack of respect. Ben commanded respect without even asking for it, from the moment he first took to the waves at Waikiki as a burly 23-year-old. But he wasn’t exactly shy. No other three-letter athlete from Farrington High, semi-pro football player and blue-collar truck driver could get by without occasionally puffing a few lips let alone learn to surf in Hawaii as a full-fledged adult.
Legendary surfer and shaper Ben Aipa passes away
January 17, 2021 |
Surfing
Iconic Hawaiian surf legend Ben Aipa has passed away at the age of 78.
Aipa was an accomplished surfer, an innovative surfboard shaper, and a tenacious coach who influenced several generations of wave riders.
As one of the standout figures of 1970s surfing, he introduced the swallowtail and the stinger in surfboard design.
Ben Aipa was born in 1942 in Honolulu, Hawaii.
He was the son of a sugar plantation worker and initially embraced a semi-professional football career. However, an ankle injury put an end to his linebacker dreams.
Aipa rode his first waves in his early 20s and quickly started training hard to excel in the water sport.