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the catalogue #181

1972 Lightning Bolt Pintail Shaped by Gerry Lopez 8 ft 1/2"

#181

MANUFACTURE
MANUFACTURER: Unknown / Lightning Bolt Surfboards? Hawaii
SHAPER: Gerry Lopez
DESIGN: Pintail
DESIGNERS: Gerry Lopez

SPECIFICATIONS
CONSTRUCTION
Fibreglassed foam blank, 1/4" redwood stringer, spray, resin pinlines.
DIMENSIONS

*Length:*	8	feet	1/2	inch
*Width:*	18 1/2	inches		*Wide Point:*	+6	inches
*Nose :*	12	inches		*Tail:*	9	inches
*Thickness:*	2 7/8	inches		*Pod:*	0	inches
*Weight:*		kilos		*Volume:*		litres
*Nose/L:*		inches		*Tail/L:*		inches
*Other:*		inches

FEATURES
Nose: pin
Tail: gun pintail
Deck: flat
Bottom: flat with very sight vee in tail
Rails: down, soft
Rocker: medium

FIN:
8" x 5 1/2'' base @ 5 1/2''
Four colour laminate
Red - blue- red - black

DECOR
DECAL/S:
Deck: none
Bottom :
MARKINGS:
Deck: LOPEZ - pencil on stringer, rear sweet .spot.
Image right is not from this board, but #181 does have the same markings. I neglected to take a suitable photograph.
Bottom:
COLOUR:
Deck
Sprayed orange deck panel , yellow rails and thin black resin pinlines.
Hand painted/sprayed off-set black and red lightning bolts
Bottom: yellow spray

NOTES
BOARD HISTORY
Shaped by Gerry Lopez circa 1972, apparrently for his own use. See below.
Subsequently purchased by Terry Richardson and surfed in Hawaii, circa 1977. See below.
Board sold to Wollongong surfer, circa 1980.
Collected by Ralph Riddell , circa 2001.
On display at Ralph Riddell Surfboards
34 Flinders Street Wollongong NSW 2500
Phone 02 4228 - 0988
Dimensions and photographs, 12.03.20002
Thanks, Ralph.

Special Note : The off-set lighting bolt graphic is not a decal.
It has been applied in paint by hand (brush or sprayed?) and the board possibly dates from (and could even pre-date) the the eariliest days of Lightning Bolt Surfboards.

DESIGN HISTORY
A classic example of the Hawaiian Gun, that traces it's origin back to Fran Heath and John Kelly's Hot Curl design of the mid - 1930's.
Established as the prefered big wave design in the 1950's by master shapers George Downing and Pat Curren, the pinail gun was the favoured design of Richard "Dick" Brewer -
The Pipeliner, 1966 (Bing Surfboards),
the Mini-gun, 1967 (Lahaina Surfing Design), and
the Pocket Rocket, 1968 (Plastic Fantastic Sufboards and Inter-Island Surfboards).
(see image below)
Brewer's designs were a major shaping influence on his understudies - Jock Sutherland, Jeff Hakman, Reno Abelliro and Gerry Lopez.

THE SHAPER
Gerry Lopez had been a Brewer team rider at several companies before shaping with Dick Brewer at Surfline Surfboards, Honolulu: and at Dick Brewer Surfboards, Hanapepe, Kauai, circa 1970.- 1972
He started his own company, Lightning Bolt Surfboards, circa 1972.
Although an talented surfer in all conditions, no surfer has been so strongly identified at one break like Gerry Lopez is with the Pipeline, Oahu.
The longest reigning "Mr. Pipeline", he set the standard for deep tube riding 1971 to 1977.
His major contributions were the application of a fluid and relaxed style in extreme condition (see image below) and the principle that the safest place to ride large waves is inside the tube.
These are relected in the fine lines and sublte curves of the boards.
The idenfication between Gerry Lopez and the Lightning Bolt logo is nearly as strong as that with Pipeline, although he left the company circa 1995.
He was at the forefront in the extension of surfing in Indonesia, circa 1975.
Gerry Lopez made further contributions in the development of Windsurfing, circa 1985, and Tow-in surfing, circa 1995.

THE RIDER
Terry Richardson from Wollongong, NSW, is a goofy-foot noted for h is performances on the South coast's many quality left-handers, in particular Wreck Bay. An Australian ridder of the Bonzer design circa 1974, he competed with distinction in the inital professional surfing circuit, circa 1974 - 1978.
Early shaping for Skipp Surfboards, Wollongong, NSW.
He started his own compnany, Terry Richardson Surfboards at Wollongong, NSW circa 1980.

REFERENCES
Magazines
Articles
1. Drew Kampion :The Life and Work of Richard Brewer.
in The Australian Surfer's Jourrnal, Vol 2 No 3 Winter 1999. Pages 72 - 95.
2. Phil Jarratt : The Last Soul Surfer - Profile of Gerry Lopez
in Surfer magazine, Vol 20 No. 8 August 1979. Pages 28 to 39
3. Mick Mock : Richo's Choice
in Deep magazine , No 18 Spring 2000, pages 22 to33
Advertising :
Film
Alby Falzon : The Morning of the Earth, 1972 - Last sequences
The cinematic performances of Gerry Lopez (surfing - not acting) are numerous and he regulary featured in surfing movies throughout the 1970's.
.The Morning of the Earth sequences are the earliest that I am aware of.
CONDITION: 8.

'' Terry Richardson, touching the breaks (sic; brakes?) for a bit of a cover up at inside Pipe.
Photo : Devine''
Terry Richardson and #181, Pipeline, Hawaii , winter 1976 - 1977
Photograph and Caption from :Surfer Magazine Vol 17 # 6 March 1977 page 46

Phil Abbott wrote, January 2004...
the Gerry Lopez Lightning Bolt (#181) that you have listed on your site looks exactly like the one in the attached 1975 photos of Gerry's board quiver by Steve Wilkings (source unknown).
Many thanks to Phil.

Following to the above correspondence, I located Steve Wilking's web page (via google).
Intending to seek permission for use of the images by email, I bookmaked the site as... http//:www.stevewilkings.com Steve Wilkins Photography
and found the images, which were dated and fully titled.
However subsequent attempts to access the site have failed.
Any further contribution would be gratefully noted.

Ben Hams wrote, October 2005...
That ‘unknown’ person is actually the very well known, and very highly respected Jack Shipley. Jack was the co-founder of Lighting Bolt surfboards along with Gerry in 1971, was head Hawaiian ASP judge, and is now head judge of the HASA (Hawaiian Amateur Surfing Association).
Many thanks to Benny.

In the first of the attached images below, note one board with leg rope.
Board #181 is to the left.

Rory Russell, Jack Shipley, Gerry Lopez
and Quiver, circa 1975.
Photograph : Steve Wilkins

Rory Russell, Jack Shipley, Gerry Lopez
and Quiver, circa 1975.
Photograph : Steve Wilkins

Gerry Lopez : a fluid and relaxed style in extreme conditions
Pipeline circa 1973, Photograph by Lerner
From :Surfer Magazine Vol 14 # 3 September 1973 page 48

Richard Brewer, Gerry Lopez, Reno Abelliro
and Pocket Rockets
Maui circa 1972
Photograph : David Darling
from : Australian Surfer's Journal,
Vol 2 No 3 Winter 1999 Page 76