Bodyboard Collectors Part 2 - moreyboogie

Bodyboard Collectors Part 2

Second episode of our meetings with passionate bodyboard collectors. We introduce to you, Aritz Losadagoya, an encyclopedia to himself on the history of bodyboards and the evolution of technologies. A bodyboard collection that he developed during the covid lockdown periods.  Find his instagram here.


Could you introduce yourself in a few lines?

Aritz, from the Basque country, I started bodyboarding in 1985 (I was 7 like all children who live near a beach) with a Mach 10. No flippers, no wetsuit, a board, we were happy . I had found the bottom of a black wetsuit with the two yellow stripes, like Commander Cousteau, bought a pair of Churchill fins and the adventure begins with one board per year mach 7, 7x 7mike Stewart, turbo pro-comp, bz stinger etc. from 1988 to 1995.

First custom board of the TB brand which was located in Biarritz Here we are in 1996 with high performance boards that are much stiffer and thinner than what was on the market. Afterwards they had stopped and I had gotten myself from Michel off in Bayonne a BZ Kevin yap (to check the spelling)

A simple board, no Chanel, surely a thin Arcel core on the sides and thick in the center, perfect for floating and perfect for handling. Simple and effective shape, white deck quite high, the only fault I found in it was a bit too soft for me (in store) I unpacked it from its packaging and I put two epoxy resin stringers in it when I had never surfed it,,,, suddenly superb board even today.

With oil from the Erika (i.e a tanker that spilled tons of oil on the west coast of Europe) 1998-1999 End of the 90s I was unhappy with what was happening in the chewing gum board business 2000-2001 I meet Imanol Arrizabalaga who is in the process of creating his company Pride

Imanol had made me a custom board exactly what I wanted a very simple board no Chanel, in 41, 60\40 and two small upstands at the back of the board for grip in the wall (mono Channel very little pronounced) the rear end a high wide-point.

Now all the boards have this at the front to catch the fingers, it's not bad. I hate it because I do a lot of droknee at 50% and therefore the boards are not versatile, it stuffs it, it forgives nothing in dk. Pride and redeem by the manager today and I am unhappy again.

How and when did you get all your boards?

Internet and leboncoin.com arrive at home and here are historical boards that appear at 10 20 30 40 50 € and recent. From time to time I started to buy used and it allows me to try almost new boards that had remained 10 or 20 years in a garage at a very low affordable price. Me who didn't have an email who didn't have Facebook who's not a fan of social networks here I am confined like everyone else I was going around in circles at home and I ended up installing Instagram, I started to unveil / publish my boards that I had dewaxed cleaned and polished during confinement. 

How many boards do you have in your collection?

During confinement I went to my mom's garage to bring back my childhood boards Here I am with 70 boards 🤦 after 35 years of practice due to two boards per year, I don't know exactly how many I have I haven't counted them which is sure it's a freak mess at home a useless clutter.
What is your favorite model?
My favorite board is the Pride custom. it's my head, it's my dimensions, it's what I was visualizing.
Do you plan to present them to the public one day (exhibition, opening, etc.)?
An exposure to the public surely complicated. where when how? It takes two big trucks to fit all these boards in. And surely few visitors. If you come to Saint-Jean-de-Luz obviously the doors of my house are open. I don't collect them I've piled up mess all my life 😂😂 Some were given to me, I found some in the garbage cans in front of a container.
Thank you very much for your time Aritz! We hope to collaborate on an exhibition one day, who knows? The Legacy Team

 

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