Nick Bone, 1715241001

Fuck yeah. Just watched some of his clips. Absolute shredder! Is it a lost form these days in the bodyboarding scene?

freeride76, 1715241515

Yeah, are guys still doing DK?

I'm not sure I've ever seen it done live.

Finnbob the terror, 1715241681

Matt Killy from Sorrento Victoria was the dropknee king in the day. Late 80s early 90s.

Finnbob the terror, 1715241771

Few old boys trying on the mornington peninsula nothing like the late 80s and early 90s.

Nick Bone, 1715241893

Didn’t know Killy started out on the lid.

Cal Powell - late 90’s outback king! When the bowl was alive.

Andrew P, 1715242021

Awesome article Dan. Hawaiians Kainoa McGee, Haulio Reeves, and Aussies Dave Ballard, Todd Lee and Shane Griffiths also come to mind as DKers exploding lips. To take the cross pollination theme further - I recall Paul Roach taking to the air also?

Finnbob the terror, 1715242538

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjrnhkBHZvw

Andrew P, 1715242765

The Real Bra Boys!

Finnbob the terror, 1715243158

killy on the dropknee out back was king, barrel to lay back tail slides on the bowl, before the bone was born. Pretty handy stand up surfer too he didnt progress maybe until he was late teens maybe 20s.

Finnbob the terror, 1715243600

you may have been born just

yvdreh, 1715243681

No more lost than bodyboarding itself.

Sprout, 1715246322

Great read Dan! Never realised that's where 'Jack Stance' came from. Those hack picks are rad.

See a few DKers about on the SC, mostly fat old blokes keeping the dream alive haha. Lackey's the only one I've seen IRL make it look any good with style.

Alex Papas, 1715246496

sick write up - would be mad to get a hell photo of someone like azza glossop alongside one of these older ones to showcase then and now

peabo, 1715249521

Dave Ballard used to do these drop tail floaters which looked awesome in the mags. Never knew whether he actually landed them or if he just did them because they looked good in action shots haha.

peabo, 1715249781

Love this article

poo-man, 1715251525

There's a deaf guy in Raglan still busting out the DK. Lives out of his van these days but he's cool as. I've learnt a bit of sign language from him over the years

Major kong, 1715253034

Cool as

jasper99, 1715259196

In the states and Hawaii Aka Lyman as well as Roach were the guys and Ballard here in oz was the stand out. It's a skill that is super under rated.

surf.rat, 1715282605

Damn we used to give shit to body-boarders back in the day. "Stand up ya Fucken Kook"
Now that I am older, well much older [early 50's] I love surfing with body-boarders and would choose to surf with them rather than surfers any day.
They charge so hard and more than that, they don't have their heads up their arse like most surfers.
There are still a lot surfing around Dbah and they rip!

Oceanbeach, 1715294609

the turns are a hell of a lot more photogenic and critical than the standup finless surfing I've seen, thats pretty ugly stuff

freeride76, 1715294820

Thats interesting- I actually thought the complete opposite- that those style of turns looked so much more pleasing to the eye on a finless surfboard minus the square bodyboard and fins hanging over the board fore and aft.

I think one of the reasons it probably died out is because it looks so awkward and unnatural.

Jono, 1715295660

Here's an embed of him laying the punches on Kelly
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmutIZEuzQo

jasper99, 1715296132

Done badly for sure it looks awkward and unnatural thats why I wouldn't be watching any examples of DK other than Roach,Lyman,Ballard,De graff also Adam Murray.
Not that I watch a lot of bodyboarding these days but I haven't seen anything that comes close to these guys mentioned. The 90's was peak DK imo.....

freeride76, 1715296734

Went back and watched the Roach DK from No Friends.

It hasn't aged well as a form of wave riding.

freeride76, 1715296822

absolutely all-time footage.

Nick Bone, 1715297805

Seen plenty of Killy being a barrel pig. Could find em even if they weren't there!

Nick Bone, 1715297827

and his hacks at shit rock

peabo, 1715297993

DK is challenging and fun to do, but i've never rated it from an aesthetic standpoint. Usually much more appealing in still shots than video. The turns are generally very fast snaps rather than anything drawn out and stylish. There are certain situations in which it can look pretty cool though.

Kainoa McGee at Ala Moana Bowls is pretty amazing to watch.

murderinc, 1715298917

Few guys still ripping on the knee at Strad & Dbah :)

Sprout, 1715303141

I agree it mostly looks pretty clunky, Lackey at C9 has some big smooth carves though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3yEXNn11Rk

freeride76, 1715303888

That was really good.

Clam, 1715305197

Cool article thanks dan!

dandob, 1715305627

This bloke's your best modern day practitioner, and rips stand up too

https://youtu.be/18jTHpcSaxs?si=9XgTShM7p4hiSSHj

freeride76, 1715305975

That was very steezy and functional.
Cheers mate.

gman, 1715307449

would pay good money to see Kelly on a 6'6 again....

stunet, 1715309063

Even made backside DK look stylish.

dazzler, 1715315658

He still rips.. probably had more barrels at DBah than just about anyone over past 20years

camokazi, 1715318446

Nothing 'clunky' about those skills... awesome!

cheyno, 1715318634

Awesome article dandob. Still remember Paul Roachs section in No Friends 1, some powerful hacks and fly kicks in there!

Finnbob the terror, 1715318851

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Gk57S7EMIWI
use to love Danny Kim stand up boog

Finnbob the terror, 1715318853

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Gk57S7EMIWI
use to love Danny Kim stand up boog

Swany, 1715343261

Chris Taloa had some mental Ollie’s and snaps on the standup boog. Mad story how he waited 2-3 years to spark out a young Bruce irons when he turned 18. Not sure if anyone saw that photo of Bruce at backdoor with the dent Chris put in his head. Crazy lad.

Swany, 1715343408

https://youtube.com/shorts/dGNcdFypSl0?si=Zb1UjGn2SCeiyK9T

Greebs, 1715357219

What a great clip! Mad skills and style.

simba, 1715379869

loved that vid.....guys had more barrels than iv'e had heart beats......

kaybeegee, 1715382922

Last Wednesday I saw a yr 10 kid unironically drop knee a dredgey 3 fter during school sport. He had some poise about him.

alexz, 1715383263

I can't ever remember Matt Killy being on a bodyboard or DK! My memory must be failing. Josh Morgan and Gumbie were always standouts drop knee (Josh from the 80s onwards, Scott from the 90s). I once saw Josh get a stand up barrel on the boogie at Portsea all the way to the sand then stepped off the board and ran up the beach after exiting the tube!

alexz, 1715383581

Dave Ballard early 90s was the best out there (and could also ride prone unlike Roach). Classic Chris Stroh video of Ballard ripping on the NSW South Coast here (go to 43:46) https://youtu.be/rP7CTnWSsLY?si=hYHXepEL1orOFg0F&t=2623

Finnbob the terror, 1715384957

haha, I'm guessing but Matt was probably off the boog by 1990. Then disappeared to PNG as well. Ha Gumbie, Josh, Cain Cameron, Bennet, Crosby none of those blokes had anything on Matt's DK skills.

Finnbob the terror, 1715385851

Cheers Alex, the last section after the credits was great.

sailquik, 1715389953

Just WOW!!

juegasiempre, 1715476410

+1 to that. Never had anything to do with them on the GC because they really didn't exist but where I live now it's usually 50/50 Boog riders to surfers, due to the hollower waves around these parts. But the vibes are always better sharing the water with a group of boogers than surfers.

I'm keen to start my young fella on the Boog when he's of age before a surfboard due to my new found appreciation of their attitude and how they charge.

Michael Adam, 1715478270

Boogs have always been cooler than surfies.

t-rex, 1715493423

Yeah!! I surfed with and around all those dudes over that period Josh and Matt Killy were far ahead of everyone else. I think Josh was better because he was so unpredictable. It was great when Matt changed to the stick because he was still so gnarly and smooth same as on the boog. Style was a big thing and rated highly in that scene back then and what I still enjoy now. His riding out the back Sorrento was awesome worth missing the bus back to Frankston (had to hitch home) to watch him surf. Goddamn!! I miss that bowl

nasigoreng, 1715496968

+ Chris Won

stunet, 1715560380

My eldest boy picked up the boog last year and he's right into it. Was a bit disheartening at first, I've got a shed full of surfboards for him but he wanted to ride a lid. He's always been headstrong and wanted to do things his way so I guess it was bound to happen.

Thing is, it's given me an insight into a corner of surfing I hadn't paid that much attention to. Just this weekend for instance, he (twice!) dragged me out to a boog-friendly wave that I wouldn't otherwise have surfed. Had a ball both times, lost a bunch of skin too.

Also, pretty much every time he paddles out there, or at other waves the BBers focus on, the older crew engage him in conversation, show him where to sit, give him a few sets. Meanwhile, I sit back and watch it unfold without interference. It's unreal to see.

Few months back during a crowded session at Pipe a local fella took a shine to him, perhaps cos of his age, and while I sat in the throng, Sam got ushered to the head of the reef then allowed to have the next set. The next time we were there, we passed old mate on the track and he fist-bumped Sam.

Not sure if my judgements are right, however it feels that as surfing - stand up surfing - maneuvers itself to become the next golf, replete with big money sponsors and government involvement, the lidders are the last holdouts against this cultural gentrification and they look after each other.

A generalisation, no doubt, but I've seen enough to know it's at least partly true.

goofyfoot, 1715562313

From memory Bruce called him a “dumb Tongan” or something like that.

Could see him being a major smart arse.

garyg1412, 1715566052

+1 On having a ball with the young ones. Mine used to drag me out on those psycho big days at Nobbies Beach in the rip. Never had so much fun and never been so thrashed in my life, but made for some great memories.

simsurf, 1715582152

He rides a normal surf board on occasion too.

southernraw, 1715583614

Great insightful read. Cheers!

stinky_wes, 1715598315

I went for a walk at Nobbys about the time you posted this and there were three boogs getting late drops into sandy brown closeouts. They will be getting sand out of their hair/ears/cracks for weeks!

Rolley, 1715602933

No mention of Sheddy Eddie? I remember being blown away by how smooth his DKing was out at Portsea as a grommie. Also have a memory of paddling out and as I went to duckdive through the face of a barreling beachie, I nearly copped Gumby's boog in the face. He was slotted so deep on the knee, I thought the wave was empty.

Finnbob the terror, 1715615462

Ha, miss the bowl then a burger and Chocolate Nippies from Patricks. Get the bowl now and then these days.

Finnbob the terror, 1715615499

Dont forget Frogga.

goofyfoot, 1715628768

Surely you joke about Eddie?

Finnbob the terror, 1715635983

Haha poor Ed. He is pretty handy at the DK but smooth may be a stretch.

alexz, 1715636314

I assume I know both of you @finnbob and @t-rex if you've surfed Outback for a lot of years. PS Patrick's was Geggsy's back in the day!

Craig, 1715637420

Local guy, Phil still gets coned drop knee at North Steyne.

Craig, 1715637705

Great article Dan, love the train of thought.

dandob, 1715638245

There was a pretty special moment on the weekend Stu that speaks to this. Newy bodyboard club held a groms only comp and coaching clinic. Mike Stewart and current world champ Tanner McDaniel were in attendance waiting for the Shark Island Challenge contest to happen. They stood on the beach in the rain and coached the groms, then shared a water session with them. When the final of the comp finished and 16yr old Anthony Miller won, guess who was on hand to chair him up the beach? Stewart under one leg and McDaniel under the other!

stunet, 1715638629

Unreal. What a moment for the grom.

Finnbob the terror, 1715641688

Haha most likely you know me.
PS Originally Patrick’s which was owned by Ken and Nola I think that was the couples name, then Gale aka geggsi took it over and named it Geggsy’s, then Darrel Ferguson took it over and named it Fergies he then sold it to Katrina and Keenan Harris and pretty sure Mark Clayvon the chemist was involved, Katrina ran it and renamed it patrick’s. Fergie now has a cafe in Blairgowrie and Geggsie works there for him, Katrina was running All smiles at Sorrento backbeach and doing weddings. Ken and Nola would be very very old by now.

t-rex, 1715642387

I used to love the chip burgers and coffee scrolls from Patrick’s and a strawberry Big M

Finnbob the terror, 1715643480

As a primary school kid in the 80s my mates I would walk from school to sorrento back beach but we would cross the road and walk up Ossit st to avoid being hassled by the gang of scary surfer scum that hang out on the corner at Patricks.

Finnbob the terror, 1715643481

Craig, 1715660440

Wow, that'd be the groms dream come true! Actually, couldn't even dream of that.

bbbird, 1715691258

Amazing story of a carving trail blazer...
I didnt know what that soft foam 1980's bogie could really do till now....
on quality waves, anything is possible
Peter Crawford in 1970's showed the future
https://www.eos.surf/videos/kneeboarding-in-the-1970s
https://www.eos.surf/surfboards/slab

t-rex, 1715730971

Yeah j can relate to that as a blow in from Seaford I found all the crew that used to hang at Patrick’s pretty intimidating until you got to know them and hang there. I got pretty good at wonder boy waiting between tides and waiting for my chip roll. I may have also slept in the backyard over the fence on quite a few occasions if the surf was going to be good for a few days

bdp, 1715744937

We used to drive over from SA for a few winters between '88 and '91 and have a comp with the Vic crew. Josh Morgan was a standout. Spot Billings and Craig (?) were always on the boil at Tibor street. Still mates with Luke Roberts. I still have the Tshirt from the '87 Teams challenge at a maxing out Gunnamatta where all the Cronulla crew turned up and Doug Robson was dominating.

MrBungle, 1715748287

You should write articles for Riptide Dan ;-)

dandob, 1715761116

Just wait six months and they'll plagerise this :)

stunet, 1715807494

I only had to wait a week for The Green Room Times to plagiarise me.

We bought the contemporary photo. Shieldsy never ran it anywhere else. No credit just a straight rip off.

Mack Flanno, 1715824215

Paul Roach No Friends 1 is crucial viewing. still gets me amping.
https://youtu.be/LNP2UEwPoRU?si=lwjEb-SupBlulw2B

StormyAndBo, 1716041732

Phil is quite the dk lord

Finnbob the terror, 1716627457

Haha, Rumour has there were a few old boy boogs on DK showing the standups how to back door the boil at Shit Rock today. Maybe this article has given them back the confidence and respect they deserve.

t-rex, 1716897554

Where is Shit rock? The name reminds me of suck rock at insides Sorrento. I used to love surfing that on the boog but I think it was a phase

Finnbob the terror, 1716929694

Its behind the mountain range, more like the hills.

Finnbob the terror, 1716929745

I replied to dpd