Surf 'n' Turf raises over $16,000 for SurfAid
A few weeks ago Perth surfer Damon Hurst penned an article for Swellnet. That article, The emerging value of handcrafted surfboards, was both a primer to the emerging second-hand board market and an announcement of a new West Australian board market - SurfMart.
SurfMart was part of a larger surf festival, Surf 'n'Turf, which was held on the 8th of March in Perth. Surf 'n' Turf included live music, food, raffles, plus lots and lots of surfboards. The organisers of Surf 'n' Turf plan to give all the profits to SurfAid, and on that score Damon happily reports that $16,143 was raised. This exceeded their target and means they can deliver a water sanitisation project to Betumonga village in the Mentawai islands.
Other notable points from SurfMart include:
Size of market: Total 100 boards - about 50 boards were exhibited and about 50 quality second-handers were up for sale.
Highest price: $1,800 for an early ‘60’s Scott Dillan model and equal 1st at $1800 for a Glen Richie Model shaped by Dale David. These both got snapped up in the first five minutes the market opened, so arguably in an auction environment they would have gone for more.
Bargains: A Hawke Egg went for $650 and a board from the film Drift went for $450, both buyers were pinching themselves. It shows what happens if you know what you’re talking about and just turn up with a fist full of dollars.
Most interest:
- The shaping workshop by Brenton Moran was a great talking point. It helped the young kids bring an educated eye to their second-hand review processes.
- Adam Morrison, WA Territory Manager from Rusty, bought down an amazing array of Rusty Priesendorfer’s which created a lot of chatter. A couple of shovel-nosed grovelers, ideal for the Perth shories. A new Occy retro shape, to be released with Billabong soon.
- The punter who identified an old board of his on exhibition within the Smith family collection and tried to buy it back – offering ‘70’s prices! A very funny conversation ensued.
Comments
I used to ride for Murray Smith in the 80's /early 90's. Saw one of my old boards hanging in a store about 10 yrs ago. When the shop owner saw my interest, we chatted and the topic of buying it back came up. In no uncertain words I was told it definitely wasn't for sale. Two reasons were given:
1.) It was shaped by (yet to turn pro) Dave Macauley
2.) The "spray" was done by a then unknown (to the outside world) and very talented artist Darren Howard, who went by the moniker "Devo". He later went on to exhibit in New York and the likes.
Wish I'd saved a few of those!
Hey banksia - did u c this article on Devo and S'n'T in The Australian
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/companies/board-members-drop-in...
I recon the SurfMart has a lot of opportunity to grow. People can clean out their sheds once a year, go there and find they're sitting on a 1,000 bucks when they thought they had old rubbish.
Hey I've got an original Murray Smith 7.5 foot, 3 fin board with a large adjustable middle fin I got second hand back in 1989 - don't want to let it go but interested to know what it's worth these days...
AllJND. Thanks for the link...do I have to subscribe to get the full article??...or is that one paragraph the full article?? I'm not sure if I want to read it! lol Over the years, I reckon I would've had at least a dozen boards that were sprayed by Devo (not Divo as in the "article"), all had unbelieveable artwork on them...really trippy stuff. He seemed influenced a lot by cubism and those art styles alike.
I also had one of Occy's late 80's Rusty's and a Dahlberg of his, both in good nick!. Sure they would've fetched a buck.
Hi Banksia,
Typical news corp? I have the full article, put your email address here or email me via www.alljnd.com and I will send to you. That Darlberg is definitely a keeper!!!
I have always been a fan of Devo's artwork. I feel that he can be credited with revolutionising the way boards were sprayed. Before he came onto the scene, sprays on boards tended to be on the rails only. Even though Devo sprayed a lot of boards whilst he worked for us, we have found it very difficult to find very many examples of his artwork. I can only put it down to the fact that the riders who chose his sprays at the time, thrashed their boards to the point of extinction. The board in the Australian article is at the warehouse in Osborne Park if you would like to see it.
Just as an aside, the person who was looking after the MS Collection at the Surfaid event was Murray Smith's son Ben who has now taken over the collection and added to it. In all we have over 100 boards in the collection, none of which have been restored which I believe from a serious cllector's viewpoint makes them far more valuable. Murray didn't just collect old boards but a variety of styles. We have everthing from a spoon kneeboard to a double wooden ski. We even have a prototype bodyboard still in it's original wrapping!
Connie Smith
Sounds like a great gathering and sooo proud the surfing community raised more than $16,000 for a worthwhile charity.
Sounds like a great gathering and sooo proud the surfing community raised more than $16,000 for a worthwhile charity.