What is the best material for bodyboards?
PP, (Polypropylene), is the ultimate core material for bodyboarding. PP cores offer a lightweight and high-performance experience. With 100% waterproof properties, it remains lightweight throughout the board’s lifespan. PE versus PP PE is the most common core used in bodyboards, especially in the cooler waters of UK and northern Europe. Despite being significantly heavier than PP, it has far more flex which offers more control. PP cores are preferred by warm water riders.PP, (Polypropylene), is the ultimate core material for bodyboarding. PP cores offer a lightweight and high-performance experience. With 100% waterproof properties, it remains lightweight throughout the board’s lifespan.PE Core is the original Bodyboard Core. PE Stands for PolyEthylene, This foam is commonly used as packing material as it is very soft & forgiving. This is the choice of core for beginner to intermediate boogie boards.PE versus PP PE is the most common core used in bodyboards, especially in the cooler waters of UK and northern Europe. Despite being significantly heavier than PP, it has far more flex which offers more control. PP cores are preferred by warm water riders.
How to pick a bodyboard?
If you’re riding is mostly bigger waves, consider a bodyboard on the shorter end of your optimal size range. If you are a more of an advanced rider consider a shorter board for maneuverability. If you are a beginner, aim for a longer board in your size range. Here’s why bodyboarding is a breeze, even if you’ve never caught a wave before: You don’t need fancy skills – Just hop on the board and paddle with your hands. The ocean does the rest! Smaller waves = BIG fun – Unlike surfing, you can catch smaller waves and still have a blast.The physical demands of bodyboarding offer a full-body workout, sculpting muscles and releasing endorphins that uplift mood and banish stress. As you navigate the waves, you enter a state of flow, where worries dissolve, and the present moment becomes all-encompassing—a refreshing escape from the chaos of daily life.With sessions usually lasting anywhere from half an hour to three hours, bodyboarding improves your cardiovascular fitness as your lungs and heart work hard to pump blood to your muscles. As you advance, you will find that paddling for waves requires a substantial amount of strength.Bodyboarding has a much easier learning curve than surfing and is physically less demanding, partly because you’re prone instead of required to “pop up” into your surf stance and balance standing on a board on a moving wave.
Is a bigger bodyboard better?
Bigger bodyboards are not necessarily better; it depends on your size, weight, and skill level. Larger boards offer more buoyancy and stability but can be less manoeuvrable. While bodyboarding may offer an easier initial learning curve, both sports have their unique challenges, joys, and intricacies. The surfer vs bodyboard debate is less about which is easier and more about individual preferences.Bodyboarding is also referred to as Boogieboarding due to the invention of the Boogie Board by Tom Morey in 1971. The average bodyboard consists of a short, rectangular piece of hydrodynamic foam. Bodyboarders typically use swim fins for additional propulsion and control while riding a breaking wave.This is a question that has been posed since I began riding these boards in the late 1970s and I still get asked this to this day! It’s a valid question. The short answer is, they are one and the same! The Boogie Board was actually not called that at all when Tom Morey built the first one in July of 1971.Over time, “boogie board” became a widely used term for all wave-riding boards, especially those designed for casual beachgoers and kids. A bodyboard, on the other hand, is the correct term for the sport and the board itself.Anyone who has been involved in the sport of bodyboarding knows that Tom Morey, an inventor, musician, surfer, entrepreneur, mathematician and engineer originally from Michigan crafted the first modern bodyboard, which he called the Boogie (see our blog post about this) in 1971.