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They sat successful a ellipse and slapped the saltwater toward the sky, cheering and giving acknowledgment to the antheral who helped stock the thrill of the ride.
A paddle-out memorial successful San Clemente connected Saturday, Nov. 6, paid homage to Tom Morey, who 50 years agone invented the Boogie Board, a lightweight foam committee casual to maneuver connected waves large and small. Tributes were held astir the globe, connected coasts and astatine rivers and lakes, an denotation of the scope of his invention’s influence.
Bodyboarders and surfers rise their arms into the aerial and splash the h2o during a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Marchia Morey, left, widow of Tom Morey, stands with sons, Sol Morey, Moon Morey and his wife, Caroline, arsenic she speaks to bodyboarders, surfers and friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, conscionable anterior to a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Bodyboarders, surfers and friends of Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board, stitchery for a radical photograph astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, conscionable anterior to a paddle-out memorial to grant Morey. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A memorial of photos and Boogie Boards arsenic bodyboarders, surfers and friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, for a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Marchia Morey, center, widow of Tom Morey, laughs arsenic she walks connected the formation pursuing the paddle-out memorial to grant her husband, Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board, astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Bodyboarders and surfers rise their arms into the aerial and splash the h2o during a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Jay Reale, center, a erstwhile pro bodyboarder who was adjacent friends with Tom Morey, sings portion friends play ukuleles arsenic bodyboarders, surfers and friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, for a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A memorial of photos, Boogie Boards and flowers beryllium connected the formation arsenic bodyboarders, surfers and friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, for a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Bodyboarders thrust a question backmost to the formation pursuing a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board, astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Marchia Morey, widow of Tom Morey, receives a hug from a person arsenic bodyboarders, surfers and friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, for a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
A memorial of photos and Boogie Boards arsenic bodyboarders, surfers and friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, for a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Bodyboarders and surfers signifier a ellipse during a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board arsenic friends ticker from T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Stickers and angiosperm petals laic connected a array arsenic bodyboarders, surfers and friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, for a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Bodyboarders and surfers marque their mode into the h2o for a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board arsenic friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Marchia Morey, widow of Tom Morey, smells immoderate flowers arsenic bodyboarders, surfers and friends stitchery astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021, for a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Bodyboarders and surfers rise their arms into the aerial and splash the h2o during a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Roses placed successful the soil pursuing a paddle-out memorial to grant Tom Morey, inventor of the Boogie Board astatine T-Street formation successful San Clemente connected Saturday, November 6, 2021. Morey died connected October 14 astatine the property of 86. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)
At San Clemente’s T-Street beach, bodyboarders and surfers came unneurotic nether overcast skies, immoderate aged friends reminiscing astir decades ago, others caller friends brought unneurotic by Morey and his Boogie Board. Morey died past month.
“He brought truthful galore radical together,” said lad Sol Morey, who came from Hawaii for the tribute. “The water present down america is thing that connects each of us. I’m blessed to spot you’re each present successful solemnisation of that precise 1 thing, the emotion for the ocean.”
Morey, calved successful Detroit but who grew up successful Laguna Beach, lived successful Southern California, from Ventura to San Diego, and successful Hawaii. He lived for galore years successful San Clemente and past moved precocious to Laguna Woods, astatine each section of his beingness having a immense interaction connected radical adjacent and far.
Stories flowed astir the originative craftsman who was “always dreaming of something,” arsenic described by Bill Dennis, who met Morey successful the ’50s erstwhile they some attended USC.
“He was ne'er focused connected ‘normal,’ and I mean that successful a affirmative way,” Dennis said.
When the Boogie Board became a world-wide improvement “most of america weren’t each that surprised,” Dennis said.
Morey created respective surf inventions successful his younger years and was besides credited for hosting the archetypal paid surf contest, the Tom Morey Invitational successful Malibu successful 1966.
But it was successful 1971, portion surviving successful Hawaii, that helium chopped a large portion of surfboard foam successful half, wanting to thrust a bombing surf interruption erstwhile the upwind was excessively beardown to basal up connected a board. A tribute successful the signifier of a Boogie Board with the representation of a young Morey was erected connected Saturday adjacent Honl’s Beach successful Hawaii, wherever Morey lived astatine that time.
Tony Prince, a well-known bodyboarding photographer, remembers telling Morey during a 50th day solemnisation conscionable months earlier his decease connected Oct. 14 astir the power helium had since the infinitesimal helium dreamt up the Boogie Board.
“You took a portion of trash retired of a dumpster and changed the lives of millions of people,” Prince said helium told Morey. Prince is simply a erstwhile pro whose beingness has revolved astir the bodyboard, what the Boogie Board is generically known arsenic today.
“Tom’s imagination was conscionable ‘have fun,’” Prince said. “Just person amusive each the time.”
Gary Williams, lad of surf icon Les Williams, brought an aged prototype his dada bought connected the soil astatine San Onofre State Beach, 1 of the archetypal Boogie Boards made erstwhile Morey returned to the mainland from Hawaii to commencement production.
“This has seen a batch of waves implicit the years,” Williams said.
Bob Mignogna remembered erstwhile Morey approached him to enactment his archetypal advertisement successful Surfing Magazine. Mignogna gave him recognition for the 4th page, telling Morey helium could hold outgo for a few months.
“Otherwise, helium wouldn’t beryllium capable to advertise to commencement selling the bodyboard,” Mignogna said, noting helium was a skeptic erstwhile helium archetypal saw it, but aboriginal on, on with Peter “PT” Townend, started Bodyboarding Magazine.
“It opened up question riding to tens of millions of radical each astir the world, who astir apt wouldn’t person been question riders if Tom hadn’t invented it,” helium said.
As the memorial got underway, hundreds gathered to ticker the accepted Hawaiian blessing and a fewer of Morey’s favourite songs were played connected the ukulele, including 1 helium wrote, “The Boogie Song.”
Son Moon Morey and his wife, Caroline, on with Morey’s woman Marchia, the 2nd idiosyncratic to ever thrust a Boogie Board portion she was 8 months large with lad Sol, sang on with others successful the crowd.
Marchia Morey spoke astir the galore things her husband, who was 86 erstwhile helium died, was passionate about: their beardown spirituality, his curiosity astir outer abstraction and the value of equality among radical of antithetic ethnicities and betwixt men and women.
“We get to walk a precise abbreviated clip here,” she said. “Most of us, it takes america a agelong clip to larn the basics – the basics of loving 1 another, that we are a satellite family.”
Despite beardown swell that slammed the shore, astir 100 bodyboarders and surfers headed retired successful the h2o for the paddle-out, wherever they gave acknowledgment to the water and Morey for the thrill of the ride.
Marchia Morey paddled retired to the oversea for the tribute. On her mode backmost in, she was weaving on the whitewash with a grin crossed her look – conscionable arsenic she did that archetypal thrust she took 50 years agone aft her hubby thought up the lightweight invention that would alteration the world.
“Tom Morey, from a young antheral to his aboriginal years, was ever looking for a hole connected however to bask life,” Sol Morey said. “He surely did it with the Boogie … helium knew determination was thing there. The masses of radical gravitated toward it. It was each astir fun. It’s each astir you and the ocean.”
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