It was tough to get volunteers but we took our production team out to the big island of Hawaii to film this interview with Mike Eaton.
Here is an excerpt from the encyclopedia of surfing on Mike.
“Tireless and unobtrusive surfboard shaper from San Diego, California; best known as a leader of the longboard renaissance in the ’70s and early ’80s. Eaton was born (1934) in New York, New York, raised in Palos Verdes, California, and began surfing at age 14, helped along by seminal surf figure Tom Blake; Eaton used to transport his heavy wooden board to the Palos Verdes Cove using an army stretcher customized with a pair of rear-mounted wagon wheels.
Eton began shaping surfboards in 1955 for wetsuit magnate-to-be Jack O’Neill, out of O’Neill’s San Francisco garage/surf shop. In the late ’50s and early ’60s, Eaton worked as a whale trainer at Marineland, a Palos Verdes ocean animal theme park, and not until 1965 did he become a full-time shaper, working simultaneously for Bing Surfboard and Rick Surfboards, both located in nearby Hermosa Beach.”
Thanks for the heads up. It should be working again.
Link is broken and the video appears to be gone from Vimeo.
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My name is Joey Benoit I had the privilege to meet and become close friends with Mike Eaton after seeing a bronzer in the water!! I wanted to go surfing at night so I invented a nightcap with a light neoprene waterproof surfing light! First it was a skid lid bicycle helmet with a light then Mike said why don’t you make a neoprene cap! So that was developed with his help! The name was The nightcap I surfed wind and Sea 8 to 10 ft at night sometimes with a full moon 30 guys out all saying hey what’s that hey hey! Mike drove me up to the body glove yacht he knew the body glove Brothers! He drove me in his hot rod it was unbelievable! We discussed body glove developing this! Mike now is surfing in heaven and myself and many of his deep colleagues and Friends miss him a lot! Not only was he a great shaper but also a fantastic surfer I surfed with him a few times riding his Bonzer with flex fins! I have to say that my experience and relationship with Mike was like father-son relationship because I lost my father when I was seven! I’ll never forget what Mike did for me and the friendship that I’ll miss forever! God bless Mike and his wonderful family! Mike Mike I’ll see you and surf with you when I get upstairs you me and God! Thank you boys for letting me tell you the story!