As a world champion longoarder who never finished lower than fifth place in the international rankings, Bonga has earned respect as a superb
Hawaiian boardrider, carving out a special place for himself in the world’s heaviest lineups: Haleiwa, Pipeline, Backdoor and Sunset Beach.
He has also excelled in a whole range of boarding activities, and may be the ultimate all-round waterman. Nobody does as many things on a board as well as
he does.
Longboard, shortboard, stand-up paddle, paddleboard, canoe racing and surfing, tandem-riding, ancient Hot Curls in 12-foot Sunset - Bonga does it all and in
most cases does it best. All with that disarming combination of intensity and humility that characterizes Hawaiian surfing at its essence.
Bonga has traveled extensively in his surfing career, including sojourns to South America, the Basque Country of France, Tahiti,
Indonesia and of course Hawaii where he is at home in waves from two feet to twenty-five. After finishing college at the University of Hawaii, he had already been
to almost every surf spot in the islands and around the world, so he moved to Japan in 1992 in search of new breaks. Bonga even ran in The Running of the Bulls in
Pamplona during a surf trip to Spain.
After mastering the art of bodyboarding as a child, he decided to follow in his father's footsteps when he took an interest in longboarding, eventually making the
transition into a professional longboarder.
As a well-respected figure, Bonga continues to impact the surfing community and industry, giving each a positive image. He perpetuates the ways of his surfing
ancestors through every wave he surfs. However, it is the power emitted through his classic style of surfing that is so strong, it has left an impression not
only on his archrivals, but also on the surf culture itself.
