Bernard “Midget” Farrelly – Surfer, Event Organizer, Shaper and Author
More than 60,000 spectators crowded onto Manly Beach in Sydney, Australia back in 1964 to watch surfers from all over the globe compete in the first World Championships of Surfing. When it was all over, Australians Bernard “Midget” Farrelly and Phyllis O’Donell would make surfing history as they ascended the podium to accept the trophies, and the glory, of being called the first.
Midget entered the inaugural World Surfing Championships as both a local favorite and the odds-on choice to take the title. He was fresh off a victory at the ’64 Australian Nationals and had previously cemented his international surfing reputation by winning the coveted Makaha International in late 1962 (to the dismay of the Hawaiians). That momentum, combined with the venue chosen for the ’64 Championships (Manly Beach where Farrelly had honed his skills), gave Midget a decided edge in the Championships.
To make things interesting American challengers Mike Doyle and Joey Cabell were surfing aggressively throughout the early heats that day, and they appeared to be gaining steadily on Midget. While Farrelly was also surfing beautifully, and his rides were both graceful and mistake free, there was apparently little variation from heat to heat. As a result the judges and the crowd began to gravitate towards the energetic performances put on by both Americans, but especially those waves ridden by Cabell. With the momentum starting to shift it appeared to the expectant throng that Midget might just need some help to stay on top.
With a few waves to go that day it looked increasingly like the contest would end with Cabell, Farrelly and Doyle finishing 1-2-3 but Cabell would run afoul of newly implemented sportsmanship rules. In what many of his contemporaries would call “uncharacteristic” and “surprising” Cabell apparently took his desire to win a little too far by dropping in on waves that were clearly being surfed by other competitors. The judges marked their cards, subtracted the points, and the podium order shifted. Midget wasn’t standing still and he certainly helped his prospects by catching yet another textbook wave in the waning moments of the contest. When it was all over the first World Championships would end with Farrelly 1st, Doyle 2nd and Cabell 3rd.
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Bernard Farrelly was born in Sydney, Australia in 1944 to a family of modest means. At the very early age of 6 he would start surfing with his uncle Ray Hookham atop an abandoned hollow plank Blake surfboard they found on the beach. In 1956, at age 12, he would get his first newly crafted board which he would use to great effect on the breaks at Manly. He would earn the nickname “midge” (hence Midget) for his modest frame but everyone who saw him surf in those early days knew that he was something special.
In 1958 at the age of 14 Farrelly would “shape” his first balsa board from a Roger Keiren kit and it was during this early period that he began his formal shaping apprenticeship alongside Joe Larkin, Bob Pike and Barry Bennett. The following year he would expand his shaping universe with direction from Dave Jackman, Mickey Mc Mahon, Denny Keough and Gordon Woods. As one of the true, early “surfing shapers” Farrelly quickly established himself as a force in both disciplines but it was his surfing prowess that would catapult him to international fame.
While he was an active shaper Midget would simultaneously distinguish himself in dozens of local and international contests, becoming the leader of the “functional school” of surfing. Taking inspiration from Mickey Munoz, Mike Doyle, Dewy Weber, Phil Edwards, Pat Curren and LJ Richards, Midget built up a functional body of surfing moves that would form the core of his competitive repertoire for years to come. He was known for his use of the entire length of the deck (always walking) and for his consistently choreographed and graceful performances wave after wave.
Shortly after his World Championship victory in 1964 Midget was one of the sport’s leaders who partnered with Eduardo Arena to form the ISF and he remained highly competitive for the next decade. He started his own surfboard factory in 1965 and, even though he would later be overshadowed by fellow Australian Nat Young (a pioneer of the so-called “involvement school”), he would go on to best his nemesis at the Australian National Titles in 1965 where he placed first and again in the 1968 and 1970 World Championships where, amazingly, he was twice the runner-up.
Not content with simply being one of the best surfers and shapers of his time Midget would also author two books on the subject including This Surfing Life with Craig McGregor in 1965 and How to Surf in 1968. Midget was inducted into the Australian Surfing Hall of Fame in 1986 and his name was added to the Surfing Walk of Fame in Huntington Beach, California in 2007.
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Today Midget is widely recognized as one of the greatest surfers of the post-war era and his contributions to both the competitive aspects of the sport, and to innovation in surfboard design, are finally getting the perspective they deserve. His running feud with Nat Young in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s combined with his self imposed exile from the surfing spotlight as a young man unfairly obscured his significant influence. In an uncharacteristic return to the spotlight, Midget agreed to participate in a 1999 contest that included the top surviving surfers from the 1964 Manly championships (he won). He remains active today in surfboard design and manufacturing (http://farrellysurfboards.com/).
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