Bob McTavish began surfing in Queensland at the age of twelve - and for decades, he has written, he slept in cars, eating bread, bananas and the occasional spider and surfing at every opportunity. At one point he famously stowed away in an ocean liner bound for Hawaii. From 1961 onwards he worked for surfboard labels including Scott Dillon, Dale, Hayden, Bob Davie, Morey-Pope, Keyo and Cord. After winning the Queensland Open surf title in 1965, he abandoned competition; in 1969 he established his own brand, McTavish. His first major success came in 1972 with the 'Bluebird', the world's first production short-board. Thousands of Bluebirds were manufactured until 1979. After a period catering to the wind-surfing craze in the early 1980s, McTavish turned his attention to materials innovation, starting on a moulded epoxy construction process known as Pro Circuit Board (PCB). After PCB was phased out, a similar moulding process evolved into Surftech Tuflite. The mid-1990s saw the introduction of McTavish's 'Big M' longboards. The Big M logo, in refined form, is still produced in more than twenty models. With a factory and retail operation in Byron Bay, in 2007 McTavish signed an international manufacture and distribution agreement with Global Surf Industries which saw many models of McTavish boards become available in more than thirty countries. McTavish's autobiography, Stoked! (with an introduction by Tim Winton) was published in 2009.
Collection: National Portrait Gallery
Purchased 2012
© John Witzig
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves.
An exhibition of photographs by John Witzig, drawings by Nicholas Harding and film footage by Albe Falzon, expressive of the free-spirited, hot-blooded energy of Australian surfers under the cloud of conscription to Vietnam.
Visit us, learn with us, support us or work with us! Here’s a range of information about planning your visit, our history and more!
