Greg Noll (né Lawhead; February 11, 1937 – June 28, 2021) was an American pioneer of big wave surfing[1] and a prominent longboard shaper.
[2] Nicknamed "Da Bull" by Phil Edwards in reference to his physique and way of charging down the face of a wave,[3] he was on the U.S. lifeguard team that introduced Malibu boards to Australia around the time of the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne.
[1] Noll developed his big wave surfing off Palos Verdes at breaks such as Lunada Bay.
Then I literally was blown off my board.Noll was readily identified in film footage while surfing by his now iconic black and white horizontally striped "jailhouse" boardshorts.
After that wave and the ensuing wipeout during the course of that spectacular ride down the face of a massive dark wall of water, his surfing tapered off and he closed his Hermosa Beach shop in the early 1970s.
He also provided his perspective on Hawaiian big wave surfing on the commentary track for DVD, along with Laird Hamilton and Jeff Clark.
[1] He lived in Hiouchi, California with his wife and started a business called "Noll Surfboards" that shaped re-creations of some of the historic boards from the sport of surfing.