1890

Our Roots

This is first known photo of a surfer from 1890 and happens to be Ben’s Great great Grandfather. Proof that surfing / surfboard building has been in the Aipa Bloodline dating back to old Hawaii.

1964-66

The Journey Begins

Not too long after he started surfing in 1964, Ben also started shaping for Inter Island SurfShop/Surfboards Makaha. His friend, Joe Kuala, was looking for help shaping boards and convinced Ben to give it a shot. At the age of 22, Ben used Joes templates and tools and shaped his first board in 10 hours , with no direction, just pure instinct.

1965

Changing the Approach

Bens skills in the water and the shaping bay progressed at an unbelievable rate. He began altering/experimenting with designs to chase a certain feeling he was looking for. In 1965 when other shapers were still doing 50/50 rails , Ben was changing accepted design elements to improve performance by introducing modern curves,  70/30 and 60/40 rails and blending soft rails to edges on the bottom 3rd of his boards to give it a cut and release feeling.

1967-69

Enter Greg Noll

Ben shaped under the Greg Noll label for 2 years, designing some extraordinarily unique shapes from Longboards, Guns,semiguns,and early shortboards. Most notably the “Aipa Ski” , an early form of shortboard, was designed during this era,  It ranged from 6’8 to 7’4 at 16-½” wide! A highlight in Ben's career was shaping Fred Hemings the board he won the world championships in Puerto Rico in 1968. This put Ben's name on the map as one of the worlds up and coming shapers.

1969-72

Surfboards Hawaii

Bens inspirations thrived under the Surfboards Hawaii label.  Creating new midelength and shortboard shapes , that led to him inventing the swallow tail board. Inspired by the movements of swallowtail birds in the sky.This design was made famous by Larry Berltmann and Michael Ho when they surfed them at the World Surfing Championships in 1972.

1974-76

Wave Crest Hawaii

Ben’s most pivotal moment in surf history happened in this era. In 1974 , he invented , the first winged board of its kind, the STING. The Sting went through countless iterations and radically changed the face of surfing. Under the feet of legends like Dane Kealoha, Mark Richards, Buttons Kaluhiokalani, Larry Bertlemann and Mark Liddell, the STING was the catalyst to create  what we now know as high performance surfing.

1976

SURFER Mag Cover Shot

In Bens words, “ this covershot took my Sting design viral”. Ben attributes a huge part of his success to the attention that this magazine cover garnered world wide. Ben said “ it put the STING on the map” and was in demand everywhere. This is when copies started being made by other board builders around the world that were called “Stingers”. Ben laughed about the weak attempts at copying his design and said you don't’ stinger a wave, you STING a wave”.

1977-79

Surf Line Hawaii

Bens designs continued to get more radical under the Surf Line Hawaii label.Shortboards, grovelers, midlengths, longboards..there was no limit on what he could do. Standout designs: Flared pin twin ( precursor to round pin HP boards), Swing twins, Spade Tail twins, Swing fishes.

1977-79
Ben Aipa August 1978

Surf Line Hawaii

Designs Continued: In 1978 Ben was already working on multi fin systems, and experimenting with  performance longboards. This9’0”  flared pin twin LB had a quad glass on with a center box.

1976-79

Surfings New Image

Around the same time as Wave Crest hawaii and Surflne Hawaii, Bens designs were being made in California under Donald Takayama's brand, “Surfings New Image”

1980-84

Aipa Surfboards

Ben finally got inspired to open his own shop, Aipa Surfboards on South Shore of Oahu. It was here that his creativity evolved yet again as he continued to modernize and refine his shapes. He always said “ in order for surfing to change, surfboards need to change” So that’s what he did. Design, test, repeat. Though twin fins were still in demand,It was this era that saw the rise of the thruster ( nothing new to Ben , but made popular by Simon Anderson),. Ben made so many variations of thrusters like the Fang, but was always looking to improve the surf experience so he turned his attention to quad designs like The Pac-4 quad ( his kids said it the tail looked like pac man..lol), the Thrasher, which was a twin plus trailer ( before that was a thing) and a variety of quad funboards( (midlengths), 

1980-84

Aipa Surfboards

Most  notable in this era, was what he called the MLB ( Modern longboard), where he took elements from the thruster shortboards and applied it to longboards ( twin, quad, thruster..he did it all), ushering in the era of high performance surfing. 

He didn't stop there, he then took the MLB principle and designed what he called MiniTanks. Longboard inspired shortboards with Shortboard rockers and contours with compact longboard outlines.

1983

The Aipa Influence

In 1983, thrusters are all the rage, and the Sting had lost popularity momentum. So Ben decided to take the concept of the STING with a shortboard/ thruster look. He decided to break the outline with a high bump instead of a wing. Ben was the coach of the Hawaii surf team at the time and made one these boards for a young Kaipo Guerrero. When Kaipo was in California, it is storied that a certain brands shaper ( not to be named) saw the board and used it as the inspiration to shape a similar board for someone who would become world champ. The copy ended up becoming one of the most popular, top selling boards for this California brand. This Kaipo’s actual board.

1985-91

Ben Aipa x Town & Country

Ben had an opportunity to increase his reach and coach the T&C team comprised of some of the world's best surfers, so he made the decision to partner with Town and Country and shape under the iconic yong yang logo.. It was here in 1985 that the STING made its return , but in a thruster type design for the performance era heading.

1985-91

Ben Aipa x Town and Country

Ben’s tour with Town and Country elevated his performance surfboards to a whole different level. Making boards for the next era of rippers like Sunny Garcia, Matt Archbald, Brad Gerlach, Andy and Bruce Irons, and on and on.

Aside from performance shortboards, he shaped a wide variety of twin fins, funboards like his iconic Star Bevel, longboard and grovelers.

1988

Ben Aipa x Town and Country

Ben was making boards for Brad gerlach during the T and C era. Brad was in Bens shaping room, going over tBrads boards for the coming contest  season and Brad had brought up ice skating blades. Brad asked Ben if he could do a concave inside of the bevel in a beveled rail , to give the rail a bite. Much like performance attribute on ice skate blades  provide for skaters to do jumps and spins.

….and The Gerr Bevel was born.

1992-2017

Aipa Surfboards

Ben left Town and Country for a short stint at Blue Hawaii, but ultimately, Ben went back out on his own, and remained under his own label until he shaped his last board in 2017. 

The boards he made in this time period were master class. Evolved versions of his immense catalog of board designs of every type, but it was the models that had his STING design element such as the Big Bro. Sting and Big Boy Sting, made for XLsized surfers,that forged his identity that he would ultimately be remembered for. The STING after all, is the only design you can look at and know who invented it.

He developed what would be his most popular boards the 

2012-NOW

Aipa Surf Co.

In 2012, Ben had decided to pass the Aipa Surfboards name to his son Duke. Duke now carries on shaping his fathers designs and creating his own Modern versions of his fathers vintage shapes, alternative craft and performance boards.

2025

KA Performance Designs by Aipa Surfboards

KA Designs , honors the life of Dukes son Kolby , who passed away at the age of 20 in Aug. 2025 and is a vessel for  the message of Christ

In life, Kolby favored the traditional thruster performance shortboards and was an absolute believer in Jesus Christ. All KA designs are boards that Duke has made for Kolby during his life and any future designs that Duke would have made for Kolby if he was here today. In this way, Kolbys Aloha spirit can continue ripping the ocean.

KA Freestyle Designs is the faith-driven performance division of AIPA — inspired by the life and spirit of Kolby Aipa, who passed away in 2025 at the age of 20. In life, Kolby loved God, and his performance shortboards. Every KA design represents a board Duke shaped for Kolby — or one he would have shaped for him in the future — carrying his energy, faith, and flow forward. Rooted in Scripture and the legacy of the Aipa family, each KA model is a living manifestation of the Word — reminding us that surfing, at its purest, is an act of faith: to trust, to flow, and to rise.