American · Honolulu, Hawaii, USA · Born 7 November 1948Hawaiian surfer nicknamed 'Mr. Pipeline', widely regarded as the finest tube rider of the 1970s and winner of the Pipeline Masters in 1972 and 1973.
Born in Honolulu on 7 November 1948, Gerry Lopez grew up in East Honolulu and attended Punahou School before migrating to Oahu's North Shore, where he watched pioneers Butch Van Artsdalen and Jock Sutherland tackle the Banzai Pipeline. As surfboard design evolved with downrailer edges and improved foil, Lopez emerged as the wave's most complete master. Lopez won the Pipeline Masters in both 1972 and 1973, displays of tube-riding so smooth and complete that the event carried his name informally as the 'Gerry Lopez Pipeline Masters' for decades until it was renamed following Andy Irons's death in 2010. Fellow Pipeline legend Rory Russell called his surfing 'poetry', noting that 'for sheer beauty, no one else even comes close.' Beyond competition, Lopez co-founded Lightning Bolt Surfboards in the early 1970s, one of the most influential surfboard brands of the decade, and played an instrumental role in developing the high-performance shortboard. He also built a long career as a film actor, most notably starring alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in Conan the Barbarian, and became a lifelong practitioner of yoga. Lopez was named Waterman of the Year by the Surf Industries Manufacturing Association in 1999. He later relocated to Bend, Oregon, where he continued surfing, snowboarding and stand-up paddleboarding well into his seventies, and published the memoir Surf Is Where You Find It in 2008.
Regarded as the finest tube rider in surfing history, with the Pipeline Masters informally named after him for decades
How They Played
Effortless, poetic tube-riding style at the Banzai Pipeline
Lasting Impact
Co-founder of Lightning Bolt Surfboards and one of the most influential surfers and surfboard shapers of all time
American Athletes