Profile : Pioneer Shaper – Lawrie Hohensee

Master shaper Lawrie Hohensee stands as a true pioneer in the Gold Coast's surfing history. His journey began as a boat builder at Evans Deakin in Brisbane, where he mastered the art of working with wood and fibreglass. This expertise paved the way for his venture into surfboard shaping. In 1954, Lawrie crafted his first board—a 10-foot Okanui—following a plan from Popular Science magazine. The board performed exceptionally well, and from that moment, Lawrie was hooked.

By 1963, Lawrie took a bold leap, opening the very first retail surfboard shop on the Gold Coast at Mermaid Beach. The shop became a game-changer, offering surfers a dedicated space to purchase custom boards and connect over their shared passion for surfing and surfboard shaping.

By the mid-1960s, Lawrie, along with Peter Drouyn, was experimenting with innovative surfboard designs, pushing the boundaries by creating shorter, lighter boards measuring between 8 and 8.6 feet. Designed specifically for the fast, powerful waves of Burleigh Heads, these boards were being produced six to twelve months before the widely recognised "Shortboard Revolution." Lawrie's work placed him at the forefront of surfboard design, helping revolutionise the way boards were shaped and ridden.

By 1967, local surfing talent Rick Neilsen left his bricklaying career to apprentice under Lawrie at his new Miami surf shop. Rick not only learned the craft of shaping but also used his bricklaying skills to help build the shop's new premises on the corner of Pacific Avenue and the Gold Coast Highway. The shop quickly became a popular gathering place, particularly for students from Miami High School, who would visit during lunch breaks and after school as it was located just across the road.

Today, Lawrie continues shaping boards and passing on his knowledge to aspiring shapers in Emu Park, near Yeppoon, where he now resides.

Those who have learned their trade through "Hono" describe Lawrie not only as a highly skilled craftsman but also as a generous mentor, committed to helping others achieve their goals within the surfing industry.

The list of shapers who trained under his guidance, along with industry figures who worked with him in business and the sponsored surfers who rode his boards in competition, reads like a who's who of Queensland surfing: Peter Drouyn, Bob McTavish, Paul Hallas, Rick and Paul Neilsen, Geoff Darby, Michael Peterson, Bill York, Keith Paul, Ron Woodward, Terry Dempsey, Roger Firehock, Terry Vosper, and Billy Grant, to name just a few.

Lawrie Hohensee's influence on both the Gold Coast and Australian surfing communities, and on the evolution of surfboard design, is immeasurable.

Peter Harris

Patron

Curator 

Surf World Gold Coast