Morey Boogie Mach 8-TX: the bodyboard with a dimpled bottom

The history of bodyboarding is full of bizarre inventions. Some of them paved the way for new technologies and designs. Others were discontinued and forgotten.

When the Morey Boogie Mach 8-TX was launched in the market in 1992, riders received it with a big question mark. How could a textured bottom bodyboard improve riding performance?

Morey Boogie believed that the dimpled bottom could trap air underneath the board, allowing it to glide over tiny air bubbles, thus generating more speed.

"The improved bottom surface comprises a plurality of discreet depressions formed in the bottom of the bodyboard, numbering at least 50 depressions over the entire bottom surface, and preferably numbering more than 1500 such depressions," the patent's summary reveals.

The depressions are believed to generate bubbles in the air-water mixture passing beneath the board, which helps reduce the shear forces in the water.

The effect is called air lubrication and results in reduced drag, greater speed, and a lighter "feel" for the board on the water.

Morey Boogie Mach 8-TX: the drawing submitted with the patent application

The Golf Ball Effect

The golf ball effect slick concept came from Steven M. Moran, the man responsible for boosting the Morey Boogie line in the early 1990s.

He got the inspiration for the Mach 8-TX from designs used in boats and submarines.

The Mach 8-TX was marketed as the "Anatomy of Speed" and the bodyboard of the future. The original models had a lime green deck and a silver bottom.

Despite the initial criticism, bodyboarders tried it and started praising their brand-new Morey Boogie Mach 8-TX.

After a few months, a few riders hailed the futuristic gear as the fastest board they had ever ridden.

According to some reports, the factory faced lamination problems on subsequent productions, and the dimples were restricted to a small rectangle in the center of the board, which did not reach the rails.

Today, the Morey Boogie Mach 8-TX is still one of the most popular and iconic bodyboard models the company has ever produced.

Discover the complete list of Morey Boogie models launched between 1973 and 1994.

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