Arguably the biggest name in the early New York surf scene is “Bunger.”
Not only did Charlie Bunger start an incredibly successful surfboard shaping business out of his parent’s garage, he established the Bunger surf team, identifiable by their longboards with “Bunger” spelled out across the bottom and brightly colored team jackets, and had a hand in founding the east coast surfing championship.
Bunger’s boards and surf team ran the East Coast surf scene in the early 1960s and remain a large part of Long Island’s surf culture and history today.
Bunger Surf Shop History
In the summer of 1959, Long Island had just begun to get a taste of the sport sweeping the West Coast by storm: surfing.
At this point, only a small group of Long Islanders were surfing, mostly lifeguards and some other frequent beachgoers near Jones Beach and Gilgo Beach. “One day, while watching the surfers, Charlie had a vision of where this sport could go and decided to make surfboards,” stated Charlie Bunger Jr. (Fire Island News)
In 1961, Charlie began his craft using extra boat yard supplies and foam blanks. He started shaping boards in his parents’ basement -- a workspace that his hobby quickly outgrew.
Within just six months, Charlie and some friends had moved to his parents’ two-car garage to continue shaping boards, and by this time had made around a hundred boards, supplying local surfers with quality, affordable boards.
His first board was a noserider, the Bunger 360, for the hang-ten style surfing that was popular at the time. As the sport continued to grow and evolve, so did Charlie’s board shaping.
Another signature design of Charlie’s was the shorter Bunger Persuader, designed for more performance-based surfing. In 1962, Charlie opened the doors of Bunger Surf Shop in Babylon for the first time.
In the later 60s and 70s, Bunger Surf Shop gained further fame and recognition with the addition of the Bunger Surf Team, who competed in surf competitions across the East Coast and U.S. championships surfing under Bunger’s name.
Some of the best surfers on Long Island at the time, like Eric Eastman and Rick “The Razz” Rasmussen were members of Bunger’s team and won countless competitions.
Their biggest rivals were the members of the Hobie team, a surf shop and board maker from the West Coast that started an East Coast surf team to expand their competition.
As the Bunger business has grown over the years, Charlie and his family have given back to their beach community by starting the Bunger Surf Foundation, the Long Island Surf Museum, and the Bunger Surf Camp. “It has become a huge part of the community and the feedback we receive makes it all the more rewarding,” said Bunger (The Beacon).
What’s Sold at Bunger Surf Shop
Bunger Surf Shop carries a variety of clothing and footwear for surfing and skating from some of your favorite brands. They have their own line of merchandise that comes in men’s, women’s, and children’s sizing, including t-shirts, hoodies, hats, and even a bloody mary cocktail mix. Of course, they also offer boards, wetsuits, and sunglasses.
The highlight of theshop is its custom Bunger boards, which is why the Surf Shop originated in the first place. The board manufacturing was led by Charlie Bunger himself until his passing in 2018. His memory is lived on through his family, Charlie Jr., Theresa, and Tommy, who continue to operate the Bunger Surf Shop and run the custom surfboard business.
Location and Waves Nearby
Bunger Surf Shop is located in Babylon, in Suffolk County Long Island. If you’re heading out to the Island, Bunger Surf Shop is somewhat on the way to Gilgo, Jones Beach, The Hamptons, or Montauk, depending on where you’re coming from.
Bunger Surf Shop has a 4,000 square foot store space in Babylon Village, New York and operates a 2,000 square foot surfboard manufacturing facility in West Babylon. It’s about fifteen minutes from the beach.
The closest (and best) break to Bunger Surf Shop in Gilgo Beach, about a 15 minute ride in the car, where Charlie Bunger surfed most often and where he came up with the idea to begin his surfboard business.
If you're a beginner, check out the Bunger surf camp in Gilgo for surf lessons for all ages. Jones Beach is also very close, and as noted, the Surf Shop is on the way out to further spots along Long Island.
Bunger Surf Shop: The Bottom Line
For nearly 60 years, Bunger Surf Shop has supplied local, professional, and any other surfers who have walked through their doors with state-of-the-art boards and surf equipment.
In 1996, Charlie Bunger was inducted into the East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame, in 2013 he was inducted into the International Board Builders Hall of Fame, and most recently in2022, Charlie Bunger was inducted into the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame for all of his contributions to surfing.