Going Green...waaaayyyyy ahead of the curve!

Sarkis Acopian, 1947

Acopian Solar Radio, 1957!

Back in July of 2007, Jeff Acopian (Jeff A. from the last post) ordered a mat from me, and in the ensuing e-mail exchanges, we found out that both our fathers had been pilots from the WWII era. One thing led to another, and I ended up surfing through the Acopian Technical Company web site, in PA.

What I discovered blew me away...

Sarkis Acopian, Jeff's father, was the inventor of what was surely the world's first, commercially available solar powered radio...in 1957!!! (The whole story is here, and here.)

Jeff himself is modest about this bit of family history, but I asked him if I could post it in Surfmatters anyway. He agreed, but said he thought it might not be relevant. I think this is profoundly relevant...not only for the world in general, but to this forum. Mat surfers are cut from a different bolt of cloth, literally and figuratively. The right-side-of-the-brain talent that goes into mat surfing may well emerge as the next wave of humanist thinking.

Thanks to Jeff and the Acopian family for allowing me to share this with everybody!

P.S. I don't know the name of the model who posed for this beach illustration...but she's a hottie, and needs a nylon mat to go with her futuristic solar radio! (And maybe some bitchin' fins too!)