I live in Florida and just picked up the sport of surfing!  Do you surf?
I do not surf. I never ride the waves.
Do you know when surfing came into popularity?
I do not but I know the term surfing refers to the act of riding a wave.
Do you know who the person who was the first to try it?
Laird Hamilton
Laird John Hamilton (born March 2, 1964) is an American big-wave surfer, co-inventor of tow-in surfing, and an occasional fashion and action-sports model. He is married to Gabrielle Reece, a professional volleyball player, television personality, and model.
Early life.
Laird was born Laird John Zerfas in San Francisco on March 2, 1964, in an experimental salt-water sphere at UCSF Medical Center designed to ease the mother's labor. His father,
), which formed rudimentary handlebars. The boxes turned into planks, similar to the skateboard decks of today. 
Skateboarding, as we know it, was probably born sometime in the late 1940s, or early 1950s, when surfers in California wanted something to do when the waves were flat. This was called "sidewalk surfing" – a new wave of surfing on the sidewalk as the sport of surfing became highly popular. No one knows who made the first board; it seems that several people came up with similar ideas