Bodyboard with variable stiffness

A bodyboard comprising:

• an elongate board extending between a front nose end and rear tail end and including a bottom skin which provides a planing surface, a semi-rigid foam core, a top skin which provides a riding surface, and laterally-opposed side edges extending from the nose end to the tail end,
• the board including a stiffened portion encompassing a major portion of the length of the board from a region adjacent the tail end to a region forward of the midpoint between the nose end and tail ends, the stiffened portion extending generally between the side edges of the board, the board structure in the stiffened portion further including a lower stiffening layer including thermoplastic fiber mesh laminated between the foam core and the bottom skin and an upper stiffening layer including thermoplastic fiber mesh laminated between the foam core and the top skin, and
• a plurality of parallel, generally arcuate channels extending into the foam beneath the top skin in the portion of the board forward of the stiffened portion for enhancing the flexure and bendability of the forward portion of the board, the parallel channels extending laterally between the side edges of the board and arching toward the nose end of the board.