Bongo Board Fact: The inventor of the original Bongo Board was WWII pilot Stanley Washburn Jr. Curiosity was the first instinct that motivated Washburn to shuffle over to some African Gold Coast children. They were skillfully balancing themselves on a wooden plank and a log. That was Stanley's first vision of his future Bongo Board.

Bongo Board Fact: Did you know that the first Bongo Board Stanley Washburn made in his woodshop was a Christmas gift for his daughter? She told her dad she wanted something unique, that no other kid in the neighborhood would have. The first Bongo board was born in December of 1952.

Not surprisingly, as the board's popularity began to grow, so did the diversity of its users. In the late sixties, skiers and other athletes started to take notice and began using the Bongo Board for balance training. The commercially successful Bongo Board stayed in production until 1980.

With the death of his business partner, Stanley folded the Bongo Board Corporation in 1980 to pursue other interests. But the spirit of the original Bongo Board was resurrected again in 1992 when Vew-Do Balance Boards patented the world's first multi-directional balance training device.

I mentioned earlier that there was a reason why no other modern day balance training equipment is closer in spirit to the original Stanley Washburn Bongo Board than Vew-Do Balance Boards. It's because Vew-Do President Brew Moscarello and Stanley Washburn have been working together since 1995. Stanley is an honorary member of Vew-Do's board of directors and he's been an avid supporter of Vew-Do Balance Boards since day one.

By: Rick Contrata