As a teenager my mate Brett and I use to do a lot of fun things and one of those that we became rather proficient at was "Skim Boarding" or as we liked to call it, "Skid Lidding". We found the best material to make the board from is marine 3 ply with a diameter of 29 inches, the edge should be rounded, the surface painted with any design and protected with marine varnish, the more coats the better, at least 5 is good and surfboard wax is used for grip.
When the wave washes up to shore, prepare to start, as the wave rushes back again, leaving a thin film of water on the sand, throw the board so as to have it skim along the film of water then run after it and step nimbly onto it, the faster the run the faster the ride, trailing a finger into the water/sand will make the board spin. If the water is too deep the ride will be short and slow, if the water is too shallow the board sticks and you go flying, so be prepared to do a few shoulder rolls.
One of the techniques we liked to do when conditions were right was the "Kamikaze" This was possible when there was a shore dump and the beach had a bit of a slope down to the water, we would throw our boards towards the surf then run like blazers to jump on, doing about 15km/h we would reach the waves, they would dump on the front of the board stopping it instantly, using our legs as springs we could catapult ourselves high into the air and over the dumping waves.
I managed to find some old photo's of Brett and Myself (I am 1 day older than Brett) from the early seventies at a beach called "Burges Beach" at Forster NSW, just a quick pushbike ride from where we both lived at the time.