What does 'casual association' mean?

Question

What does 'its casual association with fun and sun' mean? I assume surfing is linked with fun and probably sun, not moon, but what does 'casual' mean in this context? I've looked up the word in the dictionaries, but I couldn't match it up with the right definition.

For some, it’s a serious sport. For others, just a way to let loose. But despite its casual association with fun and sun, surfing has a richer and deeper history than many realize. What we today call surfing originated in the Polynesian islands of the Pacific Ocean. We know from various accounts that wave riding was done throughout the Polynesian Pacific, as well as in West Africa and Peru.

source : The complicated history of surfing - Scott Laderman https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-complicated-history-of-surfing-scott-laderman

Answer 1

casual means informal.

the association between fun and sun is casual, as in a casual lifestyle.

Living on the beach, for example. Wearing flip flops, etc.

Surfing is associated with having fun and being in the sun. This is really a cultural association, and yes, it is about being casual as opposed to being formal. Think of music by the Beach Boys.

Surfers hang out at the beach waiting for surf to be up. So, they have fun surfing and usually hope the sun is out when they do.

Like now, in Hawai. With the hurricane.

Answer 2

Casual can also mean

Made or done without much thought or premeditation. ‘a casual remark’

Association means

A mental connection between things.

Therefore, when people think of surfing, they connect it with fun and sun without much thought. In other words, when people heard of surfing, fun and sun come to mind directly most of the time. However, according to the text, surfing is more than these.