Smorgasboarder_26-xmas-2014-s

SURFBOARD DESIGN | TRAVEL | AMAZING PEOPLE 

F R E E S U R F M A G A Z I N E 

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THAN EVER: 

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THROUGHOUT THE COURSE OF THE LAST 5 

YEARS YOU, THE READERS, HAVE BEEN PART 

AND PARCEL OF OUR PAROCHIAL SUPPORT 

OF THE MANY PEOPLE AND ORGANISATIONS 

CHAMPIONING WORTHY ENVIRONMENTAL 

CAUSES AROUND THE BELOVED OCEAN WE 

ALL ENJOY. 

Right from the start, we made sure 

SMORGASBOARDER stood for something beyond 

just an entertaining read, in our very fi rst edition 

back in September 2010 highlighting the plight of 

the world’s whale and dolphin population. Since then 

we have brought you stories encouraging marine 

conservation whether it be about New Zealand’s 

Popoto (the world's rarest and smallest known 

subspecies of dolphin) and the threat of its extinction 

due to sea bed mining or the abhorrent practice of 

shark fining. 

We've addressed the issue of accumulating plastics 

in our ocean as we traced the Voyage of Rubbish 

in a story written by Colin Hutchins, promoted 

conversation surrounding new ideas for managing 

our waste through Chris Anderson’s 1000 surfboard 

graveyard and spoken of the blight on our coastal 

landscapes that are the now the decommissioned 

‘white elephant’ desalination plants at Wonthaggi on 

Victoria’s Bass Coast and Tugun on Queensland’s Gold 

Coast. In 2012 we launched a dedicated eco column 

written by Nicole O’Reilly from Surfi ng Green to keep 

readers abreast of all things green in the world of 

surfing and it has run in every single edition since. 

We've highlighted local community concerns about 

the protection of Bastion Point in Mallacoota and 

the Spit on the Gold Coast’s Broadwater, as well as 

the staging of surf competitions on South Australia’s 

Kangaroo Island. We've even gone as far afi eld as 

the pristine breaks of Pulau Merah in Indonesia (Red 

Island), which are threatened by the prospect of open 

cut gold mining. We have actively supported and 

promoted the various beach clean up days organised 

by many tireless organisations such as the Surfrider 

Foundation and Take 3. 

As you are all aware, working to protect our 

environment extends well beyond man’s impact 

on nature but also includes our social environment 

and how the world’s people live and indeed exist. To 

that end we have promoted the unbelievable work 

of organisations such as SurfAid International and 

Groundswell in the clean up, relief and rebuilding 

of coastal communities in places such as the 

Philippines following Typhoon Haiyan and the 

destructive tsunamis that hit the Mentawaiis and 

Samoa. We've informed you of the terrifi c mission 

work being conducted in Bali by Love is a Verb and 

community programs conducted by Royal 70 in Cuba. 

We have even been able to assist to bring boards to 

the disadvantaged in Papua New Guinea and it has 

always been a pleasure to regularly showcase 

the terrifi c work performed by the Disabled 

Surfers Association of Australia. 

Aside from informing readers about the good work 

of others and promoting their charitable appeals for 

funding, we have also actively raised funds through 

our business network, namely after Brisbane’s floods 

in 2011 and we have passionately encouraged 

surfers to return to one of our favourite surf cities - 

Christchurch - to help the local community get back 

on its feet following the devastating earthquakes in 

September 2010 and February 2011. 

We’re not stopping now. This edition is just another 

opportunity to spread good word about good work! 

With this edition and our “environmental focus”, we 

turn your attention to what advancements have been 

made in relation to building eco-friendly surfboards. 

Through the years there has been a lot of talk and hype 

so we look at what real progress has been made. 

But really, we're just one piece of the puzzle. Yes, we 

can be a mouthpiece for all these amazing people and 

organisations working to help our planet, but it's up to 

all of us to actually do something about it. Whether it's 

picking up rubbish on your local beach, or mounting an 

international campaign to save endangered species, no 

act is too small or too 'out there' to make a difference. 

So get active in any way you can and together, let's 

make our planet a better place. 

Cheers! 

the Smorgasboarders 

8 

SMORGASBOARDER | CHRISTMAS 2014 

BEING NICE TO THE PLANET WARMS YOUR HEART TOO 

Great coffee, roasted daily. Volcom Lane, Raglan NZ WWW.RAGLANROAST.CO.NZ

FoReWoRD 

"no act is too 

small or too 'out 

there' to make a 

difference." 

Siena Hanna (14) from the Sunshine Coast is one of the next generation of surfers. Let's make sure we do something about the 

environment to make sure that Siena and all our kids and their kids to come have a clean, green planet to enjoy. 

More on Siena, Page 18. 

CHRISTMAS 2014 | SMORGASBOARDER 9

WHAT'S 

INSIDE... 

SURF ON 

WHEELS 

26 Latest & Greatest 

AGELESS 

BEAUTY 

44 Joshua Scott's shots 

DETAILS, CREDITS & STUFF 

Grab SMORGASBOARDER FREE at quality surf stores, shapers and cool cafés on the coast 

of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, Western Australia 

and New Zealand... Be nice and buy something while you're there. Or read it online. 

SUBSCRIBE HOME DELIVERY 

If you can’t get to a store or other venue to pick the mag up in person, you can also choose to 

have SMORGASBOARDER delivered to your door. See www.smorgasboarder.com.au. 

A few back issues are also available for $5 a piece, plus t-shirts & more! 

$25 AUS & NZ - 1 YEAR - SIX EDITIONS. 

Are you this guy? 

Drop us a line! 

FOR MAGAZINE 

THE COVER SHOT 

There's more than one 

way to skin a board, and 

still be green... 

Page 90 

GREEN GEAR 

52 Earth-friendly 

surfi ng equipment 

MADE IN TAIWAN 

108 Andy and Darryl's 

surf adventure 

Katrina McDonald of the 

Rivermouth General Store 

in Tomakin, NSW captured this 

unknown surfer in Noosa. 

"I was thinking 'What the hell is the 

dude doing? Way too deep when 

taking off.. Anyway he was the 

man of that wave!" 

www.therivermouthstore.com.au 

SMORGASBOARDERS 

CONTRIBUTING... 

SHAPER'S QUIVERS 

131 So many boards.... 

THE LATEST 

12 Reader Photos 

22 And Greatest 

32 News & Community 

GEAR 

131 Shaper's Quivers 

163 Test everything 

CLOSEOUT 

167 Music 

169 Columns 

171 Socials 

178 Aloha Barry 

THE USUAL 

ADVERTISING/EDITORIAL: Dave Swan 

dave@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0401 345 201 

NEW ZEALAND: ‘Jiff’ Morris 

jeff@smorgasboarder.co.nz 

0220 943 913 

DESIGN/EDITORIAL: Mark Chapman 

mark@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0400 875 884 

SOUTH AUSTRALIA: James Ellis 

james@smorgasboarder.com.au 

0410 175 552 

ACCOUNTS: Louise Gough 

louise@smorgasboarder.com.au 

GEAR TESTS & REVIEWS: Gus Brown 

gus@smorgasboarder.com.au 

This is YOUR mag. It’s here for you to tell 

your stories, show your pictures and share 

your thoughts - and score some free stuff 

on the way too, to boot. 

E: editorial@smorgasboarder.com.au. 

P: PO Box 501, Moffat Beach QLD 4551 

There’s only a few of us here, so please 

be patient when you get in touch - we’ll 

try our best to get back to you as soon as 

humanly possible. Get in touch to discuss 

any ideas you’d like to be considered for a 

future edition or online. 

BEST NON-DAILY 

PUBLICATION 

QUEENSLAND MULTIMEDIA 

AWARDS 2013 

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Smorgasboarder magazine is published by Huge C Media Pty Ltd ABN 30944673055. All information 

is correct at time of going to press. The publishers cannot accept responsibility for errors in articles 

or advertisements, or unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or illustrations. The opinions and words 

of the authors do not necessarily represent those of the publisher. All rights reserved. Reproduction in 

part or whole is strictly prohibited without prior permission. 

10 

SMORGASBOARDER | CHRISTMAS 2014


READER: PHOTOS 

READER 

PHOTOS 

NEXT ISSUE! Got a great surf shot? 

The good gents at SALTY SHOES 

over in WA have put up a few prize 

packs of cool SALTY SHOES gear for 

giveaways, including t-shirts and caps. 

Send in your shots via the website, 

www.smorgasboarder.com.au, or email 

to letters@smorgasboarder.com.au. 

(Make sure to include your postal 

details and t-shirt size.) 

WA photographer, 

Chris Wing of Liquid 

Motion Photography 

captured this cracker 

shot of surfer Jethro 

Hedstrom. Enjoy your 

prize pack, including 

Azov's "Soundwaves 

and Saltwater Veins" 

For more about 

Salty Shoes gear, see 

Page 28 

12 

SMORGASBOARDER 

| CHRISTMAS 2014

These original designs & more available in stores across Australia & online 

IDEAL T-SHIRTS FOR SUMMER 

FOR EVERY OLD BLOKE 

visit www.oldblokesrule.com.au 

email info@oldblokesrule.com.au 


READER 

PHOTOS 

A day at work for Egor 

When your day job is mining in the 

Pilbara, there's nothing like a refreshing 

trip to catch a few waves to keep you 

going until those next magic days off. 

Ryan "Egor" Egan sent in a few shots from 

his adventures at Bingin. 

"Flew up to Indo chasing a swell early 

October after sitting on a mine site 

watching the same swell just pulse the 

whole southwest coast of WA... 

"On a smash and grab mission to Bali 

for a short swell for four days. Your wife 

gave you strict instructions to get your fi x 

of pits. The fi rst day consisted of getting 

pitched for three hours, bogging rail on 

every turn and basically learning to surf 

again. The second day you're fi nally 

feeling like you can surf again, getting a 

few good ones, and ripping all the skin off 

one of your toes..." 

Looks like your trip was well worthwhile 

Egor... A prize pack is on the way - enjoy! 

14 



CHRISTMAS 2014 | SMORGASBOARDER 15 

READER: PHOTOS

READER: PHOTOS 

READER 

PHOTOS 

Proud dad Mathew sent us this cracker shot of his son, 

eight-year-old ripper, Noah Waters. He's been surfing 

since about 5 and loves barrels... You go, Noah! 

Paget Thomson from Coastal Visions Photography, 

Cabarita, snapped this great shot. See more of his 

work at www.coastalvisionsphotography.com.au and 

www.facebook.com/CoastalVisionsPhotography 

16 


LATEST: LENSPERSON 


LADIES: FIRST 

PEAS IN A POD 

Siena Hanna (14) and Phoebe King (16) are both members of the Mudjimba Boardriders Club, both partial to a 

surf at Old Woman Island, both ride 5'8" surfboards and are both are scoring wins competitively. Here's both of 

them answering a few identical questions too... 

S I E N A 

HANNA 

WHAT'S YOUR DREAM 

SURFBOARD? A beautiful 

hot pink gun would be sick! 

FAVOURITE MOMENT 

SURFING? Best moment for 

me would be surfing in Bali 

at my favourite break, Padang 

Padang, I also love to surf 

Ulus, Balian and Medewi. 

The warm crystal clear 

water and the lush green 

environment surrounding me. 

I love the adrenalin rush I 

get and want to try and push 

myself as much as I can. Also 

the challenge of dodging the 

reef and sharks. 

WHAT DOES SURFING 

MEAN TO YOU? Surfing is a 

big part of my life. I try to get 

out as much as possible. This 

morning my Dad couldn’t take 

me due to his work so I got up 

at 5.00 am and rode down. It 

only takes me 20 mins. 

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO 

BE TRAVELLING THE 

COUNTRY SURFING? It 

feels incredible and will be the 

biggest and best experience I 

have ever had with my surfing 

and I am hoping for this to go 

on and on. 

WHAT’S YOUR BEST BIT 

OF ADVICE TO OTHER 

SURFERS OUT THERE? Just 

get out there and give it a go, 

you never know! 

18 


Sound surfi ng advice from Phoebe 

" MAKE SURE YOU’RE HAVING FUN! IF YOU’RE 

NOT HAVING FUN, YOU’RE NOT DOING IT RIGHT!" 

Siena and Phoebe head out at their home break 

Photos courtesy of Phoebe and Siena's parents - thanks! 

PHOEBE KING 

YOUR DREAM SURFBOARD? 

Any surfboard that goes fast! 

YOUR FAVOURITE MOMENT 

SURFING? There’s been so many great 

moments but one of my favourites 

would have to be when one day I was 

surfi ng at Mudjimba Island. It was just 

a perfect day. There was crystal clear 

water, turtles everywhere, no wind, 

perfect 3-foot lefts running for ages 

and only me and a couple of my friends 

out there. We had perfect surf all to 

ourselves for a whole day! 

WHAT DOES SURFING MEAN TO 

YOU? Surfing means a lot! I don’t 

know what I would do without it. I'm 

so lucky to be able to surf whenever 

I want and that I live in such an 

amazing place. 

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE 

TRAVELLING THE COUNTRY 

SURFING? I haven’t travelled much 

yet, but when I do travel, I love getting 

to see new places, surf new waves 

and meet new people. Plus you get to 

have some time off school! 

WHAT’S YOUR BEST BIT OF 

ADVICE TO OTHER SURFERS OUT 

THERE? Make sure you’re having fun! 

If you’re not having fun, you’re not 

doing it right! 


LATEST & 

GREATEST 

THAT’S 

A BIT 

CHEEKY 

MIX & MATCH 

Brazilian-inspired Australian 

swimwear label Kokoh Bikini has 

launched their 2015 Summer Range 

Ebb and Flow featuring a range of 

cheeky cut mix and match reversible 

tops and bottoms. 

kokohbikini.com 

22 


ADJUSTING TO THE 

CONDITIONS 

Dkoko’s latest range can be adjusted to suit the 

conditions you are surfing, with their everpopular 

sexy surf bikini bottom featuring a string 

in the hip and tie at the back for a smaller, firmer 

fit. The tops feature crisscross backs. 

dkoko.com 


LATEST & 

GREATEST 

BEE A WINNER 

There’s good reason why Hive Swimwear won 

the Swimwear Category at the recent 2014 

Sunshine Coast Designer Awards and Hall of 

Fame - their current 2014/2015 Tribal Tropic 

Collection is simply stunning and perfect for 

active surfer girls and ladies. 

hiveswimwear.com 

ULTRA SUN 

PROTECTION 

Having recently received the full array of Sun 

Zapper’s sun protection range we have been 

busily testing away, getting in as much surfing 

and beach time as we can, all in the name of 

product research of course! 

Well, we are suitably impressed. In fact, even 

more so. Check out our Test Everything review of 

Sun Zapper sun protection products on Page 163. 

Sun Zapper is a 100% Australian owned 

company with all products formulated, tested 

and manufactured here in Australia. Their range 

specifically caters for our harsh Australian 

conditions with sunscreens, lip balms and zinc 

sticks to suit every member of your surfing family. 

Sun Zapper products can be purchased online 

or at Woolworths, Big W, IGA and Foodworks to 

name but a few stockists. 

sunzapper.com.au 

24 



STAND FREE! 

Well, freestanding that is... 

Fit 1-4 boards on this rust-free 

aluminium frame with 50mm 

padded EVA foam protective 

sleeves from Ocean&Earth. 

There's no fi xing to walls, so no 

angry landlords... Nice work. 

www.oceanearthstore.com 

FORE FUN 

.. and function, the Golf Skate Caddy by the 

boys at Fiik Electric Skateboards is without 

a doubt the absolutely coolest way to cruise 

around a course. www.golfskatecaddy.com.au 

SURF ON WHEELS 

SHADOW SKATES MASH SURF AND STREET INTO ONE 

THE SURFERS who first decided to mimic the 

feel of surfing by attaching rollerskate wheels 

to a plank way, back in the day, would have had 

their jaws hit the floor if someone had rolled by 

them on a SHADOW SKATES board. 

Surely the ultimate union between surf and 

skate, Ian Llambi and Hayley Windsor have 

combined their love for surfing, design and 

shared beachside experiences to bring a 

colourful quiver of small surfboards on wheels to 

the young and the young at heart. 

And yes, they’re surfboards – on wheels – not 

really skateboards as you know them. Made from 

foam and fibreglass like a traditional surfboard, 

and glassed with the coolest colours, these 

babies are built for cruising. Hayley describes 

them as “a stylish, practical novelty that's been 

turning heads since the first prototype was 

crafted and gifted from a beachside backyard 

last year.” 

Last year? Yup, they’re that new. What started 

as a unique gift idea to impress Hayley, led Ian 

on a bold quest to create a one-off surfboard on 

wheels for her. 

"I was deciding between buying a skateboard 

and shaping a surfboard for Hayley,” says Ian. 

“Once the idea of combining the two came to 

mind, and I'd cut my remaining surfboard blank 

in half, there was no turning back." 

After finding no successful examples or 

instructional design which he could follow 

to make the skateboard, Ian turned to his 

26 


"I'D CUT MY 

REMAINING 

SURFBOARD 

BLANK IN HALF, 

THERE WAS 

NO TURNING 

BACK." 

LATEST & 

GREATEST 

engineering background to ensure a robust 

and durable make, without sacrifi cing the 

aesthetics of the inspiration it was drawn from 

– surfboards. He also made the clever decision 

to protect the design, just in case. 

"Once I realised there were no examples I could 

copy, it was exciting to think that I might be making 

something the world had never seen,” Ian says. “I 

had no idea it would turn as many heads and start 

as many conversations as it has though.” 

And there will be plenty of conversations, 

we’re sure… “Foam and fi breglass on a 

skateboard? Pft. It’ll never work,” grumble 

the peanut gallery of naysayers, as they do 

of every new and exciting idea. So we say to 

the peanuts: “Jam it good and proper, our 

visionless friends!” We personally are stoked 

and super-excited to be giving these babies 

a test run very soon, so watch this space and 

www.smorgasboarder.com.au for more! They’ve 

already got a tick of approval from some very 

high-level downhill names like Steve Daddow, 

so bring on the SHADOW… 

A limited-edition pre-Christmas run of SHADOW 

SKATES of only 100 boards have been done, so 

if you’re quick, Retro and Short-board inspired 

styles can now be ordered online. 

Visit www.shadowskates.com. 

Photos by Claudio Kirac / Art-Work, courtesy of Shadow Skates 


SALTY GOOD VIBES 

"A world filled with things that are nice. From the spawn of 

Neptune. Not perfect but real. We like the ocean." 

A new surf lifestyle brand from over in the West, SALTY 

SHOES is all good vibes and fun gear. No big corporate 

goings-on here, just down-to-earth threads, served up with a 

smile. Shirt $39.99, Cap $34.99 www.saltyshoes.com.au 

LATEST & 

GREATEST 

SUMMER 

THREADS 

See plenty 

more t-shirt 

designs on the 

website 

Chris at EVOLUTION APPAREL has been busy. There's a stack of new designs to 

suit all tastes this summer, from tough Mexican skulls (above) to old school '80s 

gold (left) - a fully fl ouro raglan tee that just screams '80s skate. With quality shirts 

at only $35 each, you can restock your wardrobe. www.evolution-australia.com 

OLD SCHOOL 

SURF TOPS 

Wear the heyday of surfing 

on your chest and celebrate 

pioneer surfboard shapers and 

surf film makers with classic 

clothing designs from Rare Surf 

Tees. These are a great gift for 

a mate, or yourself... 

Shirts $44.95, Hoodies $89.95 

www.raresurftees.com 

28 


SURFERS HARDWARE 

Team Tested: Caiden Fowler 


COOL COFFEE STOPS 

Regular Smorgasboarder readers may have picked 

up that we have a bit of a weakness for a good coffee. 

And it's not just the caffeine hit - finding a cool 

spot, with nice people, where you can enjoy a good 

surfing yarn and catch up on the local news, is just as 

important as those brewed beans. 

When the shop itself has all the above, and to boot is 

as interesting as Izba on Nicklin Way, Currimundi on 

the Sunshine Coast, then it's a no-brainer for us - it's 

now our regular local stop. Set up Christchurch-style 

in a shipping container, Pete and Kate (below), make 

a mean cappuccino. The wake-up-juice merchants 

even have an extra caravan at the back of their funky 

little block that serves awesome food too. 

Izba Espresso 

ABOVE: Izba's cool 

container brings a bit of 

Christchurch (left) to the 

Sunshine Coast. 

RIGHT: Kate and Pete 

hand over two large caps. 

BELOW: Speedy, smiling 

service - there's no waiting 

for Lucas, just Huey... 

30 


| CHRISTMAS 2014 

...and in Town of Seaside, just north of Marcoola, 

Waiting For Huey is a brand new corner concern, 

with owner/barista/pastry-chef Lucas always up for 

a surfing chat... If the name of the business doesn't 

give that away in itself of course. 

In fact while you lounge around waiting for your latte, 

you can get sucked into the surfing he always has on 

screen, get psyched, dodge work, go for a surf... 

Great coffee, fresh pastries and - like Izba - there's 

always a few Smorgasboarders to read as well! 

WaitingForHuey


AKA: THE NEWS WHAT’S HAPPENING IN OUR LOCAL SURFING COMMUNITY & OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS 

@smorgasboarder.com.au 

facebook.com/smorgasboarder @smorgasboarder twitter.com/smorgasboarder 

NIKKI VAN DYKE 

10-12 PHILLIP ISLAND RD, NEWHAVEN, VIC, 3925 

PH: 59567553 

Experience surfing 

like never before... 

10-12 Phillip Island Tourist Rd, 

Phillip Island, VIC (at the Big Wave) 

Entry: Adults $4.50, kids $2.50, family $12.00. 

www.islantis.com.au TheIslantisSurfExperience 

GOODBYE RUBBISH 

Jessica Abraham is the young lady behind the 

ECO. Clean Beach Initiative encouraging 

young people to get involved in keeping our 

oceans and beaches clean. 

"It’s about planting this passion’s seed at 

a young age and creating a society that is 

environmentally conscious and wants to 

preserve the beautiful coastline we are so 

blessed to live on," says Jess. 

"Together with Full Tide, we hold regular 

beach clean-ups across the Sunshine Coast, 

focusing on change at a local scale. We 

aim to teach both locals and tourists the 

understanding that it is our job as a community 

to keep this beautiful ecosystem clean and as 

untouched as possible. 

"The importance of a healthy ocean for a 

healthy planet is paramount, and I want future 

generations to be able to live and experience 

the serenity and beauty of the ocean, the 

same way I have been blessed enough to do 

my whole life." 

www.facebook.com/EcoCleanBeachInitiative 

32 


RIGHT: David and Di 

BELOW: The Duke, David 

...and a Smorgasboarder 

ONE- 

ON-ONE 

TUITION 

D.I.Y. 

ALOHA VIBES 

It's amazing the places Smorgasboarder 

magazine ends up... David Ward of 

Glengowrie, SA recently had his copy along for 

some holiday reading. 

"Just last fortnight I spent time with my wife 

Di, cruising and enjoying the Hawaiian islands, 

including a visit to the North Shore of Oahu 

and a surf at Waikiki." 

This photo of Dave in front of the Duke most 

certainly deserves a run in the magazine! Got 

any shots of yourself with a Smorgasboarder 

in some weird, wonderful or far-fl ung spot? 

We'd love to see it, so send it to 

letters@smorgasboarder.com.au 

CELEBRATE DUKE'S DAY 

As Aussies visit the Duke, preparations are under 

way for the spirt of the Duke to revisit Australia! 

Two-time world longboard champ, Duane De 

Soto will play Duke Kahanamoku this January, 

to celebrate the centenary of the Duke's famous 

exhibition of Hawaiian surfing. 

“I am not even close to the Duke,” Duane says. “It's 

not that I would feel I would be replacing or close 

to replicating what Duke did, but just trying to come 

close and humbly put on a good show that would 

make him proud. I’m extremely psyched and excited..." 

“The fi rst day at Waikiki, Duane picked the board 

up, threw it onto his shoulder and paddled out to 

the break," said re-enactment and board organiser 

JAN 8-10 2015, 

FRESHWATER 

BEACH, SYDNEY 

Eric Middledorp. "On his fi rst ride I knew we'd 

found our Hawaiian to play the part of Duke 

Kahanamoku.” 

At the time of going to print, the search is on for 

a young female surfer to play the part of Isabelle 

Latham, who was plucked from the crowd back 

in 1915 by Duke to give the 2,000 strong crowd a 

display of tandem riding. 

Dukes Day will be an event for the entire family 

and anyone who loves the ocean and surf culture. 

Go to dukesday.com for history, program, events, 

sponsors and also details about the Duke Shorts 

short fi lm competition and your chance to win a 

Panasonic GH4 still/video camera valued at $3,000. 

Al Colk 

“I was stoked with 

the course and and 

I learned so much” 

Andy Armstrong 

LEARN 

TO CRAFT YOUR OWN 

SURFBOARD 

Take away a 

board you have 

made start to 

finish - from 

mowing foam to 

resin finishing. 

Get schooled in 

all aspects of 

surfboard building: 

• Shaping 

• Glassing 

• Sanding 

• Finishing 

• Artwork 

All with guidance 

from shaper Al 

Colk’s five decades 

of firsthand foam 

and fibreglass 

experience. 

An intensive, 

all-inclusive 3 day 

course. 

Shortboard $1,200 

Longboard $1,500 

Contact Al Colk directly: 

M: 0408 425 368 

E: AL.TUBETIME@GMAIL.COM 


SURF COMMUNITY 

UNDERSTANDING 

SURFING INJURY 

This time last year, we introduced 

you to Bond University researcher 

James Furness’ research on injury 

in surfi ng. The survey part of the 

research is now done, with over 

1,300 people taking part. 

"The purpose of this study was 

to identify the incidence, severity, 

location and type of acute injuries 

in participants over a 12 month 

period and in turn, to provide a 

foundation for injury prevention 

strategies,” said James, a 

Consultant Physiotherapist for 

Surfi ng Australia and a clinical 

skills tutor at Bond University. 

"With surfi ng hot spots becoming 

more overcrowded and more 

surfers experimenting with new 

surfi ng techniques such as aerial 

manoeuvres, introducing effective 

preventative measures to help 

reduce the injury rate is becoming 

far more crucial. 

Pulling together Australia's 

largest study of surfers, James 

found recreational surfers suffer 

significantly more chronic injuries 

compared to their competitive 

counterparts, which may be due to 

them being physically conditioned 

as sportspeople, as opposed to 

weekend warriors, like most surfers 

with actual day-jobs out there. 

Now James is actively recruiting 

competitive and recreational 

female and male surfers to take 

part in the next phase. 

"We have gathered the data and 

we are now recruiting surfers 

to be part of the next stage, 

which consists of comprehensive 

physical assessments." 

Freya Prumm, not getting injured 

Photo: ran/girlsurfnetwork.com 

BIG WAVE CHANGES 

The iconic Big Wave Complex on 

Phillip Island, as you cross the bridge 

from San Remo has undergone a few 

big changes of late, with the addition 

of the Islantis Surf Experience 

interactive exhibit, and now Islantis 

Surf Shop changing to Rip Curl Phillip 

Island. You'll still see the same faces 

in store however, with Islantis' Scott 

Jackson still at the helm. 

ABOVE: See surfing in a different light. 

www. theislantissurfexperience.com.au 

During stage two of the study, 

participants undergo a thorough 

physiological assessment and are 

assessed for flexibility and strength. 

A number of high-profile surfers 

have already participated in stage 

two of the study including Bede 

Durbidge, Adam Melling, Mitch 

Crews and Dion Atkinson. 

Freya Prumm (a Ctrl-V team rider 

- ed), who is currently ranked 

number 39 in the world, has also 

participated and says the results 

of the assessment have helped 

her to improve her strength and 

conditioning training for optimum 

performance in the water. 

"Being a part of this study was a 

huge step for me in edging toward 

my surfing goals," she said. 

"After a thorough assessment 

by James and his team, I was 

given informative feedback on 

where my physical strengths and 

weaknesses lie. Following a plan 

to address those weaknesses, 

I immediately began enjoying 

improvements in the water. 

"For anyone interested in improving 

any aspect of their surfing, I urge 

you to take advantage of this free 

opportunity." 

To take part email James Furness 

on jfurness@bond.edu.au 

34 



Geoff's son, 

Jack Moase 

GEOFF MOASE R.I.P. 

Thank you to Peter Sturm 

of My Perspectives for the 

photographs of the day. 

36 


PADDLE- 

OUT FOR 

GEOFF 

Family and friends gathered at 

Tallebudgera Beach to say farewell 

to Geoff Moase, who passed away 

surfing in Indonesia this September. 

Here at Smorgasboarder, we had 

first met Geoff at one of Grant 

Newby's Wooden Surfboard gettogethers 

in the park at Currumbin, 

and got to know him over the 

years that followed. Always 

gracious with his time and forever 

passionate about timber, we spent 

many an hour chatting with him, 

and drooling over his super-cool 

timber boards. 

Along with so many others out 

there in the surfing community, we 

too will miss our chats. 

R.I.P. Geoff. 


Photo: Mark Chapman, 30 June 2014 CHRISTMAS 2014 | SMORGASBOARDER 37

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SURFWAREAUSTRALIA.COM 

38 


'SURFING' 

A poem by Hollie Dawson (16), 

Mornington Peninsula, VIC 

Polynesia's where it all started 

This sport is one of a kind 

Not for the faint hearted 

In fact, terrifying at times 

I grab my deck from the sand 

My mate is with me 

My hands holding the rails 

Now it's out to the sea 

WAVES 

- OF - 

TALENT 

Thanks 

Wayne! 


Cold water chills my spine 

Waves crash over us 

My wetsuits on so I'm fine 

The temperature is not a fuss 

I begin a constant paddle 

My back muscles become tight 

I can see a set coming 

Oh what a sight 

I'm not out the back yet 

I've got a long way to go 

Duck diving the waves 

Getting tossed to and fro 

Whitewash is running 

Past the wave break 

A rip is occurring 

This is so great 

LEFT: Mark's inspiration gets him working 

BELOW: The crowning glory - the board's done! 

I take a free ride 

Out to the back 

The rip is dragging me 

I get to be slack 

I'm out the back now 

There's only one thing to do 

It's times to go surfing 

This is my cue 

I now take the drop 

And cut down the wave face 

I look towards my mate 

He thinks I am ace 

WAYNE- 

SPIRATION 

"After seeing the story of Wayne Lynch* he 

inspired me to make my first surfboard. 

Here's the result. Thanks Wayne." 

The wave gains some speed 

I carve off the lip 

I re-take the drop 

Oh I'm going so quick 

A full day ahead 

And only one wave down 

Everyone is out here 

It's good vibes all round 

Mark Todhunter, Ballina 

*Mark had recently scored himself a copy of 

the Uncharted Waters DVD in our "Surf like 

Wayne Lynch" photo comp, Autumn 2014. 

Congrats Mark, that is one awesome board! As 

suckers for single fins, this is one of the coolest 

reader boards ever! 



SAPNG's Andy 

Abel (left) meets 

with organiser, 

Ben Millington 

A truckload 

of stoke 

" OVER 300 SECONDHAND SURFBOARDS, A DOZEN BOOGIE BOARDS, A LARGE QUANTITY 

OF LEG ROPES, SURF WEAR AND OTHER ACCESSORIES WERE DONATED" 

DROPPING 

BOARDS 

FOR PNG 

WORDS: TED BASSINGTHWAIGHTE 

PHOTOS: www.throwingbuckets.com.au 

ABC1233 producer Ben Millington and 

his crew organised a campaign called 

Operation Drop In where listeners 

across the greater Newcastle and Hunter 

Valley, NSW were asked to donate 

surfboards and surf gear to the men, 

women, boys and girls of Papua New 

Guinea - in particular Vanimo, the people 

of Bougainville and all ten of the Papua 

New Guinea Surfing Association (SAPNG) 

affiliated surfing clubs around the country. 

Half of the surfboards are to have their 

noses painted fluorescent pink by SAPNG. 

These surfboards are for the exclusive 

use of female surfers, to help empower 

women and to create an equal platform 

for aspiring female surfers to also be able 

to enjoy the stoke we take for granted as 

surfers. 

Over 300 secondhand surfboards, a dozen 

boogie boards, a large quantity of leg 

ropes, surf wear and other accessories 

were donated through Operation Drop 

In. In addition $3,000 was raised through 

donations and tickets sales for a screening 

of the PNG surfing move, Splinters - 

attended by Andy Abel of the SAPNG. 

For more information on SAPNG, see the 

website www.sapng.com 

Big back pats to Ben and ABC 1233 

Newcastle for making this happen. Well 

done to all involved - this is life changing 

stuff for surfers in PNG that we here in 

Australia can't even fully comprehend. 

Keep spreading the love! 

www.abc.net.au/newcastle 

40 



Mike with Stinger-man, Ben Aipa 

RANDOM 

TALES FROM 

THE ROAD 

MIKE'S CALI TRIP 

Mike Bilton – the ever inventive board builder from Bilton Surf 

on the Gold Coast who wowed us all with his cool LED surfboard 

creations – recently did a dream trip for any shaper, to exhibit at 

The Boardroom surfboard building expo in California. Back home 

with fresh inspiration, Mike fills us in on his trip. 

WORDS & PHOTOS: MIKE BILTON 

42 


The Tribute Shape-Off 

got their shapes fi nished, but it was great to 

watch a few in the comp and see just how 

different everyone’s shaping techniques were - 

especially under the pressure of the clock and 

a hundred-odd people looking on. The judging 

was completed and all of the shows awards 

were presented, including Best of Shows which 

showcased some crazy designs. 

Garry Hannel of GH surfboards offered to share 

some knowledge on his older ‘70s and ‘80s 

shapes, including some of his old Bonzers and 

the Rip Curl team boards he made back in the 

day (The photo is of Gary holding one of his 

old templates from the '80s). A few hours with 

Gary was time well spent as he shared his 

wealth of knowledge on shaping. 

Birds Surf Shed 

RANDOM TALES 

EVER SINCE I first read about The 

Boardroom show as a teenager (formerly the 

Sacred Craft Expo) I knew it was something I 

wanted to attend. When the opportunity came 

up to exhibit at the show, it was a chance I 

couldn't pass up. Aside from ticking something 

off my bucket list, I had something to contribute 

as an exhibitor. Preparation started by shipping 

half of my boards by sea - I didn't want to 

chance my entire showing to the roulette wheel 

that is checked baggage, but I did roll the dice 

with six boards and they got though fi ne. The 

surf was average in the lead up to the show, 

but after a 14 hour flight and battling peak hour 

LA traffi c driving to San Diego, a small wave at 

Del Mar beach never felt so good! 

making surfboards. The big events of the show 

are the Chunk of Foam Challenge and the Tribute 

Shape-Off. The first is to shave a board from a 

chunk of foam in three hours, and the second is 

to replicate a board in only an hour and a half, 

which is then judged by a panel including the 

man who made the original! 

DAY TWO kicked off early with a demo 

day at Del Mar beach on a grey windy morning. 

Once again I saw loads of boards I’d rather be 

trying out than sitting on the beach watching 

other people have a good time... 

The opening of the show meant the last of the 

shaping challenges. Unfortunately not everyone 

SHEDS AND MUSHROOMS 

I had time to visit a local San Diego hub of 

surfi ng, Birds Surf Shed, and met the man 

himself, Bird, who had loaned me stands for 

the surfboard show helping make things much 

easier for me. Bird has one of the biggest and 

most varied surfboard collections I’d ever seen 

and he makes an effort to get them all wet as 

often as possible, or at least when he can get a 

ladder big enough to get them down. 

I also had some drinks with the boys from 

surfoboards.com, and they fi lled me in on their 

progress and challenges they are facing in 

growing surfboard blanks using mushrooms as 

a core material. Lots of people were shocked 

at this, but their progress is moving along and 

constantly getting stronger and lighter. My 

feeling is it will soon enough be a viable option 

- maybe not for a high end performance board, 

but for a fish or retro I think it will be there 

before people realise. (For more on Mushroom 

Blanks and Surf O Boards, see page 80) 

There is a definite trend in the USA towards 

finding new materials and processes to 

make surfboards, and they're willing to share 

knowledge with each other in order to progress 

the industry as a whole. 

For more on the expo see boardroomshow.com 

and for Mike's work, see www.biltonsurf.com 

SET UP was on the Friday, and I wanted 

to get it done so I could have my chance to 

check out the things that I wanted to. After 

all, there are some legends of the industry 

exhibiting as well as some of the latest in 

board manufacturing technology and processes. 

Garry Hannel 

Demo day, Del Mar 

DAY ONE of the show saw a few 

thousand people through the door. My 

personal highlights were getting to meet Rusty 

Perssendorfer, Ben Aipa and Gary Hannel 

amongst other shapers I’ve admired since before 

I started in the industry, and whose designs 

have definitely influenced my own approach to 


OSHUA 

SCott 

COastAl 

PhotograPhy 

At only 14 years old, Wollongong-based 

Joshua Scott is one up-and-coming 

surf photographer that's well worth 

keeping a close watch on. With an 

eye for composition well beyond his 

tender teen years and a serious sense 

of maturity in choice of subject matter 

and post-production techniques, Josh 

is turning out images that challenge 

any and all ageist expectations of 

what a photographer should be... And 

they're just damn fine shots to boot. 

So, without further ado, here's a 

bit more about the young man... 

WORDS: MARK CHAPMAN 

44 



LATEST: PHOTOGRAPHER

46 


SMORGASBOARDER

Mate, you’re 14 yearS old! 

How long Have you been 

taking pHotoS? 

I only started photography early 

this year (January 2014) thanks 

to my grandparents who helped 

me buy my camera. I wouldn’t be 

where I am today without the help 

of my grandparents from both sides 

of the family. 

LATEST: PHOTOGRAPHER 

So How did you get into it? 

I always liked the feeling of pulling 

into a nice barrel on my bodyboard. 

Some people don’t have the chance 

to see what that feeling is like, so 

that’s when I thought it would be 

good to capture that moment. I 

started using a Go Pro attached to 

my bodyboard so I could film, and 

then progressed to my camera and 

housing. 

No-one in my family knows how to 

use a camera, so I taught myself - a 

lot of hours reading and watching 

Youtube videos. I also had the help 

of Susan Gruber and her expertise 

in shooting. 

JOSHUA 

SCo 

wHat gear are you uSing? 

At the moment I’ve been shooting 

with a Canon 70D kept dry in a 

Aquatech housing. Most days 

I shoot with a Tokina 10-17mm 

fisheye lens or Canon 50mm 1.4. 

COastAl 

PhotograPhy 

tell uS about your neck of 

tHe woodS - wollongong. 

any favourite SpotS to 

take your Surf SHotS? 

That’s a tough one... Sandon Point is 

an all time favourite, but I must say 


I love shooting beach breaks on the Coal Coast. 

It’s my type of thing. But lately, I’ve been stepping 

it up to heavier, shallow reef breaks several 

kilometres out to sea. 

Cabo 

Photochromic 

bi-focal lenses 

wHat’S your obSeSSion witH eMpty 

waveS about? 

The ocean produces some crazy stuff… The 

formations of waves are indescribable. I wake up 

every day of the week having the cravings to shoot 

in different aspects, by combining light and speed 

to my photos. Each photo of mine holds something 

special to my heart. I fi nd you can shoot photos 

of surfers doing airs and barrels, but if you shoot 

empty waves it opens you to a whole new world. 

A world of creativity… 

Floating 

Sunglasses 

• Polarised • Polarised Bi Focal 

• Polarised Photochromic • Polarised PC (Melanin infused) 

• RX Prescription 

Corsica 

i noticed SunZapper are Supporting 

you aS a pHotograpHer. wHat doeS 

tHat Mean for you, and How doeS it 

feel to be SponSored So early in your 

pHotograpHy career? 

In the past 9 months of my photography, I was 

lucky enough to become an ambassador for 

SunZapper Zinc & Sunscreen, Arnette Sunglasses 

and Surfears - three amazing companies. The 

www.barzoptics.com 

Showroom - Unit 11 / 4 Leda Drive, Burleigh Heads QLD 4220 

Ph 07 5576 4365 

48 


JOSHUA 

COastAl 

SC 


SCott 

OastAl 

tograPhy 

"This photo was taken by 

Lachlan Scott. Lachlan is my 

little brother. He shot the 

photo and I edited it for him." 

Josh 

support and help I have received from these 

companies is amazing - I couldn’t ask for 

anything else! I’m so grateful and blessed 

to be on board with them. I’d also like to say 

a HUGE thanks to Brenden Newton from 

AIME (Aboriginal Indigenous Mentoring 

Program) for all the help to get me where 

I am today. 

wHere can people See More or 

buy your pHotoS? 

At the moment my photos are for sale via 

Instagram or Facebook. I’m in the process 

of building a website, so at the moment you 

can fi nd my photos on social media branches. 

I also accept orders upon request via email - 

joshuascottcoastalphotography@gmail.com 

wHat are your future planS? 

I want to finish school and hopefully be lucky 

enough to study at University, but I will not 

be giving up photography as it's a major 

factor in my life, and a huge passion of mine. 

I’m not quite sure what job I would consider 

working in, but time will tell. 

@joshuascott_photography 

Joshua Scott Coastal Photography 

50 



Carving on a Mitchell Rae balsa board. Photo supplied by Outer Island 

GREEN: BUILDING 

52 


CONSTRUCTION 

PAGE 56 

GREEN 

MACHINES 

An eco-friendly surfboard… Wow, 

what a Pandora’s box we opened. 

Is it a mythical object, a figment of 

our imagination or a very real and 

achievable goal? 

There’s been a lot of talk through the 

years but has any real progress been 

made? Are all the efforts made to date 

in vain? Do surfers really care and if 

so, are they prepared to pay for it? 

Ahhh, so many questions! 

The fi rst thing we will say is that 

there are not enough pages even in 

this big edition of Smorgasboarder 

to comprehensively cover the trials, 

tribulations, successes and failures 

of manufacturing a surfboard with a 

lesser carbon footprint than the ones 

we have come to know and love. One 

thing you can be assured of however 

is that we won’t force-feed you our 

own beliefs. Have a read of the 

various perspectives and make your 

mind up for yourself. 

HOLLOW 

CONSTRUCTION 

PAGE 70 

RECYCLERS 

PAGE 72 

GROWING BLANKS 

PAGE 80 

GREEN FINISH 

PAGE 90 

GREEN WAX 

PAGE 96 

WETSUITS 

PAGE 98 

HOME BUILDING 

PAGE 100 


THE PERFORMER 

The best of both worlds - a recycled EPS foam 

core and 2-3mm balsawood skin. With a weight of 

only 7kg and an emphasis on manoeuvrability and 

maximum speed, the Performer is designed and 

shaped for today’s high performance longboarding. 

The Performer comes with a single box fin and two 

smaller stabiliser fins. Custom orders are welcome. 

Now available at wholesale pricing. 

ALSO 

AVAILABLE 

Specifications 

Length: 9’0’’ - 9’10’’ 

Width: 22 ¼’’ - 23” 

Thickness: 2 ½’’ - 3 ¼” 

Weight: 6kgs – 8kgs 

Construction: foam core 

modern longboard 

Stringer: Triple cedar – 

30mm apart 

Bottom: Vee 

Tail: Rounded square 

Rails: Nose - 70/30 

Centre - 80/20 

Tail - 90/10 

SHIPPING ANYWHERE, 

INCLUDING NZ 

• Clear board grip tape - Let 

the beauty of the balsa 

show through with clear 

Versagrip Traction Tape. 

Environmentally friendly 

and suits all size boards. 

• Timber fins 

• Surfboards 

• Blanks 

• Raw balsa/ cedar 

• Fin boxes 

• DIY board kits 

• Instructional DVDs 

• Board racks 

• Tide clocks 

• NEW! LICK liquid 

surf wax. 

Wholesale 

enquires 

welcome

HANDCRAFTED IN AUSTRALIA 

Riley Balsawood Surfboards are made using renewable resource balsa and recycled polystyrene for performance, durability, beauty and lower environmental impact 

Call 0412 376 464 

or Email mark@riley.com.au 

www.balsasurfboardsriley.com.au 

Australian Environmentally-friendly handcrafted surfboards for the 

individual in all of us, with a guarantee. Enjoy Responsibly

OFF THE 

GRID 

CONSIDERING around 90% of your 

surfboard is made up of what is arguably 

described as a toxic foam blank, you might 

consider the first point of call in creating a 

more environmentally-friendly surfboard 

would be to remove the blank altogether. Here 

we look at some innovative and interesting 

approaches to creating a surfboard without 

one – shapers that have literally ‘gone blank’ 

and turned to the wisdom of bees, nature and 

the power of grid mathematics and applied it 

as a means of providing the strength and core 

of surfboard design. 

WORDS: DAVE SWAN 

56 



OUT OF THE BOX 

THE 

CARDBOARD-CORE 

SURFBOARD 

We readily admit, surfboard craftsman who are 

prepared to venture left field in the hope of improving 

surfboard design or unveiling a new method 

of construction truly excite us. I guess playing 

with a quarter of an inch here or there may prove 

adventurous to some but it’s not exactly what we 

really consider to be breaking down the barriers of 

surfboard design. 

Nothing has quite blown our minds however in the 

way Mike Sheldrake has. We came across his 

cardboard surfboards around the time we started 

Smorgasboarder some five years ago. Since that 

time Mike has progressed his build method and 

developed several designs that are sure to make you 

view the use of cardboard in a completely new light. 


THOSE WHO ADMIRE modern-day feats of engineering would 

be hard pressed to go beyond the transformation of the humble 

cardboard box into its many uses we see today - from architectural 

monuments of grandeur through to cutting edge furniture, bike 

helmets and even bikes themselves. Interestingly, when the 

6.3-magnitude earthquake that devastated Christchurch in 2011 

destroyed the landmark Christchurch Cathedral, the ever-inventive 

Kiwis, alongside Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, decided to build 

a temporary place of worship nearby whilst work was undertaken 

to reconstruct the original cathedral. The “Transitional Cathedral” 

as it's known is the world’s fi rst cathedral made substantially out 

of cardboard. 

So you can see from the examples listed, the structural integrity of 

cardboard is quite sound. Due to its strength-to-weight ratio and 

its recyclable nature, the use of cardboard in the construction of 

surfboards has merit. But as you can guess, there are also pitfalls 

to this material as Mike Sheldrake will testify to. 

Mike’s adventure into cardboard-core surfboards all began when 

he was forced to retire his 13-year old 8’6” Robert August due to 

damage. With next to no budget and no surfboard building skills to 

speak of, he set about to try and create a surfboard for himself. His 

admiration for hollow wood board construction had him wondering 

whether he could replicate something similar utilising his computer 

skills - he had formerly worked as a computer programmer. 

Mike began fiddling with intersecting ribs when he conceived 

cardboard might make the perfect material for modeling his design. 

Mike figured with the right design, cardboard would provide ample 

strength. The affordability of cardboard sheeting and the fact it's a 

“more natural material” than foam also resonated with his design 

philosophy. 

"The transition from thinking of cardboard as a model material, 

to thinking it might really work came after riding the fi rst board," 

Mike explains. "But the suspicion was there when I decided to 

build and glass a full scale model. I fi gured I'd paddle the model 

out and maybe destroy it. But if it held up, I'd keep working with 

cardboard." 

Employing a structural approach Mike termed the “quarter isogrid”, 

he developed a notched rib assembly that was relatively simple to 

construct, yet sturdy enough for the rigours of the ocean. His next 

step was to design and build his fi rst cardboard-core surfboard. 

MIKE’S QUARTER ISOGRID 

(CARDBOARD CORE IN 

THE RAW AND GLASSED) 

“The board core mainly needs to 

be strong in compression between 

deck and bottom, and I'd say my 

cardboard cores are at least as 

strong as 2lb per square foot of 

foam in compression. They're a bit 

fl exible like foam. The density of 

the structure is roughly the same. 

The overall performance of the core 

seems pretty much the same to me.” 

58 



WHAT’S YOUR RIDE? 

Stepdeck mal, noserider, fi sh, 

single fin, mini Simmons, Hot 

Curl, thruster… Mike has 

developed cutting fi les and 

kits for 12 different types of 

surfboard styles. 



CARDBOARD 

CONSTRUCTION 

Like one giant jigsaw, 

a Sheldrake cardboard 

surfboard kit is literally a 

board in a box. Each piece 

is individually identified 

to allow you to piece 

together the craft - like 

this Hot Curl design to the 

left. Contours, concaves 

and curve – stepdecks, 

scooped nose profiles... As 

you can see to the right - 

nothing is impossible. 

60 


POOLING RESIN, SAND-THROUGHS, 

PIN HOLES AND LEAKS WERE ALL 

PART OF THE LEARNING PROCESS 

MIKE DEVELOPED an initial template based on tail 

of an egg and the nose of a Robert August funboard. 

Once he was happy with the overall outline and curve 

he progressed to cutting out the pieces for his giant 

jigsaw puzzle. He called on a few favours, got his 

design laser cut and before he knew it, was sitting on 

the fl oor of his garage assembling his creation. It all 

came together quite well but the next stage of glassing 

the structural core was another experience altogether. 

He employed the same methods used for traditional 

surfboards, wrapping the core in fi berglass cloth 

hardened with epoxy resin but by his own admission, 

Mike’s first surfboard was pretty rough. 

“It turned out really ugly and lumpy. Sort of hideous 

really but it had promise.” 

In fairness what Mike was attempting however was 

almost unfathomable, quite possibly to even the 

greatest surfboard-building minds. His quest had 

nonetheless begun though. 

What we found as refreshing as the journey upon which 

he embarked was Mike’s openness to the learning 

process and how he shared his experience with anyone 

interested. To many, such an approach would prove 

too revealing. We asked him about the warts-and-all 

personal appraisal of his project and what drove him 

to keep going. 

“I cringe a bit at how earnest and ignorant all that is, 

but it reveals the kind of stuff people want to know. 

People were asking how I built the boards, how I came 

up with the process, what my relevant background 

was and whether I had tried this or that. It takes 

mistakes and imperfect results to develop something 

like this. That's part of the how. I didn't have a relevant 

background when it came to glassing, and there was 

no reason to pretend I did. I showed how some obvious 

approaches people kept suggesting didn't work as well 

as expected. 

“No way was I going to go for the high-tech hard sell. 

'Revolutionary Patent Pending Technology Born Whole 

and Flawless from Mike's Brilliant Mind!!!' Forget it. 

The whole thing is still a slightly messy experiment. 

MISTAKES, 

I’VE MADE A FEW... 

(SING IT LIKE OLD BLUE EYES) 

First attempts at taking the all-star core pattern right to the edge as 

opposed to using radial rail pieces proved a challenge. 

“That was the original design on the first board, and I've revisited it a 

few times. It's just simpler to assemble and not fussy when it's up on 

the glassing stands. But you have to span larger gaps with the glass 

around the rails, so it's 

harder to get decently 

smooth rails with those 

cores - at least with 

the simple glassing 

technique I present. 

That's why all the kits for 

sale are the radial rail 

design, so the rails come 

out smoother for fi rst 

time builders. 

POOLING RESIN - A change in his glassing 

method from presoaking his cloth saw Mike 

overcome this issue. Mike explains a little 

about the glassing process and his preference 

for using epoxy resin over polyester. 

“I went with epoxy initially because it's 

stronger ounce for ounce, and not as prone to 

cracking, and because it wouldn't stink up the 

garage as bad. Later I discovered other crucial 

advantages: Epoxy soaks well into fabric and 

cardboard on it's own - polyester doesn't. 

This allows the simple light-touch brushing 

approach to glassing these cores. You get a 

thin film applied on top of two or three layers 

of fabric, and it will gradually wick into the 

fabric and the cardboard below on it's own. 

“One kit builder ignored my epoxy specification 

(more power to him) and tried to use polyester. 

He reported that the lamination failed to bond 

to the cardboard. He was actually able to peel 

it off and still use the same core with an epoxy 

lamination. 

“Epoxy shrinks much less than polyester as it 

cures. Because I glass the board in sections, 

with multiple batches of resin, if a section on 

the left side of the board cures and shrinks 

before a section on the right side, that has the 

potential to pull and twist the core. I haven't 

had this problem with epoxy.” 


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MISTAKES... 

FIXING THEM UP 

PIN HOLES, 

RESULTING 

CONDENSATION AND 

THE PROCESS OF 

DRYING OUT YOUR 

SURFBOARD. 

“The core structure is made of 

notched ribs that slide into each 

other. Each notch has a little 

half circle cut out of its side for 

ventilation. So every hexagon and 

triangle cell in the structure is open 

to its neighbours. This allows airfl ow 

throughout the entire structure, 

facilitating dry out in the event you 

incur any damage to the board or 

discover a pin hole. 

"With airflow and heat, these 

boards can be dried out within a 

day or two. The cardboard structure 

remains intact. I'm sure long-term 

water exposure, or any water 

exposure, must weaken the structure 

somewhat, but any degradation has 

not been noticeable in the boards I've 

dried, repaired and ridden.” 

IT'S AN EXPERIMENT that has no doubt 

intrigued others. Mike’s cardboard cut 

pattern fi les are available online for free 

and for those who want a head start, precut 

core kits can be purchased from his 

website from a mere USD $150, depending 

on the size of the board. Mike doesn’t 

suggest building one of his boards is a 

simple process from start to fi nish though. 

“Don't try to build one of these boards 

if you're not up to it. There's enough 

information freely available here and 

elsewhere to evaluate whether you're up 

to the challenge. I need people ordering 

kits to understand that. In fact, I hope the 

rough edges of my build guide and videos 

work as a fi lter, to weed out the people 

who need everything completely predigested, 

polished and perfect. It's a double 

message. I want to say it's messy and hard 

and experimental, but it doesn't take an 

expert. It's simple enough, and you can do 

it.” 

I must admit, I couldn’t stop laughing 

when I read the Legal Disclaimer: No 

Morons on his website. 

Here’s an excerpt. 

"If you are reading this, chances are already 

pretty good that you are not a moron. 

Morons usually don't read instructions and 

warnings. 

"Yet somehow issuing written warnings 

offers us some protection when morons 

blame us for losses and damages due to their 

own unnecessary and willful ignorance. 

"Because I want to see boards built and 

ridden, and because I'm not doing any of this 

to separate fools from their money, I want to 

discourage you from attempting to build one 

of these boards if you are in fact a moron." 

Thankfully it appears we don’t have too 

many morons in our corner of the globe as 

Mike explains. 

“Probably a bit more than half of the orders 

I get are from AU and NZ. You guys are way 

more tuned into my deal than the US.” 

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I asked Mike about the business side of things and 

what’s kept him going all these years. 

“I keep kit production set up because that's the one 

step in my process that needs an expensive tool - 

the laser cutter. So what keeps my little unprofi table 

business going is this desire to get laser-cut core 

kits out to builders around the world at a reasonable 

price. Retail or industrial laser cutting services 

would charge way more for these kits. They have 

serious overheads and no passion for surfboards, 

so their prices are probably justifi able. 

“Even my low prices are too high for some, and I 

don't want to stand in the way, so I make the digital 

cut patterns available. If you're broke but driven, 

you might be able to seek out free or cheap laser 

access at a nearby school or hackerspace. Then you 

would just need to buy or scavenge local cardboard 

and you'd be able to cut your kit for less than what 

it costs me to ship one to you - maybe even for 

free. It's my sincere hope that broke but resourceful 

builders put me out of business, by fi nding and 

turning people on to the laser cutting resources in 

their local community.” 

I guess not all are motivated by money. Mike 

Sheldrake is simply happy with his part in life, 

bringing his style of surfboards to the people. 

“I found this great pleasure and satisfaction 

in building and riding my own surf craft. When 

someone comes to me wanting to do the same, 

I get excited for them. I want to help them have 

that same experience, and I don't want to get in 

the way. So I show my journey and my way, and I 

point to SurferSteve.com, because I found his free 

conventional board making instructions extremely 

helpful.” 

There’s a lot of aloha spirit in what Mike is doing 

and we for one commend him on what he has 

accomplished to date. We sure as hell are keen to 

make one of his cardboard-core surfboards as soon 

as some downtime presents itself. 

www.sheldrake.net/cardboards 

"IT'S MESSY AND HARD 

AND EXPERIMENTAL, BUT IT 

DOESN'T TAKE AN EXPERT. 

IT'S SIMPLE ENOUGH, AND 

YOU CAN DO IT.” 

Mike, on building your own cardboard surfboard 

EVEN FINS 

Mike didn’t limit 

himself to just 

cardboard core 

surfboards, he also 

started creating 

his own fi ns, even 

working out how 

to install a fi n 

box although his 

preference remains 

with glass-ons. 

Show off. 

64 



BREATH OF 

INSPIRATION 

HONEYCOMBS & TACKLE 

YOU’RE LOOKING at a core of thin woven bamboo veneers set within a balsa wood 

frame which is then shaped, wrapped top and bottom with a paulownia timber skin, 

and then glassed. Pound for pound, it's considered to be stronger than steel with 

brilliant flex and memory. It’s certainly an innovative way to replace a foam blank. 


We assume you can’t believe what you're 

seeing - neither could we. Just as Mike 

Sheldrake blew our minds when we were first 

starting Smorgasboarder, so too did this guy, 

Kevin Cunningham of Spirare Surfboards. 

We distinctly remember looking at his 

honeycomb-core surfboards in complete awe, 

and still do. 

Kevin hails from Baltimore, Maryland, Mid- 

Atlantic East Coast USA. He fell in love with 

all things surfi ng whilst holidaying in Ocean 

City. Later in life he graduated from the Rhode 

Island School of Design (RISD), still on the East 

Coast but further north above New York State. 

Think of winter water temps in the supersevere 

ice-cream headache range of 3 to 6 

degrees and you get the picture of what it’s 

like surfi ng these parts. It's here where Kevin 

started Spirare Surfboards and where he 

still resides today. No doubt the next question 

you are asking is where he came up with such 

an idea. 

The first few surfboards Kevin shaped were in 

his living room of all places and this got him 

thinking about the environmental footprint a 

surfboard leaves and whether there was a way 

to design a more eco-friendly surfboard that 

utilised sustainable materials. In particular, 

he considered replacing the Clark Foam blank 

that was the industry standard in the US at the 

time, with a safer, alternative material. Kevin 

explained that he “never liked the toxicity of 

TDI foam.” Sustainable wood was his material 

preference. 

He was working with honeycomb structures 

for an architecture studio at RISD and thought 

this could work for a surfboard. Kevin saw it 

as a way he could keep the weight of a wood 

board as light as possible whilst retaining its 

strength. He had been working on the concept 

for a number of years but Clark Foam’s closure 

in 2005 put his idea into overdrive, that and the 

inspiration he derived a couple of years earlier 

from an article in The Surfers Journal. 

66 


RECYCLING FIN KILLERS INTO KILLER FINS 

“I started with green design and sustainable 

construction back before Spirare was even 

Spirare. In 2004 I came up with the idea to use 

a lightweight honeycomb core for an all-wood 

surfboard design after reading an essay by Miki 

Dora in which he outlined a challenge to make 

a board from all natural materials. 

“I spent a few years developing the design to 

get an actual working performance surfboard. 

The best way I can sum it up is that the boards 

worked, but producing them did not. The reality 

of producing the boards for a reasonable price 

was out of the question. Honeycomb boards 

took 40 to 60 hours to produce start to finish 

(build the blank, shape the blank, skins, rails, 

etc).” 

When I read this I couldn’t help but think how 

sad it is that in general, we surfers often don’t 

recognise and appreciate the amount of work 

that goes into crafting surfboards, let alone 

ones of this ilk. 

Marine debris, too often found tangled around dead turtles has been salvaged and 

repurposed as inlays for Kevin's fantastically beautiful fins - true functional art. 

Thankfully Kevin didn’t give the game away 

and during the time he was developing his 

honeycomb core surfboards, he was also 

looking into bio foams, and recycled EPS as 

an alternative core material to the honeycomb 

bamboo structure. This lead Kevin to develop 

his FU Lite Construction. 

This method of construction initially used a 

parabolic paulownia wood perimeter to deliver 

controlled flex to the rails of the surfboard, 

where the board is engaging with the wave the 

most, a recycled EPS foam frame and poplar 

wood skin to unify the overall structure. 

“The recycled EPS turned out to be very 

successful in providing a core/blank that can be 

shaped like any other board, and is green. Most 

importantly the performance of the boards is 

fantastic. The finished weight on the FU Lite 

Wood/Recycled EPS boards is the same if not a 

few ounces less than conventional PU foam and 

poly resin boards, but the durability and life of 

the FU Lite Wood/Recycle EPS far exceeds that 

of the conventional PU.” 

Kevin explains the design also maximises flex. 

When a surfer enters a turn the board flexes 

and stores that energy before springing back 

to really project the board out of that turn at 

speed. 

“My primary focus today is on the FU Lite Wood/ 

Recycled EPS, Wood/Recycled EPS/Carbon, and 

Half & Half constructions. The Wood/Recycled 

EPS/Carbon and Half & Half construction 

are new this year. They are variations of the 

original FU Lite Wood/Recycled EPS design. 

The Wood/Recycled EPS/Carbon boards use 

the same wood top and bottom skins as the 

FU Lites, but utilise carbon fiber on the rails 

instead of solid wood; this makes the boards 

extremely light weight and lively. Half & Half’s 

have a wood deck skin only with no stringers; 

making for lightweight flexi boards.” 

It's clear that Kevin is equally committed to 

performance as he is to using eco-friendly 

materials and methods as well as creating 

aesthetically pleasing surfboards. 



...wax created with the environmentally 

conscious surfer in mind. 

"I HAVE ONLY STARTED 

TO SCRATCH THE 

SURFACE OF WHAT CAN 

BE DONE WITH IT.” 

Kevin, on incorporating marine debris into his work 

COLD COOL WARM TROPICAL 

ORDER ONLINE AT: 

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“I think most surfboards have lost the art 

and have opted for mass production. I 

want to be able to offer something other 

than the plain white surfboard with 

a company logo. My goal is to marry 

great performance with clean lines and 

beauty.” 

Kevin’s conscientious approach to 

sustainable design does not simply 

rest with the surfboard itself, he is also 

constantly on the look out to innovatively 

use and recycle marine debris. Indeed 

the garbage he collects from his local 

beaches such as discarded fi shing line 

and nets are infused into his boards for 

both practical and artistic purposes and 

in particular the range of fi ns he creates. 

“I think there is a lot of potential with that 

material and I have only started to scratch 

the surface of what can be done with it.” 

When asked whether he needs to construct 

them in such a way to get the foil and flex 

he requires, Kevin had this to say. 

“I do try to orient the stands in a manner 

that will give a better fl ex pattern. There 

is some fi berglass cloth laminated in the 

fi ns as well for added strength too.” 

There is no denying Spirare Surfboards 

are a class act and Kevin is constantly 

exploring new and innovative ways to 

design and construct his surfboards 

utilising alternative materials and 

methods to make highly functional 

pieces of art that emphasise his green 

design and sustainable construction. 

In case you were wondering about the 

origins for the name of his business, 

the words respiration and inspiration 

have the same Latin root, spirare, which 

means, “to breathe.” 

www.spiraresurfboards.com 

68 


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Each year Mitchell Rae crafts a small number of signed and dated 

custom balsa boards. In creating these long lasting statements of his 

craftsmanship he draws inspiration from the guitar maker’s art with 

hand inlaid Mother of Pearl eyes and logos to elevate them to a higher 

level. Mitchell explains, “It’s a similar fashion to collector’s guitars, 

years of use and hard riding enhance their intrinsic value. Like a ’57 

Gibson Les Paul, they become full of memories and experience. They 

look good on the wall but these boards are built to be ridden.” 

FROM WORKSHOP 

TO THE WATER 

A few humble pieces of 

timber fi nd new life as a 

high-performance craft with an 

artist's fi nish. 

LOADED GUN 


Mitchell spends in excess of 60 

hours constructing these boards, 

sparing no effort. They are what 

he considers the “pinnacle of the 

surfboard maker’s art. Folks have 

no idea how much crazy love I pour 

into these creations.” 

Built from the lightest balsa 

from Ecuador and Papua New 

Guinea with Western Red Cedar 

and Redwood stringers, they are 

chambered for lightness, split, 

bent and glued using techniques 

similar to that of boat builders and 

aircraft wing construction. Each 

board also incorporates Mitchell's 

devotion to fl ex. 

“I am looking to load the timbers 

in a similar fashion to the wooden 

bow analogy. We set the timbers 

up and actually bend them to where 

the wooden bow would be holding 

its flex before you let the arrow go. 

When the glues dry, the timbers 

will hold that shape. It’s sprung 

under tension so when you fl ick it, it 

sings. It has a real different quality 

to it than if I carved a profi le on one 

big chunk of raw stock.” 

“The bent wood and chambered 

construction sets up a resonance 

like that of a violin or guitar. 

Awesome to ride, a long process 

to build. These boards will last 

for generations, family heirlooms. 

They will be around long after I'm 

pushing up daisies.” 

Having seen these balsa boards 

in person, all I can say is the 

quality of craftsmanship is almost 

indescribable. When you pick them 

up, they feel alive. One day, one 

will be in my quiver... 

www.outerislandsurfboards.com 

70 


"THE BENT WOOD 

AND CHAMBERED 

CONSTRUCTION SETS 

UP A RESONANCE 

LIKE THAT OF A 

VIOLIN OR GUITAR" 


WASTE NOT, 

WANT NOT 

AUSTRALIANS are the second highest producers 

of waste per person in the world behind the United 

States. Depending on which authority you consult, 

each Australian generates somewhere around a 

tonne of waste per year. The average Australian 

household of four people makes enough rubbish 

to fi ll their entire house from fl oor to ceiling in just 

one year. Worst of all, our recycling efforts are not 

matching that of our waste generation, which year 

on year continues to increase. 

Thankfully some of us are bucking the trend and in 

our sphere of infl uence, three shapers in particular 

are turning trash into treasure. Steveo, Jason Oliver 

and Chris Garrett have an innate skill of turning 

something most of us would discard into functional 

works of art. 


"I'VE USED EVERYTHING 

FROM OLD WINDOW AND 

DOOR FRAMES TO PACKING 

CRATES AND PALLETS..." 

Jason Oliver, on materials for his boards 

72 


CHRIS GARRETT 

& JASON OLIVER 

GOOD MATES Chris Garrett and Jason Oliver each pay 

tribute to one another for the recycled wooden surfboards 

they have created both together and on their own. Both 

are advocates of the waste equals resource principle. 

Chris credits Jason as the “brainchild” of their method 

of wooden surfboard construction and Jason claims that, 

“Chris is a wealth of information that has taught him so 

much in relation to shaping.” 

What we can say about the two is that our admiration 

for their skill, and the surfboards they craft, extends well 

beyond the mere fact they use recycled materials. On that 

note however, we asked Jason why he initially sought out 

the materials he features in the construction of his boards. 

“I just see so much stuff that gets thrown out and I look 

at it and think, ‘I could use that.’ I've used everything from 

old window and door frames to packing crates and pallets 

and all kinds of wood from Paulownia to Red Cedar, White 

Cedar, Silver Quandong… Anything that I can recycle that 

has the added benefi t of being free.” 

Beyond the appeal of simply recycling materials, both 

shapers are motivated to make boards that last, after all, 

sustainable surfboards are foremostly created by making 

boards more durable. 

Chris reasons he is not being “green” just for the sake of 

it, “I don’t make any grand claims that these boards are 

the most environmentally-friendly boards you can make 

- they just last longer and take longer to make their way 

into the tip.” 

Jason adds, “I got into wood boards because I like them 

and enjoy making them. I guess I set out initially to make 

a board out of wood that was as good or better than the 

same board made out of foam. I fi nd wood boards perform 

as well, or better than fi breglass, and are stronger. With 

wood boards you also don’t have a lot of fl ex and they 

tend to be more responsive.” 

Having tested a few of their boards, we know these 

boards are far from mere wall-hangers. Apart from being 

pretty indestructible, they also exhibit all the attributes of 

high-performance craft with their own unique nuances. 

A SECOND 

LEASE ON LIFE 

RIGHT: Jason 

attaches a reclaimed 

timber deck to frame. 

BELOW: Who would 

expect an old shipping 

pallet to end up 

looking this good? 




WOODEN 

SURFBOARDS 

SHAPES 

STEVEO explains he has always been good 

with hands whether it be in his former trade 

as a certified chef, working in security, 

construction or crafting beautiful wooden 

surfboards. He’s certainly not wrong. 

We recently visited his home and workshop in 

Pomona where he creates beautiful wooden 

surfboards and skateboards using everything 

from discarded cedar venetian blinds and old 

doors to pallets, furniture, timber scrap and 

even parts of a piano. An old Hawaiian shirt 

Steve’s wife didn’t fancy too much has also 

been re-purposed as a fabric inlay. Absolutely 

nothing goes to waste. 

The recycled materials he uses make his 

boards cheaper to build but their appearance 

is anything but. Herringbone parquetry 

patterns, gold pearl finish coats and layered 

wooden fins all add to the appeal of these 

stunning boards. 

KEEN TO GO GREEN YOURSELF 

Steve conducts one-on-one wooden board 

building courses. He will supply the know 

how, tools and materials or you can bring 

your own. Price for the course, which involves 

building the board from start to finish, is $475 

and $70 per foot of board. 

woodensurfboardsshapesbysteveo.com.au 

74 


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RILEY STRONG WORDS 

Mark Riley didn’t set out to be an eco warrior. He simply wanted to make boards that were built to last 

and looked beautiful. Over the course of time he came to realise however, what he was doing had a positive 

environmental impact. Here’s an insight into his journey. 

A more than accomplished Rugby League player, who played 

senior footy for the Illawarra Steelers and Gold Coast Seagulls 

in the NSWRL, Mark Riley was also a carpenter by trade. After 

badly breaking his leg for the third time in 1990 he gave the 

game away and turned his attention full time towards his home 

building and renovating business. A trip to South America 

however changed his tact again, this time pursuing another of 

his loves, surfing. 

DAVE SWAN 

“I started building surfboards in 1996. I was tired of the 

disposable nature of surfboards. The year prior I was five weeks 

into a surf trip through South America waiting patiently for this 

fi ckle but quality righthander to fi re and when it fi nally did, I 

broke both of the boards I was travelling with in the first session. 

I was fi lthy. 

“I returned home from that trip with some Ecuadorian Balsa and 

was determined to make a durable surfboard. It consumed me. 

19 years on and I haven’t had a single one of my surfboards snap. 

I have achieved what I set out to do – make beautiful surfboards 

that last.” 

It was the closure of Clark Foam in 2005 however that really 

hit home to Mark what he describes as the “toxic nature of 

traditional polyurethane surfboards. 

“When I read about Grubby Clark closing down at the drop of 

a hat because of mainly environmental issues; a business that 

apparently had 80% of the market, which was sending out 

around the world something like 20 containers a day, that’s 

when I really came to realise how bad for the environment 

polyurethane blanks are. As a result, I did a lot of research into 

surfboard blanks. I also came to realise what I was doing was 

good for the environment because the boards I was making 

lasted so much longer. I had always been environmentally 

conscious in my approach but this just strengthened my belief 

in what I was doing and how I went about my business. It 

76 


also encouraged me to fi nd out about and adopt other 

ecologically sound materials, products and approaches.” 

Mark today makes both the solid balsawood boards like 

the classic longboards of the '50s and '60s, for which he 

has become well known, as well as a range of lightweight 

performance fishes, shortboards, longboards and 

paddleboards, all made from balsa skins vacuum bagged 

to a recycled EPS core. 

As Mark explains, “I wanted to create a surfboard that 

not only looked great but could compete with lightweight 

polyurethane surfboards. I didn’t want to go down the 

path of that toxic stuff containing all those VOCs (volatile 

organic compounds) though. I knew I had to find a material 

that complemented the balsa I source from sustainable 

farms. I came across this 100% recycled EPS foam.” 

The blanks go through a process called regranulation. 

Scrap pieces of packing foam from fridges, TVs and the 

like are ground up, pumped into a mould and heated. 

Once ejected from the mould they are shuttled into large 

gas oven drying rooms. The blank is then shaped; vees, 

concaves, you name it before a 2-3mm balsa veneer is 

vacuum-bagged (laminated) onto the blank providing 

added strength. Solid rails are then added to the board, 

the shape is further refi ned with some light sanding before 

being glassed, finished and polished. 

"GOING FORWARD, 

WE WILL HAVE A 

SUSTAINABLE AND 

ONGOING CYCLE." 

Mark, on his local balsa plantation 

“The end result is a surfboard that is not only lightweight, 

has good fl oatation and performs really well, it will last 

at least fi ve times longer than a regular polyurethane 

surfboard. I have got the weight of my 6’1” shortboards 

down to 2.2kg but you are not going to put dents onto it as 

soon as you touch this board. I recently made a 11’ x 30” x 

5 1/2'” paddleboard that came in at 10kg.” 

Not content with what he has achieved to date, Mark 

has further continued to work towards reducing his 

environmental footprint. All foam offcuts from his boards 

go back into his recycled EPS foam mix. Waste from his 

solid balsawood boards is used as garden compost and 

usable offcuts are donated to schools. The glues he uses 

contain no volatile or fl ammable ingredients. His vehicles 

have been converted to LPG to reduce the amount of 

fuel consumed. He is an active member of the Rainforest 

Alliance; an organization that works to arrest the major 

drivers of deforestation and environmental destruction 

and to further his commitment to responsible, sustainable 

harvesting of balsawood, Mark has even set up his own 

plantation up in Cooktown near Port Douglas in North 

Queensland. 

“We now have 300-400 trees that are nearing maturity 

and are planting 100 trees a year so going forward, we 

will have a sustainable and ongoing cycle. 

“There appears to be enough rain and humidity up there, 

the trees are growing well, which is great because the 

faster they grow, the better the quality – the wood is 

lighter in weight and colour. The samples I have taken 

to date make me confi dent we will soon be able to offer 

to surfers a 100% Australian grown and made balsa 

surfboard. I am pretty happy about that but with that said, 

there is always more work to be done.” 

www.balsasurfboardsriley.com.au 


GREEN ROOM 

TEACHINGS 

Dave Porter of Treehouse Landscapes and Handshapes set up his 

premises in Bulli’s oldest running timber mill just over a year ago now. You may 

recall we featured a story on Dave this time last year. Well since then he has 

continued on lovingly handcrafting his surfboards as well as running various 

shaping courses for aspiring board makers. We caught up with Dave recently 

to talk about the unique boards he creates using environmentally friendly and 

sustainable materials and how these same materials are now starting to find 

their way into his shaping courses. 


ABOVE: Flax fi bre 

and hoop pine create 

a stunning fi nish. 

FAR RIGHT: Chuffed 

student, Andrew 

Longhurst 

78 


Photo: Aaron Hughes 


"WE HAVE REALLY PUSHED 

ALTERNATIVE MATERIALS FOR 

ABOUT SEVEN YEARS NOW" 

Dave Porter, Treehouse Landscapes and Handshapes 

“As you know with my own boards we have really pushed 

alternative materials for about seven years now. We have 

experimented with various foams, resins and cloth to create 

durable and sustainable lightweight performance surfboards. 

Thankfully these have been really well received and surfers are 

loving them. 

“On the shaping course side of things however, we went down 

the path of trying to keep costs low for customers so we were 

using traditional materials and manufacturing techniques. 

People who were undertaking the courses were handshaping 

a polyurethane core with stringer and we were then providing 

polyester glassing. It’s been a great year and we have received a 

great response to the courses. A lot of people have since rented 

a bay and some have shaped as many as five boards.” 

Dave has been rethinking his approach to the shaping courses 

however due to many of the attendees expressing interest in the 

materials he is using in his own Treehouse Handshapes. 

“I originally tried to keep some of those alternative materials 

on the sidelines with regards to the shaping courses but people 

see my boards in the showroom and as a result we have just had 

so many requests for things like timber laminate decks and flax 

cloth. People are really liking the look of the materials and want 

to give them a try.” 

Dave explains he is now keen to apply the same ethos to the 

courses he has applied to his core business so that students 

can create their own lightweight, durable surfboards using 

sustainable materials. 

“As of the beginning of next year we will be the first business 

offering both handshaping courses, and a range of alternative 

glassing options such as bio epoxy lamination, pigmented 

glassing with bio epoxy and timber, cork and/ or flax laminates. 

So yeah, we’re really excited about that. Students will also enjoy 

shaping the EPS foam and having the stringerless boards, which 

are really modern and lightweight and durable. We hope to see 

these boards in the lineup for years to come. 

“This direction will also be good for my own health. I want to be 

able to do this for my whole career so I want to use the cleanest 

materials I can." 

www.treehousescapesandshapes.com 


MAGIC 

MUSHROOMS 

IF SOMEONE once suggested you grow your own surfboard, you 

would definitely think they'd been dining out on the old magic 

mushrooms. The reality today however is that this seemingly 

implausible notion is possible. Through a new technology based on 

mushrooms developed by Ecovative, surfboard blanks can be grown 

in about a week. ‘What the?’, we hear you say. 


80 


A COUPLE OF FUNGIS 

Enjoying a Skype chat with 

Gavin McIntyre (right) and Alex 

Carlton (left) of Ecovative. 


Here’s a bit of a rundown on the technology before 

I get into the nitty gritty and go all high tech on you 

with the guys from Ecovative - Gavin McIntyre 

(Co-Founder & Chief Scientist) and Alex Carlton 

(Research and Product Development). Ecovative 

is a New York-based biomaterials company best 

known for its sustainable packaging materials for 

food, storage, insulation... You name it. 

Spurred on by environmentally conscious surfers, 

and with a few keen surfers within the company 

ranks, they decided to have a crack at producing 

a surfboard blank. They revealed their fi rst 

ever Mushroom Surfboard prototypes at The 

Boardroom Show in Costa Mesa, California in 

October 2013. 

Ecovative are essentially growing surfboards 

made of renewable materials, namely agricultural 

waste from crop production inoculated with 

Mycelium, which is the vegetative part of 

a mushroom (basically mushroom roots for 

the laymen). When glassed with eco-friendly 

resins and bamboo fi breglass or something 

of the sort, the surfboards will decompose, in 

effect reducing our landfi lls and marine debris. 

Ecovative’s mushroom material technology is 

also being used to provide a platform for growing 

handplanes and fi ns. 

GAVIN PICKS UP THE STORY AND FILLS US 

IN ON HOW THEIR JOURNEY BEGAN. 

GAVIN: We got started in 2007. Just like you 

guys at Smorgasboarder actually, we were two 

guys working out of the basement of an old print 

shop. We were in our senior year in College 

and we were looking at alternative materials 

we might be able to produce that could replace 

toxic substances that harm our planet. Eben 

Bayer, the other founder, had the insight of using 

mushrooms as basically a natural glue. Growing 

up on a farm he saw these mushroom roots, 

known as Mycelium, growing on and binding 

wood chips together. 

He brought the idea to me and said, “Hey, we 

have this natural adhesive, let’s see if we can 

grow some materials and see how they perform. 

So we bought some mushroom grow kits off the 

internet together with some local farm waste 

(mostly corn stocks) and grew the first samples 

under our beds in our college dorm rooms. 

Literally a couple of weeks later, we tested them 

and found out - based on the strength and the 

density and how much the product weighed - we 

had a really good alternative to Styrofoam (EPS). 

We started protective packaging, and have been 

selling that now for about 5 years and I guess 

it was this time last year, Alex and I had been 

kicking around the idea of doing a surfboard 

blank. I had a surfboard in my office so I said, 

“Let’s cut this up and grow some blanks.” Alex 

did some blend development and that’s when 

we brought it to Surf Expo and starting meeting 

some shapers. 

DAVE: COULD YOU EXPLAIN WHAT YOU 

MEAN BY BLEND DEVELOPMENT? 

ALEX: Our material is mostly agricultural waste 

and the mushroom is a binder. So the large 

majority of the over-arching properties are 

derived from the agricultural waste. We played 


around with different agricultural waste as opposed 

to just corn stocks, which are really fi brous. Some 

sort of pith, like the inside of a stock, is more like a 

particle and so we tried different things like that to 

get different strengths, different densities - basically 

different material properties by using different waste 

streams. 

DAVE: IF I UNDERSTAND, THE CURRENT 

DEVELOPMENT IS TO MAKE BLANKS LIGHTER? 

ALEX: The sticking point is getting it at a low enough 

density that it's still strong enough to be a decent 

material. It's very easy to get a super-low density. It's 

fairly difficult to get a low density that is still a nice, 

rigid material. 

DAVE: IN TURN, IS THAT NOT A CHALLENGE 

AS WELL? I'VE READ THE BLANKS ARE NOT AS 

PLIABLE AS A STYROFOAM BLANK? 

ALEX: One of the ways we were able to get the density 

down was to incorporate more fibres to trap more air 

space, the same way EPS works. The down side to 

that is that if you want to take a planer to it, it pulls 

the fibres out. It's like trying to shave your head with a 

planer. It is not going to work out so well. 

(BALD) DAVE: ALEX MAY HAVE THAT PROBLEM... 

I CERTAINLY DON'T 

ALEX: We developed a blend that was easily 

shapeable and millable on a CNC, unfortunately it 

was six times the density of EPS – too heavy! 

At least in this iteration of development we made 

the decision that getting the density right was more 

important than shapeability, especially since we as a 

company are really good at making custom moulded 

shapes from doing packaging. 

It wasn’t so much of a stretch for us to imagine 

growing a surfboard blank itself, or a pop-out if you 

will, as opposed to a larger blank that is shaped down 

to incorporate custom rockers and outlines. 

GAVIN: That’s where guys like David from Surf O 

Boards and Ed Lewis from Enjoy Handplanes came 

in. These are pretty tech savvy guys who knew how to 

use computer-drafting software. They drew up boards 

and handplanes and sent us the designs. We made 

the tools. 

Now in the case with Dave (Surf O Boards) out in 

California, he actually grows his own boards. He buys 

the materials from us to grow those blanks to his own 

specifi cations. 

So to explain this in a little more detail for 

you our readers, Mushroom Surfboards blanks 

are grown to a near-final shape, rather than a 

rectangular blank, which has to be cut away 

and shaped into a customised surfboard. 

Creating a blank with a less finished outline 

and rocker would certainly resonate more with 

existing surf culture and the shaping community, 

but Evocative’s approach so far has the added 

advantage of minimising waste. And let’s face it, 

82 



HARD-SPORE 

SURF GEAR 

Surf O Boards 

are currently 

leading the charge for using 

mushroom blanks in their 

manufacturing 

LEFT: Daniel Del Toro of Surf 

O Boards 

with their prototyp 

mushroom blank - mycofoam core 

- board, the El Portobello 

FAR LEFT: From agricultural 

waste to a surfboard blank, just 

like magic... 



FUNGUS PUT 

TO THE TEST 

Surf O Boards' 

head shaper 

Daniel Del Toro (left) takes some 

friends out to give their prototype 

mushroom blank board a run, and 

has a whole lot of fun doing it. 

See our website for the video: 

www.smorgasboarder.com.au 

a lot of surfers buy stock model boards 

as opposed to custom shapes, so this is 

not a far cry from that. 

DAVE: SO THERE'S NO WAY OF 

SHORTENING THE FIBRES? I GUESS 

THAT AFFECTS ADHESION? 

ALEX: The shorter the fibre gets the easier 

it is to build, but the heavier it gets. So it's 

this 'Catch 22'. 

We could do a 5lb (2.26kg) surfboard today 

pretty easily. But it gets tougher to shape 

once we get down to a 1.5lb surfboard. At 

that stage the board is nearly all fi bre. To get 

that kind of density you need almost 90% 

trapped air. 

DAVE: YOU'VE HAD ISSUES GROWING 

THE MYCELIUM CONSISTENTLY 

THROUGHOUT THE MOULD? 

ALEX: That was actually one of the areas 

that probably took the most development. 

The surfboard is one of the larger things 

you try and grow in one whole piece. The 

issue we ran into was essentially not getting 

enough air in the middle. 

GAVIN: Mushrooms have to breathe just like 

we do – they breathe oxygen and expire CO 2 . 

So they needed air. 

ALEX: With a thicker board (about 2 ½ inches) 

and with it being fairly wide, having to get air 

all the way from the edge of the mould to the 

middle was essentially impossible. A lot of the 

development went around how to supplement 

the airflow so the Mycelium could breath but 

still not dry out in the process. 

GAVIN: Which basically meant hooking it up 

to some fi sh pumps. 

ALEX: Frankenstein like, but it worked. It 

will now consistently grow in about 7 days. 

In a week, out of a new tool, you can grow 

a blank. 

DAVE: WHAT’S THE BUOYANCY OF THE 

BLANKS LIKE? 

GAVIN: The specifi c gravity is very close to 

that of EPS. 

DAVE: I'M GUESSING IT'S AN OPEN AS 

OPPOSED TO A CLOSED-CELL FOAM? 

ALEX: It is an open cell but it's very similar 

to EPS. The Mycelium itself tends to put this 

protein all over itself called hydrophobin and 

it's a naturally super-hydrophobic protein. 

It's very similar to EPS in that it will stand off 

water for… 

GAVIN: Alex is a chemist. 

DAVE: SO YOU’RE SUGGESTING I DON’T 

KNOW WHAT A HYDROPHOBIC PROTEIN 

IS? NOT ALL AUSSIES ARE DUMB... 

(LAUGHS) OKAY, WHAT IS IT? 

ALEX: Well, basically the Mycelium has 

this natural ability to repel water because 

the mushroom itself doesn’t want to get 

waterlogged, otherwise it will die. It's this 

natural response to moisture. It will put out 

this waterproof layer on all the Mycelium. 

So that gives us a bit of a waterproof 

84 



Entropy 

Bio Resin 

Super Sap CLR 

• A low viscosity, low colour 

and UV stable clear liquid 

epoxy resin system 

• Performance grade 

eco resin 

• Reduced environmental 

impact 

• Safe and pleasant to use – 

low odour, low VOC’s 

Available in Australia 

from 

info@surfinggreen.com.au • 0412 042 811 • surfinggreen.com.au 

functionality, but like EPS, if you surf on it 

for a while with a ding in your board, it will 

eventually wick up water. It'll take a little 

time. But you have to fix your dings. 

GAVIN: A good example of this in the 

States is that we have the National 

Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

- a government agency that overseas 

the climate and the oceans - and they 

actually use our material as temporary 

buoys. They will fl oat for over a week and 

then will slowly sink and return to the 

ocean, as they are marine-compostable. 

DAVE: THAT LEADS ME TO MY NEXT 

QUESTION. HOW LONG WOULD THE 

BLANK TAKE TO DECOMPOSE? 

GAVIN: The core itself in a backyard 

compost pile would take 30 days. In a 

marine environment it would be about 60 

days. That’s just the blank itself. 

DAVE: AND I GATHER IT CAN BE 

EATEN BY MARINE LIFE IF THEY HAVE 

A PENCHANT FOR MUSHROOMS? 

GAVIN: The cool thing about fungi is 

that their skeleton basically is made out 

of chitin, which is the same biopolymer 

you will fi nd in lobster and crab shells. 

Lobsters are made of chitin and so are 

mushrooms. 

DAVE: SO IF A SHARK ATE A SURFER 

RIDING ONE OF YOUR BOARDS IT 

WOULD BE LIKE EATING A GIANT 

LOBSTER?... MOVING ON... 

SO, WE DIDN’T TOUCH ON THE 

DRYING PROCESS. AFTER GROWING 

THE BLANK, THE NEXT STEP IS TO 

DRY IT OUT? 

ALEX: It depends on 

what you're using. Here 

we have huge lumber 

kilns, so for us it takes 

a day. 

David (from Surf O Boards) doesn’t have 

a lumber kiln in his garage. He has a solar 

dryer so that takes 2 ½ to 3 days to dry 

the blank. 

At this point in our story it is relevant 

to turn our attention towards the 

ensuing discussion we had with 

David from Surf O Boards, early 

adopters of the Ecovative Mushroom 

Surfboards technology... 

To give you a little background on Surf 

Organic or Surf O as they are known, 

the company was founded by Daniel 

Del Toro, the head shaper, and David 

Purser III, who runs the business side 

and does a lot of the CAD designs for 

their boards. Surf O was basically 

established to offer their customers 

“the most environmentally friendly 

surf and skate products available on 

the market, and to create them when 

there aren’t any. 

Surf O Boards license the mushroom 

technology from Ecovative, but 

otherwise have no collaboration or 

affiliation with them. David filled us 

in on their experience with using this 

new technology to date. 

DAVID: We met the guys at Ecovative at 

the Boardroom show last September. At 

the time they had a "surfboard" shaped 

mushroom, but glassed with Marine 

epoxy. The board was very heavy, but 

we could tell instantly that it not only 

had potential but could change surfing's 

future. Since then we have developed 

the world's first MycoFoam surfboard, 

lovingly named, El Portobello, after 

our favorite local surf spot El Porto, in 

Manhattan Beach, CA. 

DAVE: YOU'VE BUILT A FEW BOARDS 

NOW USING THE MUSHROOM 

BLANK TECHNOLOGY? 

DAVID: We have made four Mycelium 

surfboards so far. All four have been used 

for testing, and this latest turned out to 

be a whole generation better than the 

first three. 

DAVE: WHAT’S THE EXPERIENCE 

BEEN LIKE SHAPING THESE 

BLANKS? 

86 


Room upgrades, construction of pool and Green Iguana 

Bar and Restaurant complete by June 1, 2014 

Photo: Mick Curley 



and strong and can be glassed with both 

fiberglass and epoxy resins. 

"IDEALLY WE COULD JUST 

GROW A RECTANGLE 

WITH ROCKER, JUST LIKE 

REGULAR FOAM BLANKS..." 

David Purser III of Surf O Boards on 

future plans for mushroom blanks 

In fact, let’s be frank, it is groundbreaking work 

and friggin' unbelievable and their efforts to 

date need to be highly commended. As a surf 

community, let us ensure we are open to new 

technologies, approaches and construction 

methods and not be too readily dismissive 

of them. Surfing was once, or should I say 

previously ‘more’ inventive and exploratory in 

the pursuit of ways to heighten our enjoyment 

out in the ocean. Left field thinking was 

encouraged and applauded. We need to address 

the accumulation of plastics in our oceans and 

on land. We need to start thinking outside of the 

box and these mushroom surfboard blanks have 

a lot of potential. 

DAVID: Shaping boards from these blanks in its 

current state is very difficult. The agricultural byproduct 

(basically mulch) that the mushroom eats 

leaves behind small bits of stems and leaves. 

You need very sure hands and experience with 

the material, or it's extremely easy to take out 

bigger chunks than you intended. 

We're testing some CNC companies' different bits 

and speeds and hope to have a way to "factory" 

shape these boards very soon. However, using 

the mould we designed, the blank grows to about 

90% completion. It handles the rails and concaves 

very well. We have more difficulty with the deck 

growth than anything as it very rarely comes out 

smooth due to: gravity; the mushrooms' tendency 

to fill the remaining space; and the moisture that 

accumulates on the top of the mould. We've 

managed to strip it down well and sometimes do a 

bamboo deck inlay for fun and beauty. 

DAVE: ARE YOU CONSIDERING LARGER 

MOULDS TO ENABLE GREATER SURFBOARD 

CUSTOMISATION FROM THE BLANK? 

DAVID: Ideally we could just grow a rectangle 

with rocker, just like regular foam blanks. I 

think the material is likely a few years away 

from that step, but we've managed to make 

signifi cant progress recently. We found that a 

harsh environmental change with the mushroom 

causes it to harden. The guys at Ecovative call it 

"buttoning". This hardened state is much thicker 

and eats signifi cantly more of the seed material. 

We already have to design our moulds larger than 

the spec for the surfboard because we experience 

about a 5% loss in size after dehydration. We've 

managed to cut some clean fi sh tails in our El 

Portobello board, despite the squash design. With 

effort and patience we can do some customising. 

Right now we're experimenting with consistently 

changing the density of the board based on the 

surfers preference. 

DAVE: IN TIME, DO YOU BELIEVE YOU WILL 

YOU BE ABLE TO SUCCESSFULLY ALTER 

THE DENSITY OF THE BLANK TO CREATE 

VARYING WEIGHTS? 

DAVID: This is something we are trying out now. 

We are able to dial it in to a degree, but right now 

it's easier to make it heavier than it is lighter. 

THERE IS NO DENYING the significant 

advancement made by Ecovative and the 

early work of Surf O Boards is a step in the 

right direction of producing environmentally 

friendly and sustainable surfboards. The foam’s 

consistency may be closer to particleboard than 

traditional polyurethane and polystyrene and 

more easily sanded than planed but it is buoyant 

What a pleasure it was to talk with all these 

guys - all extremely approachable and gracious 

with their time. My chat with Gavin and Alex 

was punctuated by a lot of laughs. These are two 

scientists I wouldn’t mind having a beer or two 

with if I ever get the chance to visit Green Island. 

Gavin and Alex welcome any approaches by 

current or aspiring shapers here in Australia 

and New Zealand. They are keen to collaborate 

with board builders to advance this sustainable 

technology. As long as you're proficient with CAD 

design software they can make the tooling to suit 

and get you set up to grow your own blanks. 

MORE INFO... SEE 

www.ecovativedesign.com 

www.surfoboards.com 

88 


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MIXED MATERIALS 

Shapers such as Dave Porter 

of Treehouse Landscapes 

and Handshapes 

are really 

pushing the envelope when 

it comes to incorporating 

sustainable materials into 

the fi nishing of a board. 

GREEN FINISH 

ECO-FRIENDLY FIBREGLASS 

REPLACEMENTS AND RESINS 

When constructing a surfboard, you wouldn't be surprised to realise that 

green surfi ng eco-considerations don't just stop at the blank. There's a lot 

more that goes into the finishing of a board, with people researching and 

using alternatives for long-time standards of fibreglass and resins. 


90 


When researching this topic we consulted 

a number of local shapers including an 

organisation in the United States called 

Sustainable Surf, which is a not-for-profi t 

organisation that has developed a program 

called the ECOBOARD PROJECT. It is 

essentially a science-based, independent 

standard for surfboards manufactured with 

sustainable materials utilising the latest 

advancements in “green chemistry”. All 

materials are benchmarked and verifi ed as 

to their legitimacy in effectively reducing the 

environmental and toxic impact of making 

surfboards. 

A certified ECOBOARD must be made from 

at least one of the following materials: foam 

made from a minimum 40% recycled foam or 

at least 40% biological content, a minimum 

of 15% biological resin or made from wood. 

Having looked at some of the alternative 

approaches to addressing the toxicity of 

foam, we thought it time we investigate the 

various bio resins and cloth available when 

building a ‘green’ surfboard. 

Finished with 

Entropy Resin, 

Photo courtesy of 

Surfing Green 

GLASSING WITH A BIO- 

BASED SURFBOARD RESIN. 

Firstly let’s look at resins. With the 

benchmark criteria for surfboard resin 

containing at least 15% biological carbon 

content and low Volatile Organic Compounds 

(VOCs), we were somewhat surprised to fi nd 

there appeared to be only two companies 

who commercially produced surfboard resin 

that fi ts the bill. 

The fi rst and perhaps lesser known of the 

two resins is produced by Sicomin, an epoxy 

system formulator based in France with 

over 20 years’ experience in their fi eld. Their 

system Greenpoxy 56 is an epoxy resin that 

has 56% of its molecular structure coming 

from plant origin. Not too much appears to 

be known about this bio-based epoxy resin, 

which we believe was only made available to 

the Australian market earlier this year. 

Entropy Resins is the other company we 

certainly do know of that produces two 

different types of bio-based resins that have 

really begun to make inroads with Australian 

surfboard manufacturers. We recently spoke 

with Nicola and Dave O’Reilly from Surfi ng 

Green who have been importing Entropy 

Resins since 2011. 

According to Dave they have watched and 

in some ways been part of the evolution of 

the Entropy products. “Right from the start 

we knew that getting shapers to change 

what they are doing was going to be a bit 

of an uphill battle. Everything in surfboard 

manufacture in Australia is constricted by 

very tight cost margins due to competition 

from China and other countries.” 

Since that time Surfi ng Green has been 

slowly working on educating both the shaper 

on the advantages of using the bio resin and 

the consumer on why they should pay slightly 

more to not only benefi t the environment, 

but also those shaping their boards. Nicola, 

who also happens to write our Green Column 

in Smorgasboarder explained the eco 

credentials of Entropy Resins. 

“Most surfers, and undoubtedly all shapers, 

are aware of the dangers posed when 

glassing a surfboard with polyester resin. 

Polyester resins are toxic and have cancercausing 

chemicals in them. Despite the well 

documented dangers many shapers still stick 

to their tried and true resin of choice. This 

reluctance for change is often attributed 

to factors such as thin fi nancial margins, 

however slowly the industry is moving 

forward to embrace less toxic components. 

“Epoxy resin, when used to glass surfboards 

as an alternative to polyester resin, is proven 

to be twice as strong and does not contain 

the same carcinogens as polyester resin. The 

downside however, is that it often causes 

skin reactions and other problems so is not 

always able to be used by every shaper.” 

According to Nicola, as a means of 

countering the problems surrounding these 

two traditional options for surfboard glassing, 

two brothers in the United States decided to 

use their skills and love of surfi ng to create 

a resin that was bio-based and significantly 

less toxic than any that had come before it. 

Rey and Desi Banatao of California, being 

highly qualifi ed scientists (Rey holds a PhD 

in Polymer Chemistry and Desi a BS and MS 

in Material Science and Engineering) have 

committed to providing a cleaner alternative 

for shapers and surfers alike. 

“Entropy Resins advocate that there is no 

better chemist than Mother Nature and that 

not all carbon is created equal. They replace 

petroleum-based carbon with renewable 

plant-based carbon. The raw materials going 

into their resins are co-products or waste 

products of other industrially important 

processes and are materials that do not 

compete with food sources or displace foodbased 

agriculture.” 

Since starting their experimentation with 

creating a bio resin back in 2006 in a make 

shift lab under an offi ce space owned by 

their father, the Banatao brothers have 

been busy perfecting their end-product in 

order to answer demand for a resin that 

performs to a high standard and delivers 

on its environmental claims. Dave explains 

this point in more detail from a shapers 

perspective. 

“The beauty of the Entropy resin for the 

shaper is that they can use a product that 

performs in exactly the same manner as 

traditional epoxy, yet has extremely low 

odour, doesn’t cause the same adverse 

reaction to the shaper and emits zero to near 

zero VOCs during use. 

“In recent years, the fact that high profile 

shapers and surfers have become more 

environmentally aware and are starting to 

advocate the use of products such as these 

has meant a much more receptive attitude 

from others in the industry. Kelly Slater’s 

quiver on the ASP Tour last year included 

boards glassed with Entropy resin and proved 

that performance is not compromised by 

having a more ecological product.” 

“Entropy themselves have really stepped 

up their development of their surfboard 

resins (they also produce a range of resins 

for use in other industries) by identifying 

that their early versions of the resin weren’t 

able to compete on certain levels. While the 

performance has always been great, the fact 

that they use plant based materials meant 

that the early versions were a little yellowed 

and were only really suited for use on timber 

boards. This turned off a lot of shapers who 

wanted that crisp white finish or didn’t want 

the yellowing to affect their tints. The latest 

version not only includes the UV inhibitor, but 

also contains an optical brightener to allow 

shapers to achieve that bright, white finish. 

The resulting demand has increased two fold. 

“Pleasingly we are seeing more and more 

shapers enquire about the resin and many of 

the younger generation of shapers are giving 

it a go and loving the results.” 


sustainability tick of approval and is close to 

being a viable option.” 

HEMP FIBRE 

Hemp is one of the oldest materials known to 

man. It’s use dates back some 10,000 years. 

It has a number of attractive characteristics 

including being the longest and strongest 

natural fi bre and is considered to be an 

exceptional structural material for use in 

buildings and even bridges. 

ECO-FRIENDLY FIBREGLASS 

REPLACEMENTS 

Fibreglass is glass-reinforced plastic. Many 

have endeavoured to replace this material 

with natural alternatives. Some have been 

successful, some not so successful and some 

are still very much a work in progress. Some 

shapers have conjured up ways to remove 

fi breglass altogether by vacuum-bagging timber 

laminates to foam cores. The timber is treated 

with Lanolin or painted with an epoxy resin to 

protect and waterproof the surfboard. Here’s a 

few of the eco-friendly alternatives to fi breglass 

we know of: 

BAMBOO FIBRE 

Considered to exhibit the same strength 

characteristics as typical 4 oz. E-glass cloth, 

boards built using bamboo fi bre are said to 

be just as durable as the ones glassed with 

fi breglass and polyester resin. Nicola from 

Surfi ng Green explains some of the other 

advantages and disadvantages of using this 

material from their own personal experience. 

Flax Fibre - functional and beautiful. 

Photo courtesy of Treehouse 

“Bamboo fibre is synonymous with ecology, 

providing an alternative to other fibres in 

many different arenas, most notably clothing. 

When Greenlight Surfboard Supply started 

experimenting with this material as an 

alternative to fibreglass they realised they 

had come up with a viable alternative. Being 

biodegradable, sustainable and manufactured 

using pollution free processes, bamboo cloth 

also provided strength equal to fibreglass and 

with a knit rather than woven finish, it was 

able to stretch all ways. But it was that stretch 

that ultimately proved to be its downfall. The 

stretchiness of the fabric made it fiddly and 

difficult to work with, and there were also issues 

with the cloudy finish once the resin was applied. 

“While this was a valiant attempt at converting 

a sustainable fabric into one that could be 

used to manufacture surfboards, Greenlight 

have suffered a decline in demand for this 

material and have subsequently stopped 

producing bamboo cloth in the meantime. There 

are other people attempting to use bamboo 

as an alternative for laminating purposes so 

hopefully an end product that suits everyone’s 

requirements can be found. It certainly gets the 

Hemp can grow on dry land or with minimal 

irrigation, adding organic matter to the soil and 

it does not require insecticides or herbicides 

because it grows too quickly for any weed to 

compete. Indeed Hemp only takes 4 months 

to mature and reportedly produces nearly four 

times as much raw fi bre as an equivalentsized 

tree plantation. But if hemp is so good 

why did it nearly disappear altogether until 

the turn of this century? The simple answer 

is the Industrial Revolution. Hemp and other 

sustainable materials were replaced in favour 

of petroleum-based products that were seen as 

inexpensive and infi nite. I suppose we are now 

starting to come full circle. 

In terms of the use of hemp as an alternative 

to fi breglass in making surfboards, the jury is 

still out. Whilst some consider hemp cloth to 

be 10-15 percent stronger and deliver greater 

fl ex properties than traditional fi breglass, many 

consider it too heavy and too hard to work with 

at this stage. As it is a cloth however, this may 

be addressed in time with variations in weight 

and weaves that do not soak up as much resin. 

Another advantage of working with hemp 

is that when sanding it, the dust is inert as 

opposed to fi breglass dust, which is reportedly 

carcinogenic. 

FLAX FIBRE 

Another natural fi bre that is being used as an 

alternative to fi breglass is fl ax. We spoke with 

Dave Porter from Treehouse Landscapes and 

Handshapes about his experience using this 

type of cloth in his boards. 

“I have generally found it takes a bit of time to 

adapt to using new materials. With fl ax cloth 

for example there are a lot of different weaves 

and weights and it took me a long time to find 

the right cloth that I was happy with. Also it is 

a different process to using polyester or some 

of the old fashion standard resins. You have 

to adapt to using epoxies and a new glassing 

process. There is a commitment that needs to 

be made there. If you are a manufacturer with 

92 


your head down producing high quantities of 

boards, it is very hard to pull away to find time 

to experiment with different materials such as 

this. It seems to be a grassroots movement 

because it is the guys who have the flexibility 

and time to experiment. These are the guys 

who I think are starting to lead the industry in 

this regard.” 

As to what challenges flax presents when used 

in the “glassing” process, Dave had this to say. 

“With any standard fibreglass cloths, when 

you squeegee in the resin, you can really see 

any air left in the laminate but as fl ax is not 

transparent, you have to be quite meticulous 

and work the flax cloth well to make sure you 

evacuate all the air. 

“Wrapping around the rails requires some 

slightly different techniques with the squeegee 

to make sure you tension it nicely and that all 

the threads are pulled in the right direction. You 

can’t freelap because you see where the cloth 

overlaps. You need to do cut laps, which again 

is a bit more labour intensive. Other than that 

it is just knowing the strength of the cloth and 

knowing how many layers to build up and how 

to combine it with traditional fi berglass. We 

generally put a standard, light fi breglass layer 

over the top of it." 

CORK 

We have seen it used as a soft-top in Richard 

Harvey’s "Corky" creation for beginners 

but Dave Porter is currently experimenting 

with using a cork/flax composite to replace 

fi breglass. 

“We sourced some cork recently and have 

had a go at some EPS boards fully laminated 

in cork and flax. I have surfed a couple of the 

prototypes and am really enjoying it. We are 

just trying a few more tweaks construction wise 

to strengthen the boards and get all the joins 

really nice and neat. 

“We actually wrap the cork right around the 

deck, rails and bottom, using fl ax fi bre to 

reinforce it. The whole lot is then vacuum 

bagged onto an EPS core. So far the boards 

have come out really good. We have some 

orders already but have asked people to hang 

off for a while until we thoroughly test the 

prototypes. I am really excited about it and it is 

a great material to work with, it’s sustainable 

and it has a great earthy look. 

“Since the wine industry has turned away from 

cork there is a whole industry that needs to be 

supported and it is struggling at the moment. 

To be able to take an existing industry that is 

providing a renewable resource and to be able 

to fi nd another use for it is pretty exciting. 

SUSTAINABLE 

SURFBOARDS: A FIGMENT 

OF IMAGINATION OR THE 

FUTURE OF SURFING? 

I guess the answer to this vexing question 

depends on who you ask and their perspective 

on the current state of play and the future 

of manufacturing surfboards, as well as the 

needs and wants of surfers. As Dave Porter 

explains, “Producing sustainable surfboards is 

always a work in progress. There are always 

new materials coming out and improvements in 

existing materials. The most important message 

to get across is to encourage shapers to start 

experimenting with these materials. They are 

certainly not perfect at the moment but we 

need to think about the impact of the materials 

we currently use and choose materials that 

have less of an impact on the environment. We 

also need to consider increasing the durability 

of surfboards whilst keeping them lightweight 

at the same time, keeping that performance 

aspect about them because otherwise these 

processes won’t be adopted. 

“I don’t think anyone at present can run around 

claiming to make a totally green surfboard. 

However, if we can improve those things, it will 

be a good step forward in an ongoing process 

of constantly looking for better materials and 

keeping an open mind on what surfboards can 

be made of.” 

Darren Burford of Burford Blanks echoes 

Dave’s sentiments regarding the durability of 

surfboards but from a different point of view. 

“I still maintain that if you make surfboards 

slightly stronger, we will address a large part 

of our environmental concerns. If you make it 

once and it lasts you longer you have one lot 

of rubbish and that is more environmentally 

friendly than if you use supposed “green” 

materials. As a general rule my concern is that 

the green stuff is in some ways a token offering 

for marketing purposes. It is usually not about 

making the planet better but about going that 

route in a marketing sense. That may p*ss 

people off but that is my belief. 

“The problem we currently face is that people 

want lighter boards and the reality is they fall 

apart quicker. Most shortboards these days 

are a fashion item. What’s been done this 

year, people don’t want next Summer. I am 

not talking about fishes, logs and single fins 

but modern shortboards, which are a large 

percentage of the market. If it is not light, you 

don’t sell it. If it doesn’t have the right width 

and thickness at this present moment of time, 

in which it will be different six months later, 

people aren’t interested. If you keep building 

boards with a single layer of 4oz glass they are 

going to be fast transitioned to landfill. 

“Which leads me to fibreglass, there is only 

one type made in Australia but the yarn is still 

imported because there are no manufacturers 

of yarn here. So your environmental footprint 

is larger but where do you start and where 

do you stop? Most of us drive our cars to the 

beach, many of us go on overseas or interstate 

surf trips. Whether you are using EPS or 

Polyurethane foam or epoxy or polyester resin 

you need oil. 

“You can make “green” polyurethane blanks by 

using corn starch or sugar in part of the foam 

mix but they don’t last as long. We have tried it. 

The same goes for recycled foam. If you want 

insulation foam it is fine. If you want it for a 

surfboard where you are not going to put your 

foot through the deck, it’s no good. They fall 

apart and so you have to make it again and thus 

you increase the amount of waster over and 


Get back to surfing’s roots... 

Native Hawaiian 

surfer with alaia 

board, circa 1911 

Tom Wegener preferred alaia blanks • Alaia & Kite Boards 

Long Boards • Hollow Boards • Chambered Boards 

SURFBOARD SUPPLIES 

Our buoyant, 

lightweight 

timber floats 

all around the 

world. 

Contact David Evans 

P: 03 9588 2533 

E: info.sales@paulowniasurfboardsupplies.com 

W: www.paulowniasurfboardsupplies.com 

with paulownia 

Buy the Best Paulownia Timber 

Australia has to offer. 

above the polyurethane 

blank you were trying 

to replace in the fi rst 

place. Our focus is 

on making the best 

foam in the world so 

surfboards last longer.” 

Chris Garrett has made surfboards with 

all manner of materials, some of which 

have been heralded as environmentally 

friendly and celebrated for their use of 

recycled timber. 

“Many of the timber boards I have made, 

I have not come at them with the view 

of marketing them ‘environmentally 

friendly’. I just wanted to make 

something durable that was a little bit 

different and alternative to the main. In 

actual fact the recycled timber boards, 

because they were glassed inside 

and out, used double the amount of 

fi breglass and resin, but people thought 

they were a revelation. They weren’t, in 

that regard. Later on the timber veneer 

boards I vacuum bagged onto styrofoam, 

eliminating all of the fi breglass and 

90% of the resin, were ‘eco-friendly’ 

and they didn’t rate a mention. I found it 

discouraging if you were in fact trying to 

be environmentally friendly. 

“The other problem with making boards 

environmentally friendly is that they 

are expensive to make and they require 

processes that are longwinded and as 

a result, people are not prepared to pay 

for it. They love the environmental tag 

but they are not prepared to pay for it. 

It is an ego stroke and as long as they 

have their eco friendly brand conscious 

recognisable surf product under their arm 

or on their person, they feel justified and 

validated. It’s all about marketing and you 

either buy into that market or you don’t. 

“The reality is the polyurethane/polyester 

surfboard are as cheap as it gets. 

Unless you are prepared to take your 

eco concept to a third world country and 

reduce your labour costs, it can’t compete 

price wise. Once you ship them back 

over here however, how large has your 

environmental footprint become? 

“The key to me is to try and slow the 

transition to landfill. Realistically the 

material process of polyurethane blanks 

and polyester resins, with what you 

can do with it, the mouldability, the 

weight – there is just nothing else out 

there realistically. So I try to build my 

boards the best I can, with the best 

materials so they last longer so people 

don’t throw them away as quick. That 

is my environmental statement these 

days. I would rather charge more and 

have customers come back a little less 

frequent rather than most business 

models that are based on frequency 

of numbers where the surfboards are 

disposable or they change models 

continually. I tend to want things to last.” 

When discussing the eco credentials of 

any form of surfboard manufacturing, 

one of the most important points that 

needs to be taken into consideration as 

Chris highlighted is where the surfboard 

is made. Mark Riley gives us an insight 

into his own personal experiences. 

“Many surfers don’t know where their 

boards come from. I regularly ask people 

about it and the reply will often be, ‘I 

don’t know.’ Then I will enquire as to who 

made it? ‘I don’t know.’ What’s it made 

from? ‘I don’t know.’ Is there a guarantee 

on it? ‘I don’t know.’ How do you repair 

it? ‘ I don’t know.’ And my final question 

is, how many Aussies touched this board 

in the manufacturing process and the 

reply is regularly, ‘I don’t know.’ What’s 

the environmental footprint of offshore 

production? 

“At least when you do buy something 

from me you know where it has come 

from, who know who makes it, you know 

the processes I undertake and you know 

it will last because I have a guarantee on 

all my boards from snapping.” 

94 


The Max wetsuit made to your 

shape and size 

The best fit = the warmest wetsuit. 

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WICKED 

WAX? 

At this stage of proceedings you might be thinking that surfing, for so many of us, 

is not as soulful as we may think. Essentially - from a green extreme perspective - 

most of us are riding surfboards that endanger the planet and the same goes for our 

wetsuits. And the news gets even worse, the wax you use is no better. 


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the Sunshine Coast and Sydney. Contact us for shipping costs elsewhere. 

“My own kids love 

them too...” 

Dean Geraghty 

Most surfers are aware bout 95% of 

surf waxes on the market today contain 

a concoction of petrochemicals, namely 

paraffi n, petroleum jelly, microcrystalline, 

vistanex, all of which are essentially the 

byproduct of crude oil. What then makes 

your wax sticky is a mix of synthetic resins 

and glues. Even those sweet smelling 

tropical fruit aromas emanating from your 

bar of wax are made from a variety of 

chemicals - the scent of strawberry uses 

up to 40 alone. You'll also be pleased to 

know that we reportedly use 6 million 

bars of the stuff worldwide each year. 

What’s also of concern is that some 

companies who have seemingly made 

an effort to go ‘green’ may still use 

petrochemcials in their ingredients, 

namely paraffi n wax and mineral oils. 

Glenn Fatches from Bees Knees Surf Wax 

had this to about some waxes on the 

market that claim to be environmentally 

friendly. “So it seems most "eco-blends" 

use soy wax and people think it must be 

ok and ‘natural’ because it comes from 

soy beans, but if you look beyond the 

labelling it's not that simple. 

“There's only 2 or 3 companies in the 

world that commercially produce soy 

wax. They all use Monsanto's G.M.O. soy 

beans. These are grown on an industrial 

scale with chemical herbicides, pesticides 

and fertilizers. The wax is then extracted 

from the beans using chemical solvents. 

It's then bleached and deoderised with 

more chemicals then mixed with yet 

more chemicals to make it hydrogenate 

(solidify). After that it is still quite soft 

and so it gets blended with other waxes 

like paraffin and/or chemicals to make it 

useable. All through that whole process a 

lot of chemicals and fossil fuels are used 

to make a so-called "natural" wax.” 

So if that is indeed the case, what the 

hell are your options if you do want to 

make an effort and opt for a wax that 

is at least slightly more eco-friendly? 

Are they as good as the surf waxes we 

have come to know? Here’s a rundown 

on some waxes that stake their claim as 

being as good for the environment as they 

are for performance, many of which we 

have come to know, having tested them 

ourselves over the past few years. 

96 


GREEN: GEAR 

BEES KNEES 

SURF WAX 

BELLS 

SURF WAX 

TREEHUGGER 

NATURAL 

LICK LIQUID 

SURF WAX 

MATUNAS 

ORGANIC 

Bees Knees Surf Wax hails from 

Nambucca Heads and uses 

locally produced beeswax and 

sustainably harvested botanical 

based oils and resins. Glenn 

Fatches of Bees Knees explains 

the wax is made entirely from 

natural, organic, non-toxic, 

bio-degradable and sustainable 

ingredients being harmless to 

you and the planet. Even the 

packaging is made from recycled 

wastepaper. 

“We use no chemicals in the 

process. Also all our processing 

is done using a ‘bio-char’ 

processorer which is classed as 

"carbon negative" so it's nonpolluting 

and sustainable and 

also makes a truly eco friendly 

bi-product.” 

90g Cool Water, Warm Water 

RRP: 3-pack $15, 5-pack $25, 

10-pack $40 

With Bells Beach and the 

surrounding reef breaks now 

classed as protected marine 

reserves it was fi tting that last 

year a Victorian Surf Coast 

family launched an eco-friendly, 

biodegradable surf wax to 

respect surfi ng in this region. 

Bells Surf Wax is said to be a 

quality 100% organic product 

modelled on a unique 3D bell 

shape for simple handle-like 

application. The key ingredient 

for their secret formula is bees 

wax and 4-6 other additives 

(dependant on the formula), all 

being au natural. Like many of 

the above waxes it is not mass 

produced and is hand-poured into 

moulds. 

120g Base coat, Cool/Cold, 

Warm & Tropical 

RRP: $6 

A small family owned and 

operated business in Lennox 

Heads makes Treehugger for the 

environmentally conscious surfer. 

Each block is hand made and 

hand poured. The main ingredient 

is beeswax which is melted and 

combined with a mix of coconut 

and other vegetable oils. Natural 

plant based gums are added for 

stickiness and natural minerals 

and clays are added to create 

a thicker wax that bumps up 

quickly when it's rubbed on your 

surfboard. 

Graham Colpus of Treehugger 

confi rmed their wax contains no 

petroleum by-products, harsh 

chemicals or synthetic materials 

and is made of all natural 

biodegradable and sustainable 

ingredients. Even the packaging 

is made from recycled paper. 

75g Cold, Cool, Warm and 

Tropical, and a base coat for 

cool and cold waxes. 

RRP: 5-pack $20 

Is a French invention now 

distributed throughout Australia 

and New Zealand by Riley 

Classic Balsawood Surfboards. It 

doesn’t come in a bar but rather 

a tube. The positive here is you 

only need to squeeze out a little 

bit of the sticky stuff to smear 

over your board, meaning less 

wastage. It sounds weird but it 

defi nitely works. It is sticky for 

sure, lasts quite a while and 

keeps your board looking smick. 

Lick Liquid Surf Wax is said to 

contain no petrochemicals, only 

vegetable-based, biodegradable 

ingredients. 

35g All temperatures. 

RRP: $28 (but it goes a long way) 

With claims to be “the original 

organic wax” Matunas has seen 

the likes of Kelly Slater and Joel 

Tudor use their product and have 

subsequently developed quite a 

following. 

Originating out of Santa Cruz 

in California, Matunas' organic 

credentials have been challenged 

by competitors in the past, but 

independent tests conducted 

by S&N LABS have reportedly 

delivered conclusive results the 

components of Matunas surf wax 

are from natural origins. 

The ingredients includes clay, 

beeswax, jasmine, raspberry, 

coconut oil, tree sap, aloe and 

honey with each block wrapped 

with recycled paper and printed 

with soy ink. Matunas is 

considered to be non-toxic and 

biodegradable. 

90g Cold, Cool, Warm, 

Tropical and Basecoat 

RRP: $3.99, 5-pack $19.95 

Nothing to see... 


GLOBAL 

WARMING 

In the main, pretty much nothing 

we surfers use is biodegradable, 

and most of it is pretty toxic too. 

We've looked at the alternatives 

emerging in relation to 

surfboards, so now let’s 

look at that piece of 

rubber that keeps us 

warm. 

Most are aware wetsuits 

are made from neoprene; 

a synthetic, petroleum 

derived material 

with a highly toxic 

manufacturing process. 

Invented in 1930, 

neoprene was first used 

in wetsuits in the 1950’s. 

Since that time, in terms of 

a wetsuit’s environmental 

footprint, we haven’t made 

a hell of lot of progress. So 

what are the alternatives if you 

genuinely care for the planet 

but don’t want to freeze your 

bits off? 

Our friends at Surfi ng Green have regularly 

kept us up to date with what’s ‘suit’able for 

our environment, from Rip Curl’s use of nonsolvent 

glues to O’Neill’s use of recycled 

plastic bottles and Billabong’s commitment 

to reduce energy consumption and carbon 

emissions. Triple X Wetsuits have even 

endeavoured to address the expendable 

nature of wetsuits by guaranteeing to repair 

their suits for life. The most signifi cant 

advancement of late however appears to 

be by Patagonia who have teamed up with 

biomaterials manufacturer Yulex to produce 

wetsuits made of a bio-rubber that comes 

from the fl owering shrub guayule, which is 

grown in the Arizona desert and requires 

very little water. These suits are presently 

60% Yulex bio-rubber and 40% neoprene. 

It is interesting however, when we talk of 

environmental concerns, most of us refer 

to our physical environment and man’s 

impact on nature. However there is also the 

social environment to consider, being one's 

economic, social and political surroundings. 

Being a responsible corporate citizen 

goes beyond concerns for just the natural 

environment alone but also our social 

environment by ensuring cheap developing 

world labour is not exploited. 

A company that doesn't go overboard 

in promoting their eco-credentials, to 

avoid it appearing as what they refer to 

as “Green Sheen” or “Greenwash” (a 

form of marketing spin highlighting an 

organisation’s environmental policies) is 

Seventh Wave from New Zealand’s South 

Island. Seventh Wave 

wetsuits are hand 

made in New Zealand and use limestone 

neoprene as opposed to oil-based 

neoprene. I asked founder Paul Zarifeh 

about the differences. 

“On its own, limestone neoprene is not 

necessarily more eco-friendly than oilbased 

neoprene. What contributes to it 

being more 'green' depends on its use of 

more sustainable and less toxic resources 

during production, and the longer its useful 

life span.” 

“We use limestone-based neoprene from 

Yamamoto in Japan. 97% of limestonebased 

neoprene is calcium carbonate. 

Although it’s a fi nite resource, there is an 

estimated reserve of limestone to last for 

3,000 years. Arguably the extraction of 

limestone has less of an impact on the 

environment than oil-based neoprene, 

which depends on oil exploration, drilling, 

and potentially dangerous transportation 

(think oil spills). Also, current oil reserves 

are fast being depleted. So despite 

both extraction methods being far from 

environmentally friendly, limestone would 

seem to be the more 'green' of the two.” 

Both types of neoprene also necessitate 

the conversion of core materials into 

polychloroprene rubber chips that are then 

melted, mixed, baked and cooled to form 

neoprene sponge. Creating neoprene is 

energy-intensive however Yamamoto, the 

main producer of limestone neoprene, 

argues that its process uses one-tenth of 

the heat used in refi ning petroleum. 

“The fact that limestone neoprene is 

considerably warmer due to its high 

micro-cell structure also means that 

less polychloroprene is needed in 

the production of a limestone-based 

wetsuit. In other words, 2mm limestone 

neoprene is as warm as a typical 3mm 

sheet of neoprene made from oil, which 

means there is less polychloroprene/raw 

materials needed and proportionally, less 

of an environmental impact.” 

This aspect of limestone neoprene is 

interesting in itself. From what we 

understand, limestone neoprene effectively 

has a lot more bubbles packed together 

within the neoprene. Oil-based neoprene 

has a cell penetration of 60-70%, whereas 

limestone neoprene has a 94% cell 

penetration. This micro-cell structure 

apparently provides limestone neoprene 

with several distinct advantages in that is 

more impermeable, and therefore lighter, 

warmer and more durable. 

In particular, it's this aspect of durability 

in specific reference to sustainability that 

Paul is particularly passionate about. As he 

reasons, if wetsuits are made to last longer 

and not simply deteriorate after a season or 

two, less will end up as landfill. 

“There are three main ingredients in a 

wetsuit. Labour, neoprene and design. 

Our production is hand made. We don't do 

big production runs and then run around 

trying to dump stock to get rid of it (less 

waste). We also customise the wetsuit to 

the customer for the purpose of getting the 

best fit possible. This we have found is the 

most important factor to get the warmest 

wetsuit possible. 

“Limestone based neoprene does not 

absorb water. It lasts longer, does not 

"ARGUABLY THE 

EXTRACTION OF 

LIMESTONE HAS 

LESS OF AN 

IMPACT ON THE 

ENVIRONMENT 

THAN OIL-BASED 

NEOPRENE, WHICH 

DEPENDS ON OIL 

EXPLORATION, 

DRILLING, AND 

POTENTIALLY 

DANGEROUS 

TRANSPORTATION" 

Paul Zarifeh, on why Seventh Wave choose 

limestone-based neoprene 

98 


GREEN: GEAR 

delaminate or compress as easily. It is warmer 

to wear for longer. It costs more to produce 

and purchase but customers love it. 

“Finally, we have designed our wetsuits for 

fi t and function. Our Max model has curved 

seams all over it. This allows the neoprene 

to stretch even more. It's the seams that stop 

the stretch factor. Over the years of repairing 

every different brand possible we have seen 

the problems and designed the Max to avoid 

most of these issues. The other ingredients 

are: thread, zips, glue, Velcro, webbing, 

domes, labels, ink, tape etc. With all of them 

we try to use and fi nd the best available. 

Especially thread. You'd be amazed at how 

many wetsuits we've repaired with sh*te 

thread and crappy glue jobs. 

“We are a small company by most standards. 

We have learnt from experience and customer 

feedback. Trust me, if you get it wrong and the 

customer lives in the same town, they come 

back and tell you.” 

Taking all this into consideration limestone 

neoprene is arguably more eco-friendly than 

petro-chemical neoprene, but there's a long 

way to go before a wetsuit and its production 

can be truly green. 

“That's why Seventh Wave, although proud 

to use limestone neoprene, has never tried 

to push its environmentally friendliness—we 

prefer green rooms to greenwash!” 

www.seventhwave.co.nz 

Surfer Freddy Owens, riding his first self shaped board - a 9'7" Pig, 

inspired by a '60s Dunlop log, and stayong warm in his Seventh Wave suit. 

Photo: Tom Owens 


HOME 

BUILDERS 

If a surfboard can be seen as the medium 

through which a surfer connects with nature, 

then when a surfer goes the extra step 

to connect with the surfboard by actually 

shaping one him or herself, the experience 

can only make the connection that much 

stronger and infi nitely more rewarding. 

Here are some home board builders that 

have turned their hands to timber to 

experience the pain and pleasure of creating 

their own craft. 

100 


Building your fi rst surfboard is an unforgettable experience - the 

anticipation, the fear of messing it all up, the hours of enjoyment 

tinkering away, and of course the crowning glory: fi nally surfi ng the 

piece of art you created with your very own hands. Smorgasboarder 

reader Demetrius Kalatzis recently decided to undertake this very 

journey and create a board for himself. Here’s his tale… 


SHAPING 

FRANCHESCA 

WORDS & PHOTOS: DEMETRIUS KALATZIS 

It all started in these very pages, when I picked 

up Smorgasboarder #9 back in 2012. There 

were a few articles on home builders and 

wooden boards and three in particular resonated 

with me: Damon Berezait’s coconut board, 

Greg Wheeldon’s beautiful, inlaid craft and Tod 

Dexter’s article on building the Grain biscuit. I 

procrastinated for a couple of months, surfing 

the net for a wooden surfboard kit. Why wood? 

For me it holds a certain aesthetic appeal, I had 

a little experience with some other wood work 

projects and my Dad is a wood turner, so it’s 

easier to commandeer shed space with wooden 

projects. Eventually I settled on a kit for a fish 

from Surfing Green. They had two options: a Fugu 

Fish with a concave or a Fast Lucy with a fl at 

bottom. Choosing a challenge, I went for the Fugu 

Fish. Her name is now Franchesca. 

The online order kit came with laser-cut plywood 

to make the frame and lengths of Paulownia strip 

planking to stick around it, along with a manual 

for how it all fi ts together. 

After taking over a section of the shed I set up on 

a trestle table, which was almost level, to begin 

putting her together. The fi rst step is to construct 

the frame and then support it above the table 

on bits of plywood ensuring that everything is 

square. Four 5mm x 5mm strips are cut from the 

Paulownia and glued to the cross spars using 

instant glue (I used Loctite 454 which seemed to 

work well, but was a bit pricey). These provide 

the outline of the rails and can be a pain to get 

into position even if you have pre-bent the wood. 

I recommend getting the fi rst pieces of the deck 

glued on straight away as the hot glue holding 

the plywood to the table did not cope well with 


102 


SMORGASBOARDER

1. Levelling the work area 

5. Balsa tail block 

2. The plywood frame, levelled and secured 

6. Bending the tail rails 

3. Gluing the deck in place 

7. Gluing the tail 

4. Bottom planking over the balsa blocks 8. Gluing the rails in place 

changes in temperature and I was left with a 

very wobbly structure, so the more stable you 

can make the board, the better. 

Gluing the deck into place is not overly 

complicated, but can be very time consuming. 

I tried to select pieces of paulownia where 

the grain matched up to give the deck a bit 

of character and laid them out in order. The 

manual recommended using glad wrap to hold 

the deck in place whilst gluing along with some 

weights to provide down force. I found that I 

couldn’t get the gladwrap to hold the wood in 

place and ended up using clamps. I also made 

a jig out of a piece of scrap wood that copied 

the curve of the deck and used this to hold 

the deck in place (see the big grey G clamp 

in picture 3). I also put a layer of newspaper 

between the board and the wooden jig to 

prevent them sticking together. Trying to get 

the deck perfect, I ended up only gluing one 

piece of planking at a time, which turned the 

deck into a pretty time consuming process. 

When it was complete it was time to remove 

the plywood supports and cut it down to shape. 

I started using a jigsaw, but found this was 

awkward and splintered the wood, in the end I 

used a bandsaw - but to do this you will need 

two people to support the board. 

I had intended to use removable fi ns, so prior 

to doing the bottom planking I installed balsa 

wood blocks in the tail to support the fin boxes. 

It took a bit of time to sand these down so that 

they matched the contours of the spars, but it’s 

not hard work. As I laid the bottom planking, 

I traced the outline of the boxes and made a 

tracing paper stencil to allow me to fi nd their 

positions once they were covered in. On the 

advice of the glasser though, I ended up getting 

glassed on fi ns so these became redundant. 

It was now time to do the bottom planking. 

I had used the square-edged timber for the 

deck, but with the concave this left a big gap 

down the middle of the board. I created an 

even match for the two centre pieces of bottom 

planking. The bottom was also time consuming 

as I persisted in only doing one piece at a time. 

Once it was done, the bottom was cut to match 

the deck. I began using an electric planer to 

smooth down the rails, but found this tended to 

tear chunks out of the wood, so I changed to an 

electric belt sander. 

When the rail profile was roughly symmetrical, 

I cut the tail profile. I added a balsa tail block to 

provide greater surface area when gluing the 

tail in place. As this was retrofitted, it was a 

fairly awkward task. In hindsight, I would have 

installed a balsa tail block as well, or tried to 

make it out of solid paulownia. I also added a 

block to the nose. I’m not 100% sure either are 

necessary, but given the difficulty I had bending 

the rails into place I think the more gluing area 

the better. 

I began my rails from the tail to try and get an 

even profile around the whole board. To get 

the wood to fit the curve of the swallow-tail, I 

needed to make another jig to bend the wood. I 

made one for the left side and one for the right 

side of the tail, but found only one of the jigs 

gave the correct curve. I selected scrap pieces 

of paulownia which had the grain running 

along their length to minimise the risk of them 

breaking, and soaked them in boiling water for 

a few minutes before leaving them in the jig 

overnight. The jig I made had the same curve 

as the tail, which meant that the wood I bent 

in it would relax slightly and have to be forced 

into position when it was glued to the board. 

"THE WHOLE PROCESS 

TOOK ME ABOUT 18 

MONTHS TO COMPLETE, 

BUT GENERALLY I WAS 

ONLY WORKING ON 

WEEKENDS.." 

I found the best way to do this was glue the 

tail pieces on half at a time so I could secure 

the front half, and then bend the back half into 

position once the glue had dried on the front. 

This didn’t follow the manual but I think it 

produced a nicer looking tail. 



Nothing beats the feeling of riding a 

wooden surfboard you’ve built yourself 

There’s nothing like the ride, feel and experience of an authentic wooden surfboard . . . and when 

you’ve built that board yourself, with skills that will stay with you for life, nothing beats the feeling. 

Tree to Sea Australia offers 3 day workshops enabling you to build your own wooden board and give you 

the skills to build many more. Our wooden boards are environmentally friendly, and the feeling of riding 

one . . . incredible! Our unique construction method utilising sustainable plantation Paulownia timber, delivers 

a flexible, buoyant, manoeuvrable board that’s as good to ride as it is to own. 

Longboards, shortboards, retros and classics - made by you with a little help from Tree to Sea Australia. 

See web site for workshop dates.Workshops are held in Mt. Eliza, Mornington Peninsula, 

Victoria, Australia. Tree to Sea Workshop Gift Vouchers are available 

Robert 0409 211 751 Gary 0423 804 975 info@treetosea.com.au 

Wooden Surfboard Workshops 

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No resins. Just wood (and glue). Keeping our environmental splash to a minimum. 

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I found the manual that came with the kit 

excellent until it was time to do the rails… 

The manual suggested that I could just glue 

them on, but I couldn’t get them to fi t the 

rocker of the board. After some deliberation, 

and a few emails to Dave at Surfi ng Green, I 

decided to make the rails out of several pieces 

of wood instead of one single length. In the 

end each layer of rail was made up of about 

four short lengths of timber. I changed the 

lengths of these bits of wood for each layer 

so that the joins were not always in the same 

spot. I had a lot of trouble getting the rails in 

position around the nose - due to the profile of 

the board the clamps didn’t stay in position, so 

I had to hot glue some scrap wood to the rails 

so that the clamps could fi nd purchase. I also 

employed the same technique I had used on 

the tail and glued the rails at the nose in two 

stages. Again, I found clamps where the best 

thing to hold the rails in position whilst the 

glue dried. 

Finally, it was time to start shaping! I had 

neglected to make any shaping racks, but we 

have an old lathe bed in the back yard which 

with a couple of bits of scrap timber makes a 

pretty good rack. I did the initial rough shaping 

with a belt sander, but had a few issues with 

it scarring the wood so I soon transitioned to a 

finishing sander. To get the tail shape I had to 

use a file and do some hand sanding. Once the 

shaping was complete, the whole board was 

finish sanded by hand. 

I’d decided early on that I wanted to decorate 

the board using pyrography and so was fairly 

excited to see it at a stage where I 

could begin burning! Having limited 

experience I chose a design which 

just required dark lines and no 

shading. Liking what I saw, I started 

getting nervous about ruining my 

hard work when I tried to glass it, so 

opted to get it done professionally 

by Mark at Mid Coast Surf. Aside 

from convincing me to go for 

glassed on fi ns, he also suggested 

using a bridge for the leg-rope 

instead of a leash plug. He did a 

fantastic job. The advantage of 

using a professional was I could get 

feedback on my shaping. Being the nice guy 

he is, Mark said he was surprised it was a first 

attempt, but recommended improving the rail 

shape and having a little less concave on the 

next one. 

The whole process took me about 18 months 

to complete, but generally I was only working 

on weekends, and quite often not for very long 

periods on those weekends. When Franchesca 

was finally finished, the crew were all in 

Costa Rica on a trip, and unfortunately my 

brother managed to do his Achilles tendon the 

day before her maiden surf, so - as with the 

construction - it was just Francesca and I. 

I was pretty lucky with the surf conditions 

- she was ready for the first offshore day in 

about a month, with clean 2 to 3 foot swell. 

She grabbed onto a rock, causing some slight 

bruising on a fin, but we had a pretty good 

session. I’d say we’re still getting to know 

each other but the initial signs were positive. 

She even whistles when she likes a turn! 

For anyone considering building their own 

board, I highly recommend it. It’s very 

rewarding to surf something you have made! 

Thanks to Dave from Surfing Green, who was 

great with advice the whole way through. 

Congrats Demetrius! We're sure this tale will 

be an inspiration to other home surfboard 

builders, and we're also sure you'll enjoy the 

waves with Franchesca for years to come! 

Flying on Franchesca 

104 


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Not all back yards are equal, it seems... What some 

people can create from the comfort of home is often 

mindblowingly cool. Joe Cervi's handmade timber 

quiver is most certainly mindblowingly and cool. 

HOBBY 

QUIVER 

Hailing from the Mornington Peninsula, Joe explains he 

makes these boards at home as a hobby. An accomplished 

hobbyist, Joe's very comfortable mixing timbers for a 

seriously striking effect - just check out those nose and 

tail blocks! And when you look at the page across, it's 

clear they work pretty well in the water too. 

"They have a plywood spar and ribs, and are glassed with 

epoxy. In the photo there's a 10ft SUP and paddle, a 9ft 

malibu, 6'3" single fi n, 6'2" 

thruster and a 5'3" thruster 

for my seven-year-old son." 

Kinda cool when Dad 

makes you stuff like this in 

the garage, isn't it? 

Helping Dad 

106 


Joe puts his wood to work in 

the water. Photo: Wes Bowler, 

supplied courtesy of Joe Cervi 


LATEST: TRAVEL 

108 


PLACIDLY AMID 

THE NOISE AND 

HASTE 

Two 

mates fi nd surf solitude in Taiwan's hustle and bustle. 

WORDS: ANDY SCHEMBRI 

PHOTOS: DARRYL SAWYER & ANDY SCHEMBRI 



TYPHOON: 

"I COULD SEE THREE POLICE OFFICERS RUNNING TOWARDS ME, SO WITHOUT MOVING MY HEAD, LOOKING OUT TO 

SEE THE PERFECT 3FT LINE UP, I PRETENDED TO BE OBLIVIOUS TO THE MANIC WHISTLING AND PADDLED OUT..." 

110 


ANDY SCHEMBRI is someone you would have loved to 

have as your mate a few short months back. As the winner of 

the Smorgasboarder/Scoot/Surf Tawain "Scoot to Taiwan" 

promotion, he scored two tickets for a surf trip of a lifetime to 

Taiwan. So who to take along? Andy's good mate Darryl Sawyer 

lucked the spot, and the two set off to experience the surf of the 

Orient. Now back home with big smiles and happy tales, Andy 

fi lls us in on highlights from their trip, and gives us a bit of a 

taste of what to expect in Taiwan. 

TAIWAN is such a special place, simply by location. It’s still 

remote enough to be out of the mainstream as a surf destination, 

but with such untapped potential. And due to its position, 

it’s able to pick up a lot of the Pacific swell fetch year round. 

In saying that, the time of year we went (end of July), being 

our winter but summer over there, Taiwan is bombarded by 

typhoons. While typhoons are great at bringing up swell energy 

when they are hundreds of kilometres off the coast pulsing a 

swell window, the typhoon that we had in our 10-day stay was a 

direct hit, coming straight across the top of us and onto mainland 

China, which unfortunately just brought bad weather. 

We flew into Taipei and caught the speed train to Kaohsiung, 

Kenting district in the south. In itself, this was great fun: being 

on a bullet train going up to 300km an hour. Covering a distance 

from say the Gold coast to Port Macquarie in 1 hour and 40 

minutes was amazing. 

We got picked up from Kaohsiung and got taken to Nanwan, 

which was to be our base in South Taiwan. Unfortunately, the 

beaches were all closed off by the police and Coast Guard 

due to the approaching typhoon, and looking at a really nicely 

shaped 3ft reef break, dead glassy, with no-one out there was 

heartbreaking... Our guide from Surf Taiwan, Eric - a New York 

expat university professor with a wealth of local knowledge 

- suggested a quieter spot outside of town near a harbor that 

might be worth a look. We arrived to see at least four surfable 

spots, and with no one around we picked a right hand reef with 

a peaky take off that Eric was familiar with. With a 200m paddle 

to the take-off spot we were pleasantly surprised to find a well 

overhead shifting peak – a reef break that wasn’t too serious, 

but fun enough to spend the next couple of hours out. When the 

tide changed enough to make the shifting peak too much of a 

mission to get onto, we came in. 

Back to town and that right hander at Nanwan was still looking 

pretty good, but with the beach still closed. We were advised 

to surf it after 5:30pm, which was when the Coast Guard and 

CROWDS: 

"WHILE THERE 

WERE HUNDREDS 

OF TAIWANESE AND 

CHINESE HOLIDAYING 

ON THE BEACH, DARRYL 

AND I WERE THE ONLY 

ONES SURFING..." 



CULTURAL 

EXCHANGE 

"THEY WERE SO STOKED 

WITH THE EXPERIENCE, THEY 

WANTED TO SHOUT US LUNCH 

AND HANG OUT." 

Andy and Darryl give an impromptu surf lesson 

112 


Classic photobombing opportunity... 

police go home. So at 6pm (it doesn’t get 

dark until 8pm) I decided to chance it and 

ran down the beach to the paddle out 

spot. I bent over to do up my leggy and 

all of a sudden I heard a whistle getting 

blown vigorously and consistently. Out 

of my peripheral vision I could see three 

police officers running towards me. So, 

without moving my head, looking out to 

see the perfect 3ft line up, I pretended to 

be oblivious to the manic whistling and 

paddled out, making sure I kept looking 

out at the sea and playing the dumb 

tourist. I managed to catch a wave, but 

surfing towards the beach I made eye 

contact and I was ushered in, so could 

only catch that one wave. Not being able 

to communicate in Taiwanese to the 

officers, I simply waved at them and ran 

back up the beach with no dramas. 

Over the next week, we surfed some other 

spots around the South Taiwan, Kenting 

area. One spot that I surfed by myself 

was something out of a war movie - a 

rock pebbled beach with giant concrete 

jacks fortifying the beach for as far as 

the eye could see, making it a perfect 

sniper hangout. Despite 5ft lefthand 

peaks breaking randomly up and down the 

beach, it felt a bit weird in the chocolatecoloured 

water. I had an uneasy feeling 

about the place with good cause - when 

we drove off from this spot, our guide 

Eric mentioned that this was part of the 

coast where the last two Bull sharks were 

caught... 

We also surfed Whites Beach where they 

fi lmed The Life of Pi - specifi cally the 

part where the boy and tiger land on the 

beach. With 4ft lefts and rights, crystal 

clear water, at 29 degrees, while there 

were hundreds of Taiwanese and Chinese 

holidaying on the beach, Darryl and I were 

the only ones surfi ng. 

All in all, Taiwan is an interesting place 

with its own idiosyncrasies, and defi nitely 

a potential surf hot spot. Not being in line 

with other surfi ng hot spots, I’m positive it 

will never get crowded. 

The people were all super friendly and 

extremely keen to meet westerners. 

We had a chance to teach some Chinese 

students on a holiday how to surf. They 

were so stoked with the experience, they 

wanted to shout us lunch and hang out. 

Everyone was so humble - you never got 

a feeling of being in danger or in a bad 

situation, nor the sleazy feeling you can 

sometimes get in Indo. It’s defi nitely a 

place with potential and would be worth 

another visit, especially after returning 

home to the Gold Coast and seeing 300- 

400 surfers out at Coolangatta... 

Thanks again Smorgasboarder. 

Only a pleasure Andy! The trip was 

made possible by the good folks at Scoot 

Airlines - who do some awesome deals to 

fl y you all around Asia and more - and Surf 

Taiwan. For more information, see: 

www.fl yscoot.com 

surftaiwan.com 


THE BLUFF, BAIT & BARRELS 

THIS WINTER, FIve 'east coast guys' thaT barEly knew eacH oTHer set off to explore some remote, yet iconic 

wEstern AustraliAn Surfing locationS betwEeN gerAlDton and exmouTH. 

nooSA sportS PhysiothERapist and avid surFer Peter Hogg Talks about THe TrIp... and sharks. 

WORDS & PHOTOS: PETER HOGG 

stop #1 

THe AbRolHoS islAnDS 

(28 deg S, 113 deg E) 

We had all heard of Supertubes and 

wanted to surf it. We had hopes of 

lone, perfect waves, lots of head-high 

tubes and good times. 

If you’re lucky enough, you may be 

invited by Dale Wheatley on his 70ft 

cray fishing boat as we were. He 

knows the area like none other. Even 

the high-profile surfers - such as 

Rye Craike who films the 'Fish out of 

Water' series - have respect for this 

man. Dale is a crusty fisherman with a 

hut on one of the 122 Abrolhos Islands. 

There are 3 main clusters of islands at 

the Abrolhos, which lie approximately 

60km off Geraldton. The Wallabi 

Group, the Easter Group and the 

Pelsart Group. Very few tourists get 

a chance to visit because most land 

areas are off limits as conservation 

habitats. The Abrolhos have a 

Leeuwin southward warm current 

that creates a meeting place for 

tropical and temperate sea-life. 

On arrival to camp, I was pleasantly 

surprised that such a secluded 

place existed. There were rickety 

jetties joining onto sparse limestone 

platforms surrounded by sparkling 

waters rich with fish. On the first 

morning two sea-lion pups had made 

a home on my board cover. There 

were sea eagles, baitfish, bottlenose 

dolphins, humpback whales and… 

sharks! I was vaguely aware of the 

famous Batavia wreck (1629) and 

recalled stories of an infamous mutiny, 

and got to think that maybe sharks 

may have helped up the bodycount. 

Feeling very privileged to be here and 

be shown the odd 'secret break' with 

Dale Wheatley I was excited about 

the surfing. We did surf Supertubes 

114 



latest: tRaVEl

Whale-carcass buffet. 

Check out the size of the fin! 

"some People can'T aSsEsS rISk very well..." 

Peter muses on the sense of being in a 6ft inflatable dingy, during a feeding frenzy 

and it’s world class. It seems to be very 

consistent, but suited to experienced surfers 

only. The usual hazards are sea urchins, 

strong currents and again, sharks. Incredible 

barrels, but for the sake of privacy and 

respect for locals we refrain from giving 

exact locations. Respect boys! The locals of 

course don't mind reports of sharks to deter 

the faint of heart. 

Day two we were heading to another quality 

wave and we came across a whale carcass 

on a sandbank. There were over a dozen 

mature tiger sharks feeding on this smelly 

carcass. It was incredible to watch them 

tear flesh from the dead whale, yet it was 

also disturbing seeing so many sharks in 

a frenzy. What I couldn't believe was that 

there was a young couple in a 6ft inflatable 

dingy filming the frenzy within touching 

distance - some people can't assess risk 

very well, in my opinion. 

The Abrolhos Islands is one of the largest 

Tiger shark breeding areas in the world. 

Statistically, Tigers are one of the three 

sharks that have contributed most to fatal 

attacks - the others being the Great White 

and the Bull shark. Surfing a nearby wave, 

with slight cross-shore wind, was suddenly 

less appealing to me… It reminded me of 

the thoughts I had at Cactus back in the early 

‘80s - another sharky, iconic surf location. 

But rather than go into a panic, let’s have a 

look at the facts to get the mojo back. 

The Tiger shark, often called the 'Sea Tiger', 

is an apex predator that reaches sizes of 

5m in length, averaging 3.25-4.25m, and is 

found in tropical/temperate waters near the 

coast. They usually roam the deep water but 

do move into channels to pursue prey in the 

shallows. The Tiger shark is camouflaged - 

dark strips above and light bottom so they 

can counter-shade, remaining hidden from 

all directions. This nomadic shark species 

have electro receptors in the snout and 

along their side to detect electrical impulses. 

The fin set facilitates quick bursts of speed 

and agility. They are broad-mouthed with 

a calcified jaw to enable attacks on large 

prey, like turtles. Interestingly, their young 

hatch from eggs within and are then born 

fully developed at 16 months, at a length 

of 51-70cm. Tiger sharks are considered 

an internationally threatened species and 

Greenpeace has added the Tiger shark to 

the 'red list' of endangered sea fish species. 

Still don't have my mojo! 

My wrap up on the Abrolhos is that it is a 

very special place with some world-class 

waves. You do need to source locals to get 

to the waves, as access is very difficult. In 

my opinion, sharks do add a significant real 

danger factor that should be respected. 

stop #2 

THe Bluff/ gnaraloo 

(24 deg S/113 dEg e) 

We headed north - I was happy to do that in 

June, even though we were leaving average 

temperatures at the Abrolhos of 9.5 degrees 

at night to 20 degrees in the day. 

The Bluff is iconic and a 'must do' place to 

visit. We travelled north from Carnarvon and 

then right at the famous blowhole. It was 

easy to find. Our 10-seater van with board 

trailer coped well on the corrugated, dusty, 

dry roads all the way to the campsite. The 

Bluff had been on my bucket list for 20 years 

and it was pleasing to finally make it there. 

We had a big W/SW swell meeting us there, 

and ideal SE/E winds. It was on! Again, on 

first inspection the line up was a place for 

experienced surfers. A fast, hollow and 

powerful left-hander breaks, on average, 

for 100 metres. But, there are sea urchins to 

watch out for. 

After the first night in a swag it was obvious 

that a highlight for the next five nights was 

camping under the stars. The wave is epic 

- say no more. I saw some of the best rides 

from locals that I’ve ever seen. There were 

also two young girls (Denni and Coral Durant) 

that were taking on the wave - I immediately 

had to sign them up with my wife's business 

Hive Swimwear, and they are now team 

riders for Hive. I broke my favourite board 

out there, but enjoyed the experience of 

116 


latest: tRaVEl 

New Hive Swimwear 

team rider signings, 

Denni and Coral Durant 

Accommodation options at the Bluff 

"THe Bluff had been on my bukEt list For YEars" 

surfi ng these more powerful waves compared to 

Noosa. It was such a good vibe there and everyone 

was friendly. If you didn't want to camp, you could 

pre-book a stone hut near the beach. There are also 

luxury tents, if you prefer that option. We wanted 

to experience 'the real deal' and camped in a swag 

near our own open fire. We also made two visits 

to Gnaraloo (40km North). The waves there are 

outstanding, but also for experienced surfers only. 

Over two days they were double to triple-overhead 

all day, breaking along the limestone reef like a 

guillotine. I had some of my best waves of the WA 

trip there. Many people camp at Gnaraloo as it has 

more amenities than the Bluff, but also more people. 

Personally, I preferred staying at the Bluff. 


stop #3 

exmouth 

(21 deg S/ 11 deg E) 

Exmouth provided our group with friendly 

rippable waves at 'The Dunes' over a sand 

/smooth sandstone bottom. Waves typically 

broke 50-80 metres and the wave was good 

at 3-4 ft and the water was warmer. We 

didn't manage to surf the islands north of 

Exmouth because of inclement wind, but I 

have been informed there are some great 

waves there. Next time. 

The WA trip was memorable for many 

reasons - good waves, great camping, 

experiencing the wilderness. 

But Back to THe sHarks... 

Culling has been on everyone’s lips for some 

time now – what’s your opinion? 

Personally, I did return to the East Coast with 

concerns over the prevalence of sharks in 

WA and became somewhat entangled and 

interested in the debate over their sharkculling 

program. There have been seven fatal 

shark attacks in WA between 2010 and 2013. 

The local government implemented culling in 

2014 using baited drum lines to protect users 

of the marine environment. The reported cost 

to the government was $610K for 107 days 

of work during the culling period. As a result 

there have been strong protests to express 

displeasure of the policy. In some extreme 

cases, government officials and fi sherman 

have even been threatened by protesters. 

Under the policy, sharks that are over 3m 

in length that are caught will be killed and 

destroyed. Over the first period during 

November to March 2014, 172 sharks were 

caught (including 50 Tiger sharks over 3m, 

no Great Whites and eight other animals - 

mostly stingrays, and no turtles or dolphins). 

" An interesting debate - often argued iTHouT 

rEspect foR An facts. Peter, on shark culling 

Nine sharks under 3m in length died. The 

government claims to be carefully monitoring 

the program in an attempt to reduce the 

risk of shark attacks at popular swimming 

beaches. Their opinion is that there has been 

success in Qld and NSW. 

Before implementing the netting/baiting 

program on the East Coast in 1962 there 

were 82 reported attacks and 27 fatalities. 

Since then there have only been four fatal 

attacks in NSW and Qld. Interestingly the 

statistics show there have been 652 attacks 

in Australia between 1580 - 2014 (185 being 

fatal). The USA also experiences shark 

attacks - they average 16 attacks per year but 

this represents a risk of only 1 in 11.3 million 

chance of an attack and 1 in 264.1 million 

chance of being a shark attack fatality. 

While I was in WA, I did have real concerns 

over safety with respect to sharks, but in 

saying that, I remain reserved about my final 

opinion on culling. The risk does however 

infl uence my intention to travel to WA to surf. 

It should be acknowledged that organisations 

including the Humane Society International, 

Animals Australia and Surf Rider Foundation, 

as well as Kelly Slater, Greg Norman (The 

Shark) and the Australian Greens oppose 

the culling. On the other hand, many surfers 

from Margaret River and other WA beaches 

welcome the program. An interesting debate 

- often argued without respect for any facts. 

Hope you enjoyed this article and that it 

promoted thought, with knowledge of 

some facts. 

Peter Hogg 

Thanks Peter! And an interesting debate 

it certainly is. At the time of going to print, 

the WA government had announced it 

would abandon the shark culling program, 

but has reserved the right to re-instate it if 

the need arises. Polarising as culling may 

be, what do you out there in readerland 

think? Let us know on our Facebook page: 

www.facebook.com/smorgasboarder 

118 


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120 


SMORGASBOARDER

BRUNSWICK HEADS 

GREAT 

NATURAL NORTHERN NEW SOUTH WALES 

FAMILY 

SURF ESCAPES 

WHERE IS IT? 

Brunswick Heads is 10km north of Byron and 

about half an hour from Coolangatta, but 

more relaxed and laid back than either, just as 

you'd expect from a cool little surf town that's 

not overrun by hipsters. The town is nestled 

near the mouth of the Brunswick River on the 

southern side. Here there is a small marina and 

on the northern banks, a protected rainforest. 

THE SURF 

The best way to describe the local breaks is fun. 

And like most northern NSW surf breaks it can 

also get pretty darn good as well. A right peels 

off the north break wall of the Brunswick River 

and if its blowing northerlies, there’s the south 

break wall and even the river mouth. Aside from 

that, there are plenty of beachies. We're sure 

you can fi nd the best ones. 

FISHING 

Thanks to a pristine waterway that wraps itself 

through town, the fi shing here is very good. 

Expect your standard estuarine fare if you are 

good enough to catch them. There’s even some 

oysters growing wild on the rocks, just don’t 

knock any off from the private beds upstream. 

WHAT WE LOVE 

The Brunswick Hotel. A classic Aussie 

pub with a leafy, riverside beer garden. 

A great little café strip on The Terrace. 

Chris Grant’s Brunswick Surf - he 

recently started stocking Phantom 

Surfboards. 

There are no less than three North 

Coast Holiday Parks in Brunswick 

Heads and all are crackers – Ferry 

Reserve, which is dog friendly and has 

its own boat ramp; Massey Greene, 

which is only 3 mins to town and Terrace 

Reserve, which is actually in town and 

closest to the beach. 

www.northcoastholidayparks.com.au 

Photos: North Coast Holiday Parks, Tom Woods CHRISTMAS 2014 | SMORGASBOARDER 121

Mark Rabbidge 

with present 

and past 

incarnations 

of the Fatboy 

design 

The board 

(right) goes 

all the way 

back to Mark's 

days as one 

of the leading 

shapers for Hot 

Buttered. 

IN OUR FACEBOOK SURFBOARD BATTLE earlier this year, 

you shared surfboards you loved most, in the hopes of being the 

lucky Smorgasboarder reader to score the top voted one... 

After countless votes, inspiring quotes and a whole lot of excited 

sharing, Katie Morton from Cronulla scored her husband Ian a stunning 

Rabbidge Fatboy, which came in as your overall favourite surfboard. 

Designed and shaped by iconic Aussie board builder Mark Rabbidge in 

the quiet area of Bendalong on the NSW coast, the Fatboy has been 

a staple of his shaper's quiver, with over 20 years of development, 

feedback and refinement going into what Mark rates as his most 

popular model, hands down. It's the Fatboy's versatility that makes it 

such a winner with a range of surfers of varying abilities. 

"It may be the board that gets you back in the water after years on the 

sidelines or, as a beginner, the board that will actually perform as you 

improve," Mark says. "The design is at home in a two-foot slop wave, 

on a beach break, or over in Bali on a screaming, overhead barrel." 

As with all his designs, Mark makes the Fatboy by hand, 100% locally. 

The design comes in a few variants, with the two main ones being: 

STANDARD FATBOY 

"A winner for the ages," says Mark. "Probably the longest running 

model we make." 

This was designed to perform more like as a shortboard for the 

approaching-40 surfer, and as an alternative to a mini-mal for 

beginners. It's now loved as either an all-round board that paddles 

well but still can go in the steeper parts of the wave and do some 

serious turns. 

SIZE RANGE 6’10” to 7’6” 

PERFORMANCE FATBOY 

"The narrower nose template on this makes this model more serious. 

Also the concave combo offers more overall speed and drive for 

the more experienced surfer. Can ride solid surf on this one or as a 

shortboard for bigger blokes." 

SIZE RANGE 6’ 10” to 7’6” 

122 


A third variant is a Fatboy Slim - of which 

name is more due to refinements in shape 

than anything to do with the UK DJ - and 

competition winner Katie Morton suggested 

a fourth: " By the way, if this is a Fatboy, why 

not make a Fatgirl model too." 

Jokes aside, while the Fatgirl as a model 

name would probably make too many waves 

in the wrong way, considering our politicallycorrectness-gone-crazy 

society today, Mark's 

perfectly comfortable making boards for the 

ladies. After all, he is married to womens' 

surfing legend Pam Burridge. Mark's boards 

are customs, so they're made to suit you, 

regardless of weight, gender and the like. 

Congrats again to Mark for being voted #1 by 

you, the Smorgasboarder readers, and to 

Katie and Ian as winners of the comp. Enjoy 

the Fatboy, and make sure you sneak a surf 

in on it yourself, Katie! 

For more on Rabbidge boards and to get an 

order in for yourself, see: 

www.markrabbidge.com 

Call Mark on 0427 767 176 or 

email sales@markrabbidge.com 

Thanks to Katie for the 

cool pics of Ian and Pam! 

GEAR: SURFBOARDS 

New board owner, Ian Morton 

makes a run with his Fatboy, 

and below, gets to meet Pam 

Burridge as an added bonus! 

Mark Rabbidge, on 

one of the benefits 

of the Fatboy 


Grant 'Twiggy' Baker takes big wave honours at Mavericks earlier this year. Photo: Jay Headley, courtesy of Webster Surfboards 

GEAR: BIG GUNS 

126 


WITH BIG WAVE SURFING NOW SQUARELY FOCUSED ON THE BIG WAVE WORLD TOUR, PADDLING INTO 

MONSTER SWELLS - AS OPPOSED TO TOWING IN - CONTINUES TO GROW IN ITS APPEAL. 

We recently chatted to Wayne Webster 

about his big wave gun designs and how 

they have continued to evolve, following 

up on our conversation from this time 

last year. Considering his clients include 

big wave legends Grant ‘Twiggy’ Baker, 

Jeff ‘Camel’ Goulden, and Mark Visser 

with even a couple of boards on order 

from Mr Kelly Slater himself, it is fair to 

say Wayne is one of the main men in the 

worldwide gun trade. 

“EVERYBODY used to say 'a gun is a gun', 

but now with the Big Wave World Tour, all of a 

sudden there's a set judging criteria and that’s 

just not the case anymore. The judges don’t 

want to see surfers just ride these big waves, 

but really take to them with shorter boards and 

perform more maneuvers. So more than ever, 

I'm trying to pack more and more volume into 

a smaller board. 

“With Twiggy’s boards now, we have the 

volume of an 11 footer in a 10’6” and the 

volume of 10’6” in a 10’0” and down like that, 

understanding that these guys travel around 

with a quiver of boards of varying sizes to suit 

the conditions. I recently made him an 8’10” to 

tackle Waimea this year.” 

Other design refi nements, we have previously 

discussed continue to be a focus in crafting 

Wayne’s guns (see Smorgasboarder #20 Nov/ 

Dec 2013 or www.smorgasboarder.com.au). 

“There's a defi nite preference for fl atter decks, 

more thickness in the nose and the tail and 

through the rib of the board. We're carrying that 

thickness through the board and are just beaking 

it off at the end, taking on more of an '80s style 

look to the boards. The spear-like guns we have 

come to know have all but disappeared. 

“Boards are more balanced again. We're making 

them wider in the nose and the tail and allowing 

the thickness to carry through. Twiggy’s boards 

in particular feature quite a blocky rail to have 

that thickness throughout. Overall we are not 

tapering boards off as much as we used to. 

"That said, we're incorporating modern rockers. 

The curve into the outline combined with a 

flatter rocker makes for a short, fast board that 

is easier to pivot. 


GEAR: BIG GUNS 

Grant 'Twiggy' Baker takes big wave honours at Mavericks Photo: Jay Headley, courtesy of Webster Surfboards 

“In a design sense I'm lucky, because as 

I'm getting older I'm still trying to ride 5’8”. 

However, I'm putting more volume into my 

boards and this is assisting me with the 

thinking behind my big wave guns.” 

It's not only his own preference for short 

boards with plenty of volume that is 

driving the ideas behind Wayne’s big wave 

machines. 

“Personally I've found myself looking 

at clubby paddleboards because of 

the way they pick waves up so easily. 

In the conditions these guys (big wave 

competitors) are surfing, often the initial 

ocean pulse is not a cresting wave. It's 

extremely hard to paddle into. 

“The clubby boards are relatively fl at with 

a straighter rocker and the outlines are 

more parallel. This is what assists them 

to move through the water so easily when 

paddling. So I am looking to incorporate a 

couple of these design elements into the 

guns. This way the board picks the wave 

up rather than just the sheer strength of 

the surfer paddling for the wave.” 

There's no doubt the thinking behind his 

designs are resonating with surfers who 

hunt monster swells around the globe. 

Wayne is fielding orders throughout 

Australia and overseas. 

“I've just sent four boards to guys in 

Western Australia and another four to 

Vicco, and a fair few recently to South 

Australia. It’s that word-of-mouth thing. 

I've been making a lot for Camel (who 

spends a lot of his time in SA now) and 

I guess guys see what he is riding and 

think, 'Yeah that’s what I have been 

trying to get.' 

“I've also been sending a lot of boards 

to San Francisco as well, due to the fact 

Twiggy won the Mavericks event on 

my board this year. That’s really funny 

because you get guys calling up from 

over there, telling you how hard it is to 

get a good board for Mavericks. I have to 

laugh when I say, ‘Well, you know you are 

ringing a guy in Lennox Head about one.’ 

It's weird, but it's good people are liking 

my guns.” 

So, if you're considering chasing some rogue 

swells and think you're up for the challenge, 

Wayne had this final bit of advice to offer 

when ordering a big wave gun. 

“The most important thing is you have to 

be particularly honest about your ability - 

nothing worse than the wrong equipment 

in big conditions. You also have to be 

honest about the size of surf you are 

intending to ride.” 

Surfi ng big waves is certainly not the time 

to overestimate your abilities. You don’t 

want to put your life at risk because your 

ego got the better of you. 

www.webstersurfboards.com.au 

www.facebook.com/WebsterSurf 

webstersurfboards 

Twiggy catches a little dribbler at Jaws. 

Photo: Rick Leeks, courtesy of Webster Surfboards 

128 


Big wave surfing has long been regarded as a competition between man/ 

woman and Mother Nature - the power of the ocean versus the surfer. 

Even the original big wave contest, The 

Eddie in Waimea, Hawaii (Quiksilver’s 

big wave contest in memory of 

the Hawaiian great, Eddie Aikau), 

set surfers to compete against the 

elements rather than other surfers. Each 

competitor would surf twice during the 

day’s competition, taking their four best 

waves from each session. 

Nowadays the Big Wave World Tour has 

made competitions all the more intense, 

pitting surfers against each other and 

the elements, lifting the danger stakes 

by challenging surfers to take more risks. 

Surfers have an hour to beat five other 

fellow competitors in their heat. Each 

surfer is judged on their two best waves 

with the best wave score doubled. This 

encourages surfers to “go for broke”. 

As a result, safety surrounding such 

events has been heightened and it's of 

paramount importance to protect surfers 

laying their lives on the line. 

A FEW FAST FACTS 

• The Big Wave World Tour is 

now run in association with 

the ASP (Association of Surfing 

Professionals) 

• There are 24 spots at each event 

comprised of the 12 top ranked big 

wave surfers and 12 others who 

“have put in considerable time at 

the specifi c venue.” 

• Six of these 12 are usually local 

surfers and another three spots 

are allocated to ASP Qualified 

Surfers that compete in the World 

Championship Tour’s Top 34 who 

wish to ‘come out and play’ 

• The tour itself is comprised of 

six events - three in the Southern 

Hemisphere and three in the 

Northern Hemisphere. 

• The competition requirements 

are that the waves are in 

excess of 30ft for each day of 

the competition, with waves 

preferably in excess of 50ft. Thus, 

it goes without saying that not all 

six events are staged. That is up to 

Mother Nature. 

2014/15 SCHEDULED 

EVENTS WERE: 

Southern Hemisphere (Apr-Aug) 

• Punta de Lobos, Chile 

• Pico Alto, Peru 

• Dungeons, South Africa 

Northern Hemisphere (Oct-Feb) 

• Todos Santos, Mexico 

• Punta Galea, Spain 

• Pe’ahi, Maui, Hawaii (Jaws) 

In previous years events have also been 

staged at Mavericks, near San Francisco 

in California and at Nelscott Reef, 

Oregon, USA. 


BEDE DURBIDGE 

MT WOODGE SURF TEAM 

130 


SMORGASBOARDER

CUSTOM SURFBOARDS, REPAIRS, DEMOS AND HIRE 

SURF GEAR FOR REAL SURFERS 

FREE 

FINS, GRIP, 

LEASH, WAX & 

BOARD COVER 

ACCESSORIES PACK 

WITH NEW BOARD PURCHASE* 

*Does not include Grom models, Movement, or reduced-toclear 

surfboards. Conditions apply. See in-store for details. 

THREE 

STORES! 

1730 Gold Coast Highway, BURLEIGH HEADS 

122 Griffith Street, COOLANGATTA 

2 Stuart Road, CURRUMBIN (Factory Showroom) 

WWW.MTWOODGEE.COM.AU 


132 


SMORGASBOARDER

Wayne with a gun-to-be 

Photo: Nick Burrow 

"THE MOST 

IMPORTANT THING 

IS YOU HAVE TO 

BE PARTICULARLY 

HONEST ABOUT 

YOUR ABILITY." 

Wayne's advice on what your 

shaper needs to know 

-WEBSTER- 

SURFBOARDS 

While well known for his highperformance 

shortboards and big 

wave guns, Wayne shapes an 

extremely varied quiver, for surfers of 

all styles and abilities: 

• Grom 

• Fish 

• Step Down 

• Shortboards 

• Step Up 

• Guns 

• Towboards 

• Big Guy Boards 

• Longboards 

• Old School single fins 

and twins 

WAYNE WEBSTER is a surfboard shaper 

living in Lennox Head on the NSW North 

Coast of Australia. He has been shaping 

and riding his own equipment for the last 

23 years all around the world. Through 

personal experience and feedback from 

team riders, Wayne has developed his 

board designs to excel in 1ft junk to 70ft 

heaving slabs. 

Wayne’s knowledge of board design and 

construction has come from hands-on 

experience in fin-making, glassing, 

sanding and shaping. He has worked in 

Hawaii, Portugal, France, Scotland and at 

home in Australia where he shaped for 

Local Motion for 10 years. 

WEBSTER SURFBOARDS pride 

themselves as being a quality product. 

Our boards are all about the performance 

and satisfaction of our customers. All 

boards are made using world-class quality 

materials and excellent workmanship. 

Wayne is a regular visitor to the Hawaiian 

islands and together with his experience 

in larger waves and his travels through 

Indonesia, Europe and at home in the long 

point breaks of the NSW North Coast, 

he has developed an understanding of 

surfboard design for riding specifi c waves, 

small and large. This is why more surfers 

are turning towards Wayne’s shapes 

all the time. His passion is surfi ng and 

shaping. 

For more on Wayne's big-wave 

creations, see page 126. 

Visit the workshop/showroom at 

1/13 Clark St, Ballina NSW 

Call 0416 049 205 

Email info@webstersurfboards.com.au 

www.webstersurfboards.com.au 


-OKE- 

SURFBOARDS 

Photo: Varenka Tuma 

TO RUN a family business for over 45 

years, let alone a custom surfboard 

one at that, you know something 

pretty special must be going on. 

Together, Chok (Neil) and his two 

sons Dan and Rory Oke, are the family 

behind OKE SURFBOARDS. 

OKE SURBOARDS continue to 

be handmade using all Australian 

materials from start to finish at their 

Braeside factory in Melbourne’s southeast. 

Their loyal clientele, which 

continues to grow and grow, range 

from the very young to the young at 

heart, from groms to rippers, ladies 

and crusty old sea dogs. With such 

a down-to-earth bunch, its plain to 

see anyone can relate to these guys. 

One thing their customers all have in 

common is an appreciation for wellmade 

custom surfboards. 

Visit the workshop at 

1/1-7 Canterbury Rd, Braeside VIC 

Call (03) 9587 3553 

www.okesurfboards.com 

SHORTBOARDS 

From the Abalone, perfect for 

Victorian beachbreaks, to the 

Popsicle Punter, the choice for Oke 

team riders in waves up to head 

high, to the Jolly Pop, Liam Jolly’s 

personal high performance go-to 

board in just about all conditions, 

OKE have a range of boards to suit 

those who want to get amongst it. 

The curvier La Pepita and Ellipse 

deal with smaller waves but still 

let you generate speed in the flats 

and go vertical in the pocket. 

FISH 

The Frazfi sh and Big Fish are 

wave-catching machines that 

fl y over fl at sections yet retain 

that responsiveness surfers 

have come to expect from 

OKE’S shortboads, and they 

can still be put on rail. 

MIDLENGTHS 

Stylish single fi ns, big wave 

guns, forgiving fun boards for 

beginners and the Nugget, for 

those surfers coming down 

from a longboard or who just 

want more waves without 

losing maneuverability. 

LONGBOARDS 

Expect a range of glide 

machines with a range of fin 

set-ups, amazing resin work and 

tints and optional extras such 

as fabric inlays, triple stringers, 

timber fins, Volan glass and 

timber nose and tail blocks. 

“RORY DOES 90% OF THE SHAPING NOW. DAN DOES ALL THE GLASSING, 

RESIN WORK AND REPAIRS. I'M JUST HERE TO GET IN THE WAY.” Chok Oke 

134 



-SURF 1770- 

GLENN 'CAT' COLLINS 

If you are after a normal surfboard, GLENN 

'CAT' COLLINS can most definitely make 

one - he’s been shaping for over 35 years - it’s 

just that he most probably won’t. He’s just 

“not into that”. 

Glenn Cat’s most interested in Freak Functional 

Shapes that go way beyond pushing the 

boundaries of surfboard design… They are 

somewhere beyond the boundaries of another 

stratosphere in a distant, far, far away universe. 

If you are after a certain colour or look, best of 

luck with that too! We don’t imagine Picasso 

would have taken too lightly to receiving a 

detailed brief on what a said art-afi ccionado 

may like. Just give Glenn Cat a rough idea of 

what you are after and the mad-scientist-comeartist-come-surfboard-shaper 

will get to work 

in creating a unique surfcraft just for you. 

Call (07) 4974 7770 

Email surf1770@bigpond.com 

www.surf1770noosa.com 

136 


Sergio Gomez 

-GOMEZ- 

SURFBOARDS 

"Every surfer in the world rides 

differently; no single one is the same. 

From style and technique to wave and 

place, one is unique to the next. 

"To create a custom board for each 

individual is one of the things 

that inspire me, to generate new 

possibilities of wave riding and 

stoke for that person. 

"With more than 20 years of shaping 

experience around the world, with 

every order and new customer I meet 

my passion for shaping is continuously 

deepened by the challenge to 

handcraft innovative shapes. 

"My motivation comes mainly from 

surfing and the fact that ideas for new 

shapes and designs are endless." 

Sergio Gomez 

ABOUT MY SURFBOARD DESIGNS 

"I believe it’s important for any 

surfer to try different surfcrafts 

not only to improve their surfi ng 

but also to enjoy surfing from a 

different perspective. 

"My shortboards are designed for 

speed, drive, flow, maneuverability 

and ultimately performance. I 

focus on smaller than normal 

shortboards that generate speed 

when the surf conditions don’t 

provide that for us. 

"One of my favourite shapes is 

the Fish not just for the speed but 

the increased drive it produces. 

These are lot of fun and perfect 

for those summer waves. 

"When shaping boards such as 

single fi ns, eggs or big boys I 

concentrate on simple outlines 

with a lot of fl ow. These boards 

are easy wave catchers, stable 

yet have great rail to rail 

transition making surfi ng cool. 

"Finally there is nothing more 

beautiful than a classic log. 

Longboards are supposed to be 

ridden as longboards, with style, 

grace and fl ow. I enjoy shaping 

classic longboards and noseriders 

playing around with concaves, 

spoons, rolled bottoms and vees. 

"I not only enjoy making a board 

that will perform well but I like 

to get funky with artwork, tinted 

resins, fabrics turning it into an 

object of art. This is a fun part of 

any custom surfboard making that 

board even more unique." 

Torquay, Victoria, VIC 

Email sergio@sgdboardsdesign.com 

Call 61 (0) 497 385 388 

www.gomezsurfboards.com 


-BLACK- 

A P A C H E 

SURFBOARDS 

"COMBINING ELEMENTS OF THE PAST AND ELEMENTS OF THE FUTURE TO CREATE SOMETHING NOT QUITE AS GOOD AS EITHER." 

LEARNING how your board 

works will improve your surfing, 

guaranteed. You learn to look for 

what’s "right" for you when you 

need a new sled. You ask questions, 

you learn, you move forward. 

A good shaper should be asking 

questions and getting you 

involved. What’s in your quiver 

already, where you surf, what 

kinds of waves you surf, how often 

you surf, what you like and don’t 

like about your boards, what are 

you struggling with, what are you 

good at, how do you want your 

surfi ng to be and feel. 

If you’re not asking yourself these 

questions and your shaper or local 

shop jockey isn’t either, alarm 

bells should be ringing. 

BACK (L-R): 

9'6" x 23" x 3" Le Hanches 

9'8" The Churro 

MIDDLE (L-R): 5'10" Dead Mans Hand, 5'11" El Muerto, 5'9" Dead Mans Hand, 6'6" Killing Floor, 6'6" Bonzer 3, 

6'10" Hard Times, 6'10" Indo Drifter Pin, 7'10" She Wolf, 7'10", She Wolf V2, 8'6" She Wolf, 7'10" Anchors V1 

FRONT: Some fat headed idiot, Krypt Surf Mat, Fourth Gear Flyer XL, fins by Pod and Da Fins 

Call 0410 419 791 

Email blackapache@me.com 

www.blackapachesurfboards.com 

SHORTBOARDS 

These are far from 

stock standard. If you 

remember having a 

mullet back in the 

80s you will love 

these babies with a 

modern twist. 

SINGLES 

Retros, Stepups and 

Guns. If you crave 

that smooth top to 

bottom run single 

fi n style or fancy 

yourself as a bit of a 

charger, this is your 

deal. 

TWINS 

Fishes with triple 

stringer keel fi ns to 

modern variations, 

we catch ‘em fresh. 

Or maybe you have a 

need for speed and 

the unmistakable 

skatey feel of a 

Simmons. 

3-4 & 5 FINS 

Stubbies through to 

Bonzers guaranteed 

to give you the 

squirts and have you 

rambling about the 

Venturi Principle. Plus 

widowmakers, quads 

and quintets to meet 

your special needs – 

remember conformity 

is boring. 

MIDLENGTHS 

Boards for when it is 

small to overhead in 

a variety of templates 

and foils. 

From Hulls that will 

get your groove on, 

giving point waves a 

whole new meaning, 

to Kook Killers and 

Daggers. 

LONGBOARDS 

This is where size 

does matter. Serious 

single fin groove 

for those after a 

traditional longboard 

with modern 

refinements or who 

want to squeal like 

a pig. 

138 


HARVEST SURFBOARDS are a range of 

vintage inspired surf craft that focus on 

quality not quantity, developed and created by 

Jack Knight and his son Aaron Knight. 

From shaping through the single fi n/ 

shortboard era to aiding Glen Winton (Mr X) 

in the development of the original Quad-Fins, 

Jack has been handcrafting boards for over 

40 years and has rich first hand knowledge 

of surfboard design. Jack is originally from 

Manly Beach, NSW where he started his 

shaping career in 1969 through an era filled 

with single fins and experimental designs. 

Aaron has been working alongside his 

father since 2009 designing, glassing, and 

developing the HARVEST range of boards 

that focus on concepts and ideas from the 

bygone eras of surfing. 

OUR RANGE OF 

HANDCRAFTED BOARDS 

We specialise in single fi ns, twin fi ns, midlengths 

and logs and also have the original 

channel bottom single fi ns, invented by Jim 

Pollard which Jack shaped fi rst hand at 

Shane Stedman's surfboard factory in Manly 

in the 70's. 

The boards are all handcrafted from start 

to finish at our workshop on the Gold Coast 

with the foundations of having 40+ years of 

experience and knowledge within the industry. 

All our boards are glassed to be strong and 

last, weight is not a factor. 

We prefer the quality not quantity mindset 

and aim to keep the personal touches in all 

our craft. We also love to use tints, pigments 

and fabrics as a means of adding individual 

character to our boards. 

-HARVEST- 

SURFBOARDS 

"I THINK THERE IS 

SUCH A GREAT ART 

BEHIND MAKING A 

SURFBOARD AND I 

THINK IT IS A SHAME 

WHEN A BOARD GETS 

PUMPED OUT OF A 

MACHINE WITH NO 

INDIVIDUAL TOUCHES. 

WHERE IS THE SOUL 

IN THAT?" Jack Knight 

Visit our workshop at: 

Christine Avenue, Miami 

Gold Coast, QLD 

Call (07) 5576 5914 

www.harvestsurfboards.com 

Email hello@harvestsurfboards.com 

Boards available at Underground, Noosa 

and Board Culture, Mermaid Beach 


-MARK- 

R A B B I D G E 

SURFBOARDS 

MARK RABBIDGE has been a leader in surf 

craft design since the 1970s having shaped and 

worked for many of Brookvale's iconic surfboard 

manufacturers of the day, most notably at Hot 

Buttered where he saw and helped spearhead 

the many changes in surfboard design through 

that period. 

Instrumental in the resurgence of longboarding, 

Mark competed on his own boards and finished a 

close second in the 1987 World Title with spots in 

the top five over the next five years. 

Married to former surfing world champion Pam 

Burridge, Mark spent years on tour, giving him 

invaluable insight into the highest level surfi ng 

of the '80s and early '90s. He shaped boards 

for many pro surfers over that period, the most 

famous ride being Tom Curren on his virgin 6'6" 

RABBIDGE tearing J Bay apart. 

Today, he continues to hand shape custom 

surfboards from the quiet NSW South Coast 

hamlet of Bendalong. 

Call 0427 767 176 

Email sales@markrabbidge.com 

www.markrabbidge.com 

SHORTBOARDS 

Rabbidge boards are all about 

making turns connect. It is a 

philosophy as much as a design 

trait. Surf the wave not the 

surfboard. Your mind should do 

the surfi ng and your board just 

comes with you. 

LONGBOARDS 

The telling feature of these 

boards is their ability to 

recover from critical situations, 

a long rail line can be your 

worst nightmare if you aren’t 

able to adjust and trim out 

again. The key to a good board 

is the ability to survive the 

maneuver and get speed again 

to make the wave. 

EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN 

Fishes, Fatboys*, Four Plays (quads), Micros, Big Wave Guns, 

Pacemakers and Finless Creations – a range of different surfboards 

to suit different conditions, all of which are then hand shaped and 

custom made to suit the individual. 

With this open mind to design, Mark has a long history with 

alternative boards. These are far from your standard boards or 

novelty retro designs but are rather high performance craft that have 

been refined over and over again through the years. 

*Read more about Mark's Fatboy model on Page 122 

140 


L-R: rem. Iscia con ni consenis demposseria volum fugiaeptia velibusam, sunt d 

COMBINING 14 YEARS of experience 

working in high-end production factories, 

and the know-how gained surfing in national 

competition, surfer/shaper Jordie Brown 

(a qualified shipwright) has established 

himself and his boards amongst the best 

Victoria has to offer in the way of 100% 

handcrafted, customised surfcraft. 

Jordie’s vision is to bring a youthful edge to 

a dying trade, and to inject contemporary 

innovation into classic design. Every 

HIGH TIDE board is 100% handmade; from 

the glue-up of the blank to the final polish. 

With the time consuming nature of production, 

and an emphasis on quality over quantity, 

HIGH TIDE produce 4 to 6 custom surfcraft 

a month. Board designs are based on the 

heavier, old-school style construction using 

weightier, longer-lasting, pigmented and tinted 

glass jobs, a variety of solid timber stringers, 

and finish coats and polishes. 

- HIGH TIDE - 

SURFBOARDS 

CUSTOM CRAFT 

When choosing your board you get an in-depth 

consultation for a tailor-made shape suitable for 

your size and ability. You get a choice of colour, 

resin design, stringer, and artwork. Also included 

is a hand-drawn, personalised decal design. 

Our boards are based around a traditional style 

of construction using modern materials, which 

means although the boards do take a little longer 

to make, they tend to last longer too. 

To maximize the life of your board, HIGH TIDE 

offers an Ongoing Repair service too. 

REPLICA 

As well as my own designs of 

traditionally inspired craft, I 

replicate old surfboards, whether 

it be your old favorite at the end 

of its life, or a classic shape that 

you want to preserve and surf at 

the same time. Using traditional 

hand shaping techniques I can 

create a new board, incorporating 

everything you love about your 

old board with subtle, customised 

enhancements. 

RESTORATIONS 

I’ve always been fascinated with 

bringing old surfcraft back to life. 

As well as producing custom 

surfboards and replicas, we 

restore choice pre-loved craft to 

their former glory using traditional 

methods of construction and the 

loving touch that HIGH TIDE 

is famous for. Also, alongside 

pigment coats, fi nish coats and 

polishes, we can add custom art to 

spruce up your classic craft. 

Call 0401 437 392 

Email hightidesurfboards@hotmail.com 

www.hightidesurfboards.com 

"OUR BOARDS ARE 

BASED AROUND A 

TRADITIONAL STYLE OF 

CONSTRUCTION USING 

MODERN MATERIALS" 


WOODEN 

SURFBOARDS 

SHAPES 

BY STEVEO 

I've been working with surfboards for 

close to 20 years. I cut my teeth with foam 

and fi breglass but have since focused my 

attention on all things wood. 

I am totally into building, riding and 

promoting top-of-the-line unreal looking 

hollow wooden surfboards. So as to 

minimize the impact on environment, I only 

use recycled timber or sustainable harvest 

plantation timber. Left over pieces get 

made into nose and tail blocks, fi ns or tick 

fi nish inserts to jazz up the look even more. 

My boards are more than just wall-hangers, 

they are built to be ridden and enjoyed and 

will last a lifetime. 

TIMBER SURFBOARDS 

SKATEBOARDS 

FOAM & GLASS 

COURSES AND KITS 

Call 0421 522 503 

Email woodensurfboardsshapesbysteveo@gmail.com 

www.woodensurfboardsshapesbysteveo.com.au 

I shape all manner of timber surfboards from 

fishes to guns, malibus, kneelos and standup 

paddleboards, including paddles. 

All are hollow just like an aeroplane wing. 

They are heavier than foam and glass but in 

saying that the boards are still very light and 

very fast down the line. They are unreal to surf! 

Each board is hand crafted and is a unique one 

of a kind so you will never see your board under 

someone else! 

I make a range of 

unique skateboards 

decks of varying 

lengths and styles 

that not only look 

amazing but are 

near indestructible. 

While it's the wood 

boards I enjoy the 

most, I still make 

foam and fibreglass 

surfboards of all 

shapes and sizes. 

I conduct one-on-one wooden board building 

courses and can schedule a time to suit you. 

I supply all the knowhow, tools and materials 

or you can bring your own. To build a board 

from start to finish so it is ready to surf is $475 

plus $70 per foot of board. 

Surfboard blanks (frames only, no deck, 

bottom skins or rails) are available from $200 

and kits containing templates plus wood start 

from $600. 

142 


Mitchell Rae (Second from 

right) with Outer Island 

Surfboard riders (L-R) Mega 

Samahdi, Andy Campbell, and 

Jake Drifter 

OUTER 

-ISLAND- 

SURFBOARDS 

In an age when surfing is run by 

corporations and the art of shaping 

has gone to the machines, OUTER 

ISLAND stay true to the roots. We have 

total commitment to design and hand 

construction of the finest surfboards 

on the planet, all custom-built, small 

numbers, and full in-house construction. 

We take pride in the strength and 

longevity of our boards, which outlast 

production-built boards by four times 

and more. Slow cure resin mixes with 

fiberglass applied under tension in a 

manner that creates a complex matrix 

of diagonal fibres are just some of the 

techniques we undertake that make 

for a stronger board by utilising the 

maximum potential of materials with no 

increase in weight. 

We are the acknowledged world leaders 

in Flex Technology, with FlexTails, carbon 

fibre controlled flex patterns and the use 

of timber in specific functions to control 

the overall flex pattern of a surfboard. 

V2 FLEX MODELS 

MOONRAKER, SMART BOARD, PERFORMER 

Featured in 90% of our boards for 

the last five years, V2 Flex is our 

own unique, revolutionary design 

controlling the overall flex pattern 

of a surfboard. Two stringers in an 

inverted V from the nose exit the 

rail forward of the fins, allowing the 

tail to flex where you want it - in the 

tail section - and stiffens the board 

through the forward section. V2 Flex 

boards feel sensitive and alive under 

foot, flexing into the turns for tighter 

arcs, greater hold and delivering a 

burst of drive (reflex) out of the turns. 

FLEXTAILS 

Flextails generate propulsion, drive 

and acceleration out of the turns. 

The tail fl exes as you apply power, 

carving a tighter arc. Energy is stored 

in the carbon tail, and is released 

out of the turn (refl ex) delivering a 

massive burst of drive and speed, 

like an arrow from a bow. 

Unlike conventional boards which 

are rigid and have one inbuilt set 

of curves, they feel alive to ride, 

changing shape while in motion. 

CORAL REEFERS AND GUNS 

It’s expensive to get to those 

remote places where the last thing 

you want is equipment failure, so 

these are built strong to handle 

serious swells. These boards inspire 

confi dence and give you the edge 

when the swell is up! 

The essential ingredients are 

maximum paddle power to get you 

out to the line up, super easy wave 

entry, blazing speed and ripability. 

Our Coral Reefers and Guns put you 

in control of the situation. 

SUPERMALS 

We offer a range of styles from High 

Performance Supermals and Nose 

Riders to traditional Logs in a variety 

of construction styles. Traditional 

glass tints, Cedar stringers and 

balsa/Cedar T Bands, three 

stringers, V2 Flex, Flex Tail Carbon 

Flex Technology, carbon fibre rails, 

custom airbrush designs and more... 

We are all about custom design and 

construction. 

7 Bayldon Drive, Raleigh, NSW 

Call 02 6655 7007 

Email info@outerislandsurfboards.com.au 

www.outerislandsurfboards.com.au 


-SOUL ARCH- 

SURFBOARDS 

ROBBIE MARSHALL hand shapes surfboards 

out of Broulee on the South Coast of NSW. Has 

been shaping quite solidly for the past four 

years with guidance along the way from Mick 

Mackie and Dylan Perese of DP Surfboards. 

With a carpentry background and a love for 

recycled timber, Robbie uses recycled wood as 

stringers and fins upon request. Handfoiled fins 

in timber and fiberglass are a speciality that 

complement the boards. It's great to have fins 

made by the same guy who has shaped the board, 

tailored to the surfboard and rider's needs. 

Predominantly a single fi n and fi sh surfer, the 

love for these shapes shines through in these 

shapes, but not to be pigeonholed in to one 

board style, Robbie custom shapes everything 

from fi shes, single fi ns, shortboards, quads, 

longboards to whatever else you can imagine. 

Call 0404 348 131 

Email dobba_21@hotmail.com 

Facebook Soularch Surfboards 

Instagram robbie_marshall21 

See Soul Arch Surfboards displayed at the 

Rivermouth General Store, Tomakin, NSW 

144 


CHRIS GARRETT SHAPES 

PHANTOM 

SURFBOARDS 

I LOVE SURFING EQUIPMENT that's 

easy to ride, fast, reactive and actually 

helps me surf beyond my ability. 

This is the approach I take to all the 

boards that I shape regardless of my 

client's ability. For over 30 years I have 

been fortunate enough to make a lot of 

people happy by matching boards to 

people to waves, and share in their joy 

and stoke. How good is that?! 

Available at 

Sunhouse, Coolangatta 

Brunswick Surf, 

Brunswick Heads 

The Boardroom, Miami 

BOARDS (L-R) 

FROM TOP LEFT.. 

Call 0424 450 690 

Email phantomsurfboards@gmail.com 

www.chrisgarrettshapes.com.au 

ROCKET TWIN FISH 

5'4" x 18 ¾" x 2 ½" 

SQUARE TAIL SLIPPER 

5'10" x 21" x 2 5 / 8" 

ACEY-DEUCEY 

5'11" x 18 ¾" x 2 3 / 8" 

HARMONY HULL 

6'2" x 21 ¼" x 2 5 / 8" 

POBBLEBONK 

4'10" x 22" x 2 3 / 8" 

ESS TAIL KILLER KEELER 

5'2"/4'10" x 19" x 2 3 / 8" 

KILLER KEELER 

5'5" x 18 ¾" x 2 ½" 

This board surfs like a 

skateboard with loose 

trucks, but on train 

tracks! Super fast and 

drivey, with plenty of 

bite to hold you through 

some of the tightest 

turns you'll want to do. 

Usually best ridden 4-6" 

shorter than your height. 

This wave cruiser inspires 

creamy rides and tasty 

turns. This one features 

used coffee grounds from 

the Sunhouse to colour 

tint the resin in the bottom 

layer. An awesome board 

on the points and with the 

wider tail, will still hold its 

own in the beachies. 

Long rail for the drive 

off the bottom and short 

rail for the hack down 

off the top. It's the only 

step-up board I have for 

the points when they 

are fi ring, and this is the 

board I rode at Kirra a 

couple of months ago. 

It fl ies. 

The sweet sugar glider of a 

board that I ride when I'm 

feeling cruisy but still want 

to perform and draw nice 

clean lines. Tri-plane hull 

under the nose for cheater 

5's and ease of paddling, a 

fouruster fin set up ( twin 

tail finned thruster) and a 

vee double out of the tail. 

Super fun. 

Originally made to surf 

the crap waves no one 

wanted at Snapper, this 

micro-mal/disc/slab 

with a deep swallow 

is the goods for surfi ng 

super fast and loose 

in pathetic wave 

conditions. Really just 

a mal with the useless 

walking bit taken out. 

This concave decked 

board is my latest 

favourite and really I've 

just gotten rid of the bits 

in the board that I don't 

use. eg, the pointy nose 

and the long rail in the 

cutback/off the top. 

With a wide nose and tail 

taken from the fish design 

and the narrowness of a 

performance board, this 

hybrid keeler is a super fast 

and highly manoeuvrable 

paddle machine. It's been 

hard to get off this one 

for the sheer fun and 

excitement it gives me in 

all wave conditions. 


GODDARD 

-SURFBOARDS- 

Call 0437 425 405 

Email ron@goddardsurfboards.com.au 

www. goddardsurfboards.com.au 

SPEED QUEEN 

9'0" x 21' x 2 7 /8" 

I always have one 

of these. Great 

Indo gun. I have 

thinned the nose 

thickness to reduce 

the swing weight, 

and they are wide 

so it doesn't have 

to be huge to 

use it. 

SUNRISE 

9'1" x 21 ¾" x 2 5 / 8" 

Wide nose, narrow 

tail, slight concave 

to V, soft to hard 

rail, a bucketload 

of bottom curve. 

It has a heap of fi n 

variables to change 

it's personality. I 

love my sunrise - it 

turns, it noserides. 

A pleasure to ride. 

M8 

8'0" x 22" x 2 

5 / 8" 

My whole quiver 

gravitates around 

this board. It's 

fi nely tuned with 

thin rails and hard 

edge through the 

tail. Slight concave 

to slight V fl at off 

the tail. It's my 

best mate. 

WAND 

7'0" x 21" x 2 2 5 / 8" 

A little bit retro. 

Fullish nose drawn 

out pintail. Single 

concave to chine 

rail through the 

tail. It's a great 

transition board for 

me - in the middle 

of the mals and the 

stubbies. 

"I LOVE SURFBOARDS. I USUALLY 

HAVE UP TO 20 AT A TIME. THESE 

ARE MY CURRENT FAVOURITES." 

Ron Goddard 

"I STARTED SHAPING IN 1969. 

It has been a life long passion. I now concentrate on custom work, turning out a 

few a week, keeping the quality up as much as I can. I still think the surfboard is an artform and always will. I'm an 

old man, so obviously this is an old man's quiver. I regard my quiver as leveling sticks - the task being to try and get 

the perfect level between young energetic grommet and waning geriatric... as close as possible anyway." 

HIP TO BE 

SQUARE 

6'6" x 20" x 2 5 / 8" 

I'm enjoying this 

board when I'm 

on my game (less 

and less as I get 

older!) It's pretty 

much a blownup 

short board: 

single concave to 

chine rail, it's the 

standard rounded 

square with soft 

hip in the outline. 

BUNKER 

5'8" x 21 ¾" x 2 ½" 

I love my stubbies 

I've worked on 

fat little boards 

forever - long before 

they became high 

fashion. The Bunker 

is a product of over 

40 years of research 

and development. 

Single concave 

with chine rail. IT'S 

CHUNKY AND 

IT'S FUN. Yes, I'm 

yelling. 

FREE RANGE EGG 

5'6" x 21 ½" x 2 5 / 8" 

My Free Range is 

just a fun button. 

The big, wide tail 

gets it up and 

skating in marginal 

conditions. Great 

little board when 

I don't want to 

ride a mal, but the 

waves are tiny. 

This little board did 

suprise me when I 

took it out at small 

Cloudbreak, Fiji. 

GOLDFISH 

6'0" x 20 ½" x 2 5 / 8" 

This is my classic 

fish. It's a bit of a 

wall hanger - solid 

balsa and redwood 

rails. It doesn't 

get out much. It's 

a pleasure to ride 

though. 

KITE 

4'10" x 18" x 2 3 / 16" 

I love riding waves 

with a kite - the 

future of surfing, I 

reckon - paddle in 

when the wind's 

light offshore, get 

whipped in when 

it's over 20 knots. 

This little board is 

crazy. I'm loving it 

to death...the photo 

doesn't show the 

beating it's had... 

still going strong. 

146 


RIGHT: The Classic Single Fin and Bonzer. 

BELOW: Paul Winter with a range of Fuyu 

surfcraft 

We design and handcraft all boards to the highest possible standards 

using the fi nest materials available. While we have a range of proven 

models, custom orders are our specialty with a number of test-drive demo 

boards available to assist with your personal order. 

We manufacture quality longboards, classic retro and hybrids, and recently 

introduced new models - Bent Temple, Bonzer, Classic Single Fin and the 

Box + Dice (a log/hp blend). 

FUYU models are available from outlets on the Sunshine and Gold 

Coasts. We currently have boards stocked in Golden Breed Noosa and 

Byron Bay, Underground Surf Noosa, Noosa Longboards and Beach Beat 

Alexandra Headland. 

-FUYU- 

SURFBOARDS 

AT FUYU SURFBOARDS, we 

acknowledge the essence and soul of 

surfing through maintaining our local 

industry, aiming at all times for quality 

rather than quantity, and implementing 

feedback from our customers. 

Since officially opening our factory in 

May 2013, our first major milestone of 

producing 100 boards is fast approaching. 

These initial months have seen much 

research, experimental forays, and everevolving 

shapes and glassing procedures. 

M: 0418 884 242 

T: 07 5447 5810 

www.fuyusurfboards.com 

E: mail@fuyusurfboards.com 


-TREE- 

TO SEA 

SURFBOARDS & WORKSHOPS 

KEEN TO BUILD on your surfboard quiver? 

Ever considered building your very own 

environmentally friendly and sustainable 

wooden surfboard? We can teach you all 

you need to know, to be able to make your 

own wooden surfboards at home, as often 

as you like. 

We've taught people from all ages and all 

skill levels. It doesn't matter if you are a 

skilled tradesman or someone that rarely 

handles tools of any kind. You will not need 

any wood working knowledge to be able 

to make your very own fantastic wooden 

surfboard. 

There are no high-tech machines or 

advanced skills required to build your own 

wooden surfboard at one of our workshops. 

These courses are designed at a grass roots 

level to enable anybody who has the desire 

to build their own board to achieve just that! 

Email info@treetosea.com.au 

Call Rob 0409 211 751 or Gary 0423 804 975 

www.treetosea.com.au 

BOARD CHOICES 

We have a comprehensive list of board plans 

and we are constantly updating our range. Over 

the past couple of years, approximately 200 

boards have been built in our 3-day workshops. 

Some participants even booked another 

workshop to build a second board.' 

We've started adding some of our own designs 

to increase the range of shapes and to meet 

requests of our customers. 

These are all proven, functional designs, built 

to be ridden. Boards from Tree to Sea are as 

much fun to ride as they are to build. 

SURFBOARD MODELS 

FISH: 5’11” Vola, 6’4” Striper 

SHORTBOARDS: 6’1” and 6’4” Saplings 

RETROS: 6’9” Driftwood, 7’2” Pintail 

MID LENGTHS: 6’10” Woodpecker 

MINI MALIBUS: 6’6” and 7’6” Splinters, 8’ 

All Rounder 

MALIBUS: 9’1” Splinter, 9’1” Retro Pig, 9’6” 

Classic Retro 

SPECIALTY BOARDS: 8’ Indo Gun 

CUSTOM DESIGN SERVICE 

If none of our models suit your needs we 

can design a board to your requirements. 

We'll email you the fi nished design for your 

approval. 

BOARD AND FIN OPTIONS 

Both nose and tail can be thinned out to suit 

your requirements. 

Tails can be changed to Rounded Pin, Squash 

or Square tails. 

148 


SHOTGUN SHORTBOARDS 

We have a very diverse range in short boards, 

everything from the 4’5” Tunnel Rat Project 

which has channels and surfs like a skate board 

on water to a big range of fishes and fun boards 

ideal for small to medium size surf including a 

retro range with a twist. 

Then there’s our All Rounders, which have all 

the requirements as travel boards or when the 

waves go up a level. Then we head into our Gun 

range and all our templates we have created 

over the years. 

LAGUNA BAY LONGBOARDS 

The MSJ Supa Model arguably the most high 

performance longboard in the world, ridden to 

massive wins by such names as Josh Constable, 

Taylor Jenson, Jackson Close, Harrison Roach, 

Bryce and Nava Young, Jesse Jerrems, Ezra and 

Zye Norris to name a few. 

The Fliptail Nose Rider is the ultimate in 

noseriding developed on the well-groomed point 

of Noosa and has been ridden to victory at this 

year’s Noosa Festival of Surfing, the biggest 

noseriding event in the world, while the Log 

Model is a combination of a longboard template 

we created in the '60s modifying it to current day. 

LAGUNA BAY STAND UP PADDLE 

Our stand up paddleboards are a combination of 

all our board designs and years of shaping and 

glassing put together. 

If you are looking to tweak 

a few measurements or 

create something special, 

check out our custom 

boards on our website. 

We work with you to 

create the board of 

your dreams. 

NOOSA 

SURF WORKS 

NOOSA SURF WORKS is a family run 

business that’s been operating in Noosa 

for over 45 years. We pride ourselves on 

creating high quality fine tuned equipment 

and put love and attention into every board. 

All our boards are made and created in our 

high tech factory in Noosa. We have a small 

crew of craftsmen that are part of the family 

and all have over 30 years of surfboard 

manufacturing experience. 

Our boards have been ridden to many 

Regional, State and Australian Titles and 

many big wins abroad including a World 

Longboard Title in 2006. 

If you're chasing a quality ride to add to your 

quiver or even just starting out, check out 

our website, join our Instagram/facebook 

page or come and see a board being made 

at our factory. 

Tully St John with a range of Shotgun Surfboards and 

Laguna Bay Longboards, and (left) a Laguna Bay SUP. 

1/11 Bartlett St, Noosaville, QLD 

Call 07 5474 4567 

Email info@noosasurfworks.com.au 

www.noosasurfworks.com.au 


SADHANA 

SURFBOARDS 

Jay Jackman, 

at the 

Sadhana House 

of Creativity 

The idea of SADHANA 

SURFBOARDS was born in 1997 

on a lifeguard chair, as a reaction 

to the mass-marketed, mediocre, 

one-size-fits-all approach to surfi ng 

at the time and since 2008, our base 

in Christchurch, New Zealand has 

opened up a nearby playground of 

waves for which to ride a diverse 

choice of surfboards. 

From humble beginnings, utilising 

various garages, shaping rooms and 

sheds around the world, SADHANA 

has grown to provide one of the 

most comprehensive ranges of hand 

shaped boards on New Zealand’s 

beautiful South Island. 

Visit the Sadhana House of Creativity 

Shop 52, The Tannery, Christchurch, NZ 

Surf, Clothing, Music, Art, Repairs, Blanks & DIY Supplies 

Call +64 (0)3 389 5611 

www.sadhanasurfboards.co.nz 

At SADHANA we believe that quality and 

workmanship aren't a thing of the past. Our boards 

are made in the traditional way using no large factory 

machines or mass production technology. Utilising 

strong quality laminates, vintage cotton inlays, 

custom stringers, resin tints and hand foiled fi ns, 

we guarantee progressive, consistent and durable 

surfboards for small wave stylists and big wave 

chargers alike. 

All models are now available in both Bennett PU 

and Superfused EPS/epoxy. 

From 2' to 20’, SADHANA has you covered. 

150 


QUARRY 

-BEACH- 

SURFBOARDS 

BOARDRIDING is dependent 

on many factors; waves, wind, 

surfboards, balance, skill and luck. 

As surfers, we understand that 

we have little control over any of 

these factors: we surf as often as 

nature makes it possible to have 

some fun and to improve our skills. 

One element we do have control 

over is the craft we ride. Obviously 

our crafts vary dependent on age, 

weight, style and the type of 

waves we surf. So how to get the 

best from this complicated set of 

requirements? 

You could ask a random shop 

assistant who imports boards 

from Australia or seek the 

expertise of your local shaper who 

knows the local conditions and 

has possibly seen you surf. And 

most importantly, he will listen to 

what you need to get from your 

new board. He can also look at 

your current board and discuss 

with you what he can change 

in order to help you catch more 

waves, carve better, boost airs or 

even walk to the nose. 

Graham Carse is a longtime 

Dunedin local, with a 

well developed knowledge 

of local conditions and what 

works for them. Since 1989, 

Graham at QUARRY BEACH 

SURFBOARDS has been the man 

to chat to about your next board. 

Whatever style you're after, he's 

made it - from beginner boards 

to high-performance shortboards, 

from slop-grovelling small wave 

boards like good old fish to 

monster-wave guns. 

Visit the shop: 

75 David St, Caversham, Dunedin NZ 

Call +64 3 455 7414 or +64 27 518 8678 

Email grahamcarse@xtra.co.nz 

www.qbsurfboards.com 


ISLAND 

SURFBOARDS 

"OUR BOARD BUILDING TEAM BOASTS 

OVER 130 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE" 

(And ISLAND shaper Glyndyn Ringrose can do handstands too) 

AT ISLAND SURFBOARDS we’re a close 

knit, family run operation who all surf and 

have the expertise to intimately understand, 

in detail, what kind of board and what 

dimensions will suit different styles, types 

and levels of surfer, and in which conditions. 

Our board building team boasts over 130 

years of experience with the likes of Glyndyn 

Ringrose, Greg Hogan, Terry Klemm, Slim 

Hyndman, Peter Coffey and Andy Biddington. 

Our factory is also home to a ding repair 

service, as well as wholesaling all types of 

surfboard shaping materials. 

147 Thompson Avenue, Cowes, VIC 

Phone 03 5952 2578 

Email cowes@islandsurfboards.com.au 

225 Smiths Beach Rd, Smiths Beach VIC 

Phone 03 5952 3443 

Email smithsbeach@islandsurfboards.com.au 

www.islandsurfboards.com.au 

All boards are made with the highest 

quality materials. We can custom make a 

handmade surfboard to your requirements 

and with our factory located out the back 

of the Cowes store, a shaper is usually on 

hand to discuss your requirements, and you 

can even watch your board as it is created. 

There is also a great range of stock boards 

in both our Cowes and Smiths Beach stores 

with knowledgeable staff to steer you in 

the right direction. We cater to surfers of 

all standards and needs. You can custom 

order in person, or even on our website. 

SHORT TO LONG 

From shortboards, funboards, guns, mini 

mals, as well as the new Island Classic 

Mal range (available in triple stringer style), 

Island has the board to suit your needs. 

Combine this with an ever-evolving, high 

performance kneeboard range, and all your 

new board dreams can come true. ISLAND 

recommends FCS and Futures fi n systems, 

as well as the option of glass in fins. 

SOFTBOARDS 

If you are after a softboard, ISLAND 

manufacture their own range of softboards 

expertly designed by shaper Glyndyn 

Ringrose utilising quality materials that 

result in an exceptionally well made board 

that is competitively priced. 

For a strong, surf-school quality board, you 

don't have to look any further. 

152 


THE PERFECT GIFT FOR CHRISTMAS 

Sunny Coast Surf Photographers 

www.ctrlv.com.au/sunny-coast-surf-photogs 

e: dave@ctrlv.com.au | m: 0407 371 166 

Ben Osborne Kieran Tunbridge Warwick Gow 

Kane Brown 

5’6 Short Board + DCal - $375 5’6 Short Board + DCal - $375 5’5 Fish Board + DCal - $425 5’5 Fish Board + DCal - $425 

Ben Osborne 

Warwick Gow 

5’5 Fish Board + DCal - $425 5’5 Fish Board + DCal - $425 

Kieran Tunbridge 

5’6 Short Board + DCal - $375 

Kane Brown 

Kieran Tunbridge 


Warwick Gow 

Kane Brown 

5’5 Fish Board + DCal - $425 

Ben Osborne 

5’6 Short Board + DCal - $375 5’5 Fish Board + DCal - $425 


AMAZING PHOTOS AND ART ON BOARDS 


- MR DAMAGE - 

Mark Benson of MR DAMAGE 

Photo: Andy/Photograffi x 

"I grew up surfing on the South 

Coast of SA. This is when I met 

Syd Wilmett who owned the local 

surf shop. I would often drop by to 

visit and chat to him about board 

making. One day Syd told me he 

was going to sell the business. 

After some wrangling I bought 

it off him with Syd offering me 

a three year apprenticeship in 

surfboard making working on 

his MR DAMAGE and Wildcatz 

labels. During the day I would run 

the shop and at night I would work 

in the factory. Busy but fun days. 

"At the end of my apprenticeship 

Syd left for the Gold Coast. 

When I became too busy to run 

both the shop and shape, my 

brother Paul took it over. That 

allowed me to solely focus on my 

shaping and with that I started 

my own factory making NXT 

Surfboards. Two years later I 

closed it and like Syd, moved to 

the Gold Coast. After shaping a 

couple of boards for myself at the 

Brothers Nielsen factory, which 

was owned by Roger Firehock, 

he asked me to start shaping 

for them. I shaped for Brothers 

Nielsen for about four years and 

had great success with Shane 

Bevan winning on Phillip Island, 

the Mark Richards Newcastle Pro 

and the Konica Superskins. 

"When I left Brothers Nielsen I 

moved back to SA having missed 

the country life. Back home I made 

boards in Port Elliot once again but 

later returned to the Gold Coast 

in 2000, where I then worked 

as a subcontractor shaping and 

laminating. Over the next few 

years I worked for Stuart Surf 

Designs, JS Industries and Magic 

Mix. I filled in for a few weeks at 

Phantom and Pipedream as well 

as shaping in Japan under my own 

label, Yours Surf and Sport. 

"One day I rang Darren Handley 

and he offered me a full time 

position working at Base. There 

I had the opportunity to learn 

even more as I was working with 

DH, Simon Anderson and Murray 

Bourton. A couple of years on when 

my fiance Shira fell pregnant with 

our daughter Taylah, we decided to 

return to Port Elliot so that Taylah 

could grow up surrounded by our 

families. 

"Following my return and a stint 

working at a local caravan park, 

one of my friends, Marcus Dewar, 

kept on hassling me to make 

boards again and with his help 

I opened my new factory on Hill 

Street, Port Elliot, where I am 

today. I decided to start afresh 

and rang Syd Wilmett to see if 

I could use the MR DAMAGE 

brand name as I always liked 

it and thankfully he gave me 

permission. I figured it went well 

with the ding repairs side of the 

business and it is a way of giving 

a bit of a shout out to Syd for all 

his help and advice over the years. 

Indeed I have been so fortunate to 

work with so many great people 

through the years who have 

supported me to no end. 

"Currently I make custom 

surfboards, do ding repairs, 

contract glass and sell fins and 

resin supplies. My boards are at 

Southern Surf in Port Elliot and the 

Original Surf Co at Noarlunga. 

Visit MR DAMAGE at Shed 2, 44 Hill Street, Port Elliot, SA 

Call 0416 199 764 Email mark@mrdamagesurfboards.com.au 

www.mrdamagesurfboards.com.au - Find us on Facebook 

154 


Shaper Andy Jordan and 

Kirsten Wilton of LIQUID 

STIXX, NZ 

Photo: Anne-Marie Mathiesen. 

LIQUID 

STIXX 

-STAND UP- 

PADDLEBOARDS 

"AT LIQUID STIXX, OUR 

AIM IS TO PROVIDE YOU 

WITH THE HIGHEST 

QUALITY, CUSTOM 

DESIGNED, AFFORDABLE, 

SUP GEAR." 

Liquid Stixx on a mission 

LIQUID STIXX are New Zealand front-runners 

in custom SUP design and manufacturing. 

At LSX we are continually progressing forward 

with our shapes and designs bringing our 

customers a high quality, custom designed 

affordable product. At LSX we stand behind 

our brand having built our business on strong 

customer ties and product guarantee. 

Our SUP packages stand out above the rest with 

our inclusive high quality elite carbon paddle 

(available in different blade sizes and shapes). 

For over four years LIQUID STIXX have teamed 

up with Andy Jordan to design original and 

locally designed products. Liquid Stixx has now 

grown into a strong brand of New Zealand 

designed SUP products. 

If it's a custom design you want, come and 

talk with us we can custom order to suit your 

needs, whether it be SUP surfi ng, fl at water 

or racing. LIQUID STIXX will supply you 

with all of the latest shapes and styles of 

stand up paddleboards on the market at very 

competitive prices. 

Visit us at our Tauranga Showroom 

(by appointment only) 

CALL(NZ) 0800 SUPING (787 464) 

See our website for a stockist: 

www.liquidstixx.co.nz 

Call +64 (07) 5701953 

Email kirsten@liquidstixx.co.nz 

Facebook Liquid Stixx 


Darren Pead, Jetlok Surf 

S U R F 

DROP ME A TEXT, email me any time 

to chat about ya next board, and you 

can drop over to have a cold beer or hot 

coffee with the shaper/glasser/sander. 

JETLOK boards are 100% made by me 

- that's right, its old-skool over here. 

Remember the days when that's how 

you ordered a board? It's a dying art. 

Nowdays, it's order online or buy from 

surf shops, but here we do it different. 

Support ya local shaper guys. 

You can also find us on Instagram 

and Facebook. We're also looking 

for team riders, guys and gals, so 

thanks for ya support. 

Yeewwww! 

THIS IS MY QUIVER that will 

make all the girl's legs shiver... 

L-R: White Ghost 6'4' round pin, 

Double Shot 5'5" round square, 

Loose Az 5'2" chop square tail, 

Fruit Loop 5'4" chop square tail 

(the sign to entry to factory of bad 

manners), Coffey Lover 6'1" round 

square, Take Me 2 The Moon 5'7" 

star tail. Boards start from $499 

Lake Munmorah, NSW 

Call 0421 400 537 

Email jetloksurf@outlook.com 

Facebook jetlok.surf 

Instagram @jetloksurfboards 

Aaron Surgenor, aka Surge, is the man behind 

SURGE SURFBOARDS, located in Kaikoura 

New Zealand. Surge makes 100% handshaped 

custom surfboards personalised to suit the 

individual. He is not into mass production. 

Whether you’re a grommet frolicking in the 

whitewater or a seasoned pro apt at pulling 

into seething kegs, Surge will customise a 

board to suit your own particular surfi ng style. 

SURGE SURFBOARDS has been created 

through many years of surfi ng and shaping 

experience combined. Surge shapes 

surfboards for many surfers in New Zealand 

and travelling surfers alike. 

Kaikoura’s surf spots are well-known for their 

rough entry and exits, and many a surfer's 

board has fallen victim. Consequently, Surge 

is the local go-to man for a fast affordable 

ding repair service, along with the occasional 

secondhand surfboard and surf accessory 

supplies from his factory surf shop. 

The Highliner 

5'10" x 19 ¾" x 2 5 / 16" 

" 

(up to 6'8") 

28.5l approx. volume 

Quad fi ns 

-JETLOK- 

-SURGE- 

SURFBOARDS 

Call 02 7428 7453 

Email surgesurfboards@hotmail.co.nz 

www.surgesurfboards.com 

156 


Nick shows off some of his craft 

TRIED & TRUSTED BLANKS 

Family owned and run 

for over 55 years 

-NMC- 

HANDSHAPES 

BLANKS: A multitude of different 

lengths, rockers and weights 

STRINGERS: An extensive 

variety of timbers of varying widths 

SHAPING TooLS: All you 

need to make a board from scratch 

Our consistency 

is the best in 

the world 

5 STEwART RoAD, CURRUmBIN QLD • CALL US oN (07) 5534 3777 

At NMC HANDSHAPES, we pride ourselves on 

the quality of our workmanship and how our boards 

perform. All boards are made by hand using the fi nest 

quality materials. 

5'4" Grom Pro performance board 

With over 25 years experience in the surfboard 

making industry, any type of surfboard can be created 

to your specifications whether you are a beginner or 

expert. Shortboards, longboards, fi sh, hybrids, big 

wave boards, grommet boards and paddleboards, we 

make them all and at a competitive price. Fibreglass 

and epoxy finishes available. 

NMC SURFBOARDS 

Sheepwash Rd, Barwon Heads VIC 

P: 03 5254 1658 M: 0438 800 539 

E: nmcsurf@bigpond.com 

www.facebook.com/nmcsurf 

finplugcover.com neatly covers over unused 

fin plugs on surfboards and water craft. 

find out 

more 

online 

facebook.com/ 

finplugcover 

finplugcover.com 


#SouthAustralianMadeSurfboards

#THEDingkingadelaide 

#clarksurfboards 

#surfboardsAdelaidE 

facebook.com/thedingkingAUS

gEar: businEss 

BUSINESS PROMOTION 

powEr 

to thE 

"wE arE a part of a growing rEVolution in EnErgy gEnEration. 

in proViding ElEctricity usErs with a cost-frEE transition to 

sustainability, wE giVE thEm grEatEr control oVEr thEir ExpEnsEs 

and thE satisfaction of a carbon-frEE sourcE of ElEctricity." 

Did we forget to mention our latest energy source? 

Jess grimwood, snapped at the World Surfi ng Games in Peru. 

She's a Central Coast surfer, fi refi ghter and all-round legend and 

suported by Voltaic Energy. 

Photo supplied by Voltaic Energy 

shapEr 

frEE solar solutions 

for surfboard factoriEs 

WORDS: NATHAN BEGLEY, VOLTAIC ENERGY 

VOltAic EnErgy was founded in early 2013 

with the sole intention of giving everyday 

people the ability to switch to renewable 

energy sources, significantly lower their 

electricity costs and acquire energy-producing 

solar assets at nil expense. 

The current situation in Australia is where people 

are forced to pay excessive electricity prices through 

monstrous national retailers, who source the energy 

from the national grid market. The yearly price 

increases that cripple small businesses and home 

owners are taken from the maintenance costs of 

network upgrades – basically the poles and wires 

that stretch all over the country. 

So what’s the alternative? If they’re fortunate enough 

to have the spare cash, home owners can outlay 

several thousand dollars to purchase solar to lower 

their bill. (Most, even if they had the cash aren’t 

likely to drop $5k-$10k on a solar system – a trip to 

the Mentawais is more likely…) 

but what if you don’t 

haVE thE sparE bEans? 

What if you’re running a business, shaping out of your 

backyard shed or renting in an industrial warehouse? 

160 

smorgasboardEr | CHRISTMAS 2014

ABOVE: Our install at the Royal Hotel Cullen Bullen, NSW 

This is where we come in... 

VOltAic EnErgy examines your exact usage patterns over 

days, weeks and months to establish the precise size solar 

system you need. We then purchase and install the system 

for free, selling the electricity produced directly to you. 

It’s like your own power station, custom-made. 

You’ll keep your existing grid connection just in case of rainy 

days, or if you want to burn the midnight candle shaping after 

the sun goes down. 

Our solar electricity prices are fixed, they don’t increase - ever. 

They’re also around 20% lower than grid-based prices, which 

means the average shaper/retailer can expect an immediate 

drop of about $60-$70 per month in electricity expenses. 

We sell the electricity straight to you at a set price over a 

maximum of six years, when we hand the system to you. Now 

it’s yours, your daytime electricity prices are basically nil. 

The systems aren’t fixed permanently to the building – if you 

move, so too can they be unplugged and re-installed at your 

new site. 

We use only the highest quality panels and inverters; 

Canadian Solar and SMA, both widely accepted as the 

benchmark worldwide for solar technology. The warranties 

on the equipment will guarantee them running until you’re a 

grumpy old fossil on your mal. 

VOltAic EnErgy isn’t a national corporation. 

We are both Sydney and country-bred, with a dream to see 

people sourcing energy for themselves, direct from the Earth, 

and we are proud to be part of Australia’s ripping surf culture. 

Our Australian champion, Central Coaster Jess Grimwood 

is the face of our East Coast Shapers Program, having been 

sponsored since March 2014, winning the Australian Surf 

Festival in August ’14 and repping for Oz in Peru at the World 

Surfing Games in October. 

The East Coast Shapers Program provides significant 

electricity savings for shapers and retailers. It creates 

sustainability in surfing, and gives small businesses another 

board in their quiver. 

Jess Grimwood 

"Voltaic EnErgy dEsigns 

and builds frEE custom 

solar powEr stations for 

ExclusiVE on-sitE gEnEration 

and consumption. wE 

systEmatically analysE your 

sEasonal and daily usagE 

pattErns to build a systEm 

tailorEd to your nEEds. 

ElEctricity gEnEratEd is 

sold dirEctly to you at a ratE 

Equal to or lEss than your 

currEnt grid-basEd ratE." 

for morE information: 

1800 789 000 • info@voltaicenergy.com.au 

www.VoltaicEnErgy.com.au 


SURFBOARD 

DINGS 

New Zealand 

RAGLAN, NZ 

RAGLAN 

LONGBOARDS 

7 days, 10am to 5pm except 

winter - catch us if you can 

+64 7 825 0544 

KAIKOURA, NZ 

SURGE 

SURFBOARDS 

Bust your board? Call us 24/7 

027 428 7453 

Queensland 

AGNES WATER/1770 

REEF 2 BEACH 

Mon-Sat, 9-5pm, Sun,10-4pm 

07 4974 9072 

PEREGIAN BEACH 

PEREGIAN BEACH 

SURF SHOP 

Mon - Fri 9am - 5.30pm, 

Sat 9am - 4pm 

07 5471 3489 

KAWANA 

NICHOLSON 

SURFBOARDS 

REPAIRS & 

RESTORATIONS 

Mon - Fri 7-3pm, Sat 7-midday 

0438 631 153 

facebook.com/nicholsonsurf 

Repairs & Restorations 

BUSTED YOUR BOARD? GET IT FIXED HERE... 

MOFFAT BEACH 

THE FACTORY 

SURFBOARDS 

Monday-Friday 9am-5pm, 

Saturday 8am-12pm 

(07) 5492 5838 

LABRADOR 

GC SURFCRAFT 

REPAIRS 

Mon-Fri 9am - 5.30pm 

Weekends by Appointment 

0401 016 088 

SOUTHPORT 

KOMA 

Mon-Fri 9am -5pm, Sat 9am 

-12pm 

0402 863 763 

MIAMI 

DINO’S DING 

REPAIRS 

Mon - Fri 9am - 5pm, 

Sat 9am - 12pm 

0409 727 735 

THE DING SHOP 

Mon - Fri 8.30am - 5pm, 

Sat 9am - 1pm 

0404 804 498 

BURLEIGH HEADS 

MT WOODGEE 

1730 Gold Coast Highway 

(07) 5535 0288 

Sun-Fri, 9am - 5pm 

Sat 8:30am - 5pm 

CURRUMBIN 

MT WOODGEE 

2 Stewart Rd 

(07) 5598 2188 

Sun-Fri, 9am - 5pm 


CURRUMBIN 

MAXIMUM 

SURFBOARDS 

46 Currumbin Creek Rd 

Mon - Fri 9am - 5pm 


Sun by appointment 

0400 338 098 

New South Wales 

YAMBA 

PLANK SHOP 

02 6645 8362 

TOMBSTONE 

SURFBOARDS 

Tues - Fri 9am - 4pm, Sat 

9am - 12pm 

0432 330 826 

COFFS HARBOUR 

SURF CRAFT 

REPAIRS JIM NEWTON 

4/6 Druitt Court 

Open most days, just call. 

0402 864 062 

BUDGEWOI 

BUCKO’S 

SURFBOARD 

REPAIRS & 

RESTORATIONS 

Mon-Fri 10am - 5.30pm 

Weekends by appointment 

0422 304 078 

CRONULLA 

RILEY BALSA 

SURFBOARDS 

WOODEN BOARD REPAIRS 

Mon-Sat 9am-4pm 

0412 376 464 

WOLLONGONG 

SKIPP 

SURFBOARDS 

Mon-Fri 9am - 5:30pm 

Thurs 9am - 7:30pm 

Sat 9am - 4pm, Sun 10am 

- 4pm 

02 4228 8878 

SHELLHARBOUR 

BROWN DOGG 

7 days a week - Just call 

0416 455 985 

JERVIS BAY 

INNER FEELING 

SURFBOARDS 

Seven days, 9am - 5pm 

02 4441 6756 

Victoria 

BELLARINE 

PENINSULA 

ROUSA 

SURFBOARDS 

Mon-Sat, 10am-5pm, 

0403 693 333 

THORNBURY 

ZAK 

SURFBOARDS 

Mon - Fri 10am - 6pm, 


03 9416 7384 

TORQUAY 

STONKER 


03 5261 6077 

THE SURFERS 

SHED 


0437 246 848 

PHILLIP ISLAND 

ISLAND SURF 

SHOP, COWES 

7 days, 9-5pm 

03 5952 2578 

South Australia 

MID COAST 

THE DING KING 

Clark Surfboards 

Mon - Fri 9am - 5pm 

0422 443 789 

LONSDALE 

MID COAST SURF 

Call us for a quality repair 

08 8384 5522 

SOUTH COAST 

MR DAMAGE 

SURFBOARDS 

Call Mark 0416 199 764 

mark@mrdamagesurfboards.com.au 

DO YOU FIX BROKEN BOARDS? 

Promote your repair business for $15 an edition. Call 0401 345 201 

162 



DOES IT 

WORK? 


TRIED AND TESTED 

Sun protection on a 

platter, Sunzapper's 

range covers the lot. 

SUN-SAFE WITH SUNZAPPER 

A RANGE OF ZINC SUN PROTECTION THAT SCORE A DOUBLE THUMBS UP WORDS: DAVE SWAN 

ABOVE: Luke Pleydon 

shows what you can do 

with a few zinc sticks 

and a little creativity. 

STRAIGHT TO THE POINT, I 

REALLY LIKE THIS SUNSCREEN. 

For me, sunscreen is a necessity. 

For one, I am as bald as a badger 

(interesting saying, because 

badger’s aren’t bald at all). Two, 

I have suffered my fair share of 

skin cancers through the years 

from squamous cell carcinomas 

(one that saw a part of my ear 

removed) right through to a Grade 

2 Melanoma that wasn’t far 

off going into my bloodstream. 

Needless to say, I need to be 

careful out in the sun. One wrong 

move and I’m cactus (No, I didn't 

just give away a secret spot). 

I will admit though, there aren’t 

too many sunscreens I am keen 

on. Most make you feel like a 

grease pig or, if they are zinc 

based, are so hard to spread, you 

need a special trowel to move it 

across your face and body with 

the end result having you looking 

like you’ve just poked your head 

in some fl our. 

Well this 50+ zinc sunscreen 

however wasn’t even white. 

When you squeezed it out, it felt 

thick, but then it spread so easily. 

Now without sounding very 

metro - not that there is anything 

wrong with guys who pluck their 

eyebrows and wax their chest 

– I’m guessing this is due to it 

containing Aloe Vera and Vitamin 

E. It moisturises and makes your 

skin feel as smooth as a baby’s 

bum. Best of all, this zinc does 

not have any harmful nanoparticles 

and it’s made right here 

in Australia! Fancy that, here, 

in Australia. And considering 

not many things are nowadays, 

I suggest it is pretty bloody 

important to support Sun Zapper 

and try this sunscreen that I give 

a big double thumbs up. 

HOW MUCH? 

Sunzapper products range 

from as little as $4.99 for the 

SPF 30+ lip balm, to $18.99 

for a triple pack of zinc sticks 

and are available from retail 

stores, or online from: 

www.sunzapper.com.au 


TEST: EVERYTHING 

 

DOES IT 

WORK? 


TRIED AND TESTED 

CRUISER 7'0" 

(Also in 6'6", 7'6" and 8'0") 

Features: Double substrate 

deck and 2 x stringers for extra 

strength. Comes with legrope. 

Test pilot Finn Davis. 

Photo: Mark Chapman 

ORANGE YOU GLAD... 

SUMMERTIME'S HERE, WITH BRAND NEW SOFTBOARDS FROM EL NINO! 

WORDS: MARK CHAPMAN 

El Nino's signature bright orange fi ns 

have begun to feel a bit like a marker 

of summer for us. It's just such a 

happy colour, and El Nino boards are 

all about happiness on the beach. 

On our test day, it's a rather average 

morning on the Sunshine Coast, 

but even the little dribblers coming 

through are enough to excite our 

three test-pilots for the day: Finn and 

Mali Davis, and Elliott Chapman. 

Finn's straight out on the Moke and 

with the help of dad, Damo, is catching 

plenty of ripple rides. Although it's a 

little shaky at first (at only 53" - 4'4" - 

it's a really small board) he soon gets 

comfy with it and starts catching a few 

little crackers, like the one above. 

Perfect to bellyboard on, drop the 

knee or plain surf if you're quick or 

small enough, the Moke is a whole 

lot of fun in a small package. 

"THE MOKE 

WAS MY 

FAVOURITE... 

IT’S A LITTLE 

DIFFICULT TO 

STAND UP ON 

AT FIRST, BUT 

I’D DEFINITELY 

BUY ONE." 

Finn votes for the Moke 

THE MOKE 53" 

Twin-fi ns added to El Nino's 

original Moke design make this a 

fun, fat little rocket. 

164 


Test pilot Elliott Chapman 


On a side note, softboards 

can be diffi cult to 

wax up. Banana Wax 

however, just went on 

a treat. 

Damo Davis 

waxes up 

El Nino's new leg rope 

system is child's play... 

literally., Nine-year-old Elliott 

attached his own legrope 

with a 50c piece 

Test pilot Mali Davis 


The 7'0" Cruiser is perfect 

for kids with a season or 

two's surfi ng behind them. 

Otherwise, the 8'0" is a 

better starting point. 

The 7'0" Cruiser turns out to be a great all- 

rounder. All three kids had a whale of a time 

on it. It's big enough to be that bit more 

stable and it's easier to catch waves on. 

But the bonuses start before hitting the 

water. This year, El Nino have included 

leg ropes with certain models, the Cruiser 

being one of these. A further improvement 

on previous models is the ease of attaching 

the legrope with the simple twist of a coin 

(see right). 

Kitted up, legrope on, the kids hit the water. 

Mali was first up and riding,scoring a few 

good rides straight to the beach, right away. 

While she had fun bellyboarding on the 

Moke, the Cruiser was the board for her. 

In fact, at 7'0 ", there's enough board there 

to float an adult for a bit of beachside fun. 

With the Cruiser easy to paddle and catch 

waves on, Elliott also managed to snag a 

few and came up all smiles. 

THE WRAP 

Well-priced, strong, colourful and cheerful, 

El Nino really hits the nail on the head, 

particularly with the kids. After all, cool 

colours make the board go faster. 

MORE INFO 

www.elninosurf.com.au 

Big thanks to Damo, Mali, Finn and Elliott! 


WELLINGTON’S 

SURF CENTRAL! 

SURFBOARDS, 

WETSUITS & REPAIRS 

PLUS: Bodyboards, Surf Accessories, Dive Gear, 

SUPs, Skateboards, DVDs, Books & Magazines... 

IN STORE AND ONLINE! 

SNZ-APPROVED SURF SCHOOL & BOARD HIRE 

BOARDS, LESSONS, ADVICE, 

CLOTHING & MORE! 

RETRO 

BOARDS 

& GEAR 

LOCAL 

CLOTHING 

BRANDS 

surfing 

tribe 

loving surf, art, life, beer 

39 BEACH ST, FITZROY, NEW PLYMOUTH, NZ 

P: +64 (06) 7580400 

E: beachstreet@xtra.co.nz 

www.realsurf.co.nz 

Cnr Kingsford Smith St & Lyall Parade, Lyall Bay, NZ 

Like Beach 

Street Surf Shop 

on Facebook! 

ITS ALL ABOUT SURFING! 

join the tribe: surfing-tribe.com 

166 


THE 

BEAUTIFUL 

GIRLS 

DANCEHALL DAYS MGM 

Mat McHugh is back with 

a new release, this time as 

The Beautiful Girls. It’s safe 

to say there was a fair bit of 

anticipation for this release. 

Plenty of hype in the lead up, 

partly due to a Pledgemusic 

campaign which reached 

114% of the target funding, 

meant plenty of excited people. 

Fans of Mat’s work across 

various projects know he likes 

to shakes things up. While his 

distinctive vocal style is ever 

present, he travels all over 

musically. Rather than the 

stripped down acoustic of Love 

Come Save Me, Dancehall 

Days has him immersed in 

samplers and synths, with a 

liberal dose of horns. 

There's 39 minutes of laid back, 

relaxed listening here. Even the 

more up-tempo, housey track 

"Survival" can’t help but feel 

chilled with Mat on the mic. 

Particular standouts? Track 

number 9 - "#1 Stylee" is a cool 

old-school mix of Mad Professor 

and Sublime-esque sounds, and 

the title track is a favourite. 

AZOV 

SOUNDWAVES & 

SALTWATER VEINS 

PARK PRODUCTIONS 

Now I may be biased, seeing 

as the first time I encountered 

Azov (AKA Indra Gynell) was at 

home on the Sunshine Coast, 

and it may be because the 

release features the musical 

production talents of Recon - 

50% of the original Sunshine 

Coast surfing hip-hop duo, 

Evenbreak, of whom I have 

only good memories, but I’m a 

big fan of this release already 

after only a couple of spins. 

Azov, who was featured 

in the last edition of 

Smorgasboarder, walks 

the line between his two 

passions of surfing and spitting 

smart lyrics. While this isn’t 

everyone’s cup of tea, don’t 

let the rap/hip-hop label box 

this - it’s no formulaic gangsterwannabe 

album. 

Soundwaves & Saltwater Veins 

offers up 12 tracks of cleverlyphrased 

and well-delivered 

all-Aussie hip-hop, with not 

a fake American accent to be 

heard - ‘a cross between Rev. 

Run meets Redgum’ as Azov 

puts it in the track "Gold and 

Greenback." Dripping with 

self-deprecating humour, it’s 

all about Aussie imagery and 

laid-back delivery, so if you’re 

after cap-in-ass-popping 

hardcore and angst, go park 

your lowrider someplace else. 

"Dropsaw Symphony", "Show 

or Tell" and the closing track, 

"Numerics" are real standouts. 

So, if you like rap, but you’d 

rather spin Hilltop Hoods than 

Cypress Hill (and are partial to 

Vegemite, Holden utes) then 

this will have you hanging for a 

party every January 26. 

See Parkproductions.net to 

grab yourself a copy. 

ALLAH-LAS 

WORSHIP THE SUN 

OUR PICK 

OF THE 

BUNCH! 

CREATE/CONTROL | INNOVATIVE LEISURE 

I think I feel my beard growing 

as I listen to Worship the Sun. 

There’s most certainly a distinct 

twitch on my top lip, as a pencil 

moustache starts sprouting... 

Smack in the middle of 

Tarantino soundtrack and 

ultimate hipster retro-ness, this 

14-tracker is a reverb-heavy 

kickback to surfy, folky oldschool 

California rock ’n roll. 

While it’s all about invoking 

“beatniks, artists, surfers and 

nomads, remnants of a bygone 

Sunset Strip, golden tans and 

cosmic sunsets”, fortunately 

MUSIC 

ROADTRIP 

REVIEWS 

BY MARK 

CHAPMAN 

it’s not only about rolling up my 

chinos to expose my ankles as I 

wait for my half-strength decaf 

sustainable soy. Worship the 

Sun’s timewarp travels a bit 

more hippie than hipster. 

As extremely authentic 

psychedelic guitar sounds 

flutter out of the speakers, 

the room almost swirls a 

little purple while long haired 

hippie-girls wearing flower 

tiaras wave away imaginary 

butterflies... But it keeps 

travelling. 

“Better than mine” is a 

country number, complete 

with lap steel slide, while 

“No werewolf” is 100% 

instrumental surf guitar cool. 

Despite the fact that I know 

someone in a fedora will twirl 

their ringmaster moustache 

to this album, commenting on 

the deeper social relevance of 

a barista’s polka-dot “We can 

do it!” headscarf - this album 

is cool. Really cool. In only a 

couple of listens it’s grown on 

me very quickly, but it’s a pretty 

polarising play (“This sucks. 

It sounds like Status Quo!” 

just got shouted across the 

office… No, it doesn’t sound 

like Status Quo.) 

Anyway, so is it “the perfect 

soundtrack for the greatest 

surf film never made”? Not 

perfect, because that would 

undo the retro cool, but I rate it 

completely worth a spin. I must 

go brush my beard now. 

For surfers, by surfers - support your local business! 

Want to see yourself here? Call 0401 345 201. 

YUP, THEY'RE 

MADE FROM 

FOAM AND 

FIBREGLASS. 

SEE HOW THEY ROLL AT 

SHADOWSKATES.COM 




proudly stocking 

THE LOGO SAYS IT ALL! 

• THE SURF 

• THE MOUNTAIN 

• THE OIL & ENGINEERING 

INDUSTRIES 

• STARS - SOUTHERN CROSS 

Shop 2, Marina Road, Tutukaka Coast 

Northland, New Zealand 

PH 09 43 44135 

EMAIL surf@tutukakasurf.co.nz 

Find us on FACEBOOK 

WWW.TUTUKAKASURF.CO.NZ 

• BARBED WIRE - FARMLAND 

• WINGS - FREEDOM 

PH +64 (06) 758 1757 

BUY ONLINE WWW.TARANAKIHARDCORE.CO.NZ 

Who better than to custom make 

your retro single fin board 

DEL SURFBOARDS 

SINCE 1965 

www.delsurf.co.nz PH +64 (06) 758 1757 

168 


CHANGES AFOOT 

Of course it warmed my heart to hear that Smorgasboarder 

was planning to dedicate a large slice of their Christmas 

edition to sustainability in surfi ng. It’s fantastic to see 

that not only surfers, but a whole generation is embracing 

sustainability, and becoming more aware as to how we can 

protect and help our ocean environment. 

When our business, Surfing Green, started, the options 

for eco-friendly surf products were few and far between. 

Just eight years on, more and more people are jumping 

on board and embracing the alternatives or creating their 

own alternatives to traditional surf products, boards and 

accessories. We’re regularly contacted by individuals, 

businesses, start-ups and students creating fantastic 

products and wanting to get them out there. More and more 

retailers and shapers are jumping on board and changing, 

if not their whole business to encompass sustainability, 

then at the very least providing sustainable alternatives for 

their customers. These changes are being driven through 

awareness and individuals looking for ways to lessen their 

impact, whether they are the consumer or the manufacturer. 

This issue celebrates these people and raises awareness of 

some of the alternatives available. You can now become the 

proud owner of an Australian made surfboard, glassed with 

an eco-resin using a natural fi bre alternative to fi breglass 

– with either a timber or recycled foam blank underneath, 

a recycled or timber fin system with the same performance 

as a traditional board. Wax your board with any one of 

the numerous eco surf waxes available out there, place 

a cork deck pad on top and deck yourself out in a snazzy 

sustainably manufactured wetsuit, rashie, boardies or bikini. 

A large percentage of surf retailers now supply recycled or 

eco surf clothing and footwear, even down to waterproof 

watches made from timber. You can also carry your board 

around in a recycled board bag and slip, slop, slap with one 

of the various natural sunscreens available which are both 

kinder on your skin and on the environment. 

So you can pretty much enjoy a complete ecologicallyconscious 

package, still perform in the surf, and wear 

funky beach threads. Big ups to everyone supporting these 

changes in our industry and let’s hope those creative juices 

keep on flowing. 

Nicola O’Reilly is the better half of the nice 

folks from Surfing Green, a couple passionate 

about sustainable surfing products. 

surfinggreen.com.au 

BYRON BITS 

BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE BYRON BAY BREWING CO. 

TRY OUT ALL THE 

BEERS ON OFFER 

AT BYRON BAY 

BREWING CO. 

TALKING BEER 

WITH BREWER SCOTT HARGRAVE 

Summertime is fast approaching and for 

many people that means images of tanned 

bodies on the beach, long hot evenings and an icy 

cold, thirst-quenching beer. 

Our Byron Bay Pale Lager is just the sort of beer to fit the bill. 

A refreshing low carb beer, this pale lager is the perfect solution 

to a dry, dusty throat. With a very easy drinking nature and a 

slightly fruity note, courtesy of New Zealand grown Motueka 

hops, this beer can ease a scorched palette in moments. 

Sometimes things are not what they seem. We add cane sugar 

to the kettle boil to make a low carb beer? Yep, cane sugar is 

completely fermented by brewer’s yeast diluting the amount of 

unfermentable sugars (or dextrins) left in the fi nal beer. These 

residual sugars are the “carbs” that people talk about with 

regards to beer. Dextrins add mouthfeel to beer and lo carb beers 

have a little bit less than all malt or full carb beers. 

What does all this mean? Well, the calorifi c difference between 

full carb and low carb beers is about one jelly bean per glass. 

Don’t expect low carb beers to reduce an expanding waistline. A 

healthy diet, regular exercise and a moderate intake of alcohol 

(full or low carb) are what we all need to stay trim, taunt and 

terrifi c. Now, lots of people drink Pale Lager because the easier 

drinking nature suits their palette and flavour expectations 

regardless of carb content. 

Remember, always drink (in 

moderation) for enjoyment, not 

guilt reduction... ;) 

Cheers, 

Scotty the Brewer 

1 Skinners Shoot Road, Byron Bay NSW 2481 Phone: (02) 6685 5833 Fax: (02) 6685 5519 

WWW.BYRONBAYBREWERY.COM.AU 

WHAT’S ON 

EVENTS AT THE BREWERY... 

FREE MEAL! 

BUY ONE MEAL, GET THE SECOND FREE* 

*For details, more specials and to download 

a voucher see the website! 




ANY CLOSER TO THE SUPERBANK, 

AND YOU’D BE IN THE LINE UP 

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Mick Fanning Photo: Quiksilver 

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E: info@theobservatory.com.au 

WWW.THEOBSERVATORY.COM.AU 

Enquiries: Cam 0408 983 702 Alicia 0432 686 751 

Email: surf1770@bigpond.com 

170 


THE MOLCH 2014 

WORDS: RHONDA DOYLE AND ANGELA THOMAS 

PHOTOS: ANGELA THOMAS 

An annual celebration of the life of Central 

Coast surfer Adam Hillier, the Adam Molch 

Hillier Memorial Surf Classic, for surfers 

from North Entrance To Forresters Beach, was 

held at Shelley Beach for the 18th year. 

Adam was a wonderful surfer and enjoyed 

the sport with many of his mates. It’s now 

19 years since Adam was killed by a hit-andrun 

driver while working a stop-go sign. He 

was only 18 at the time, and an apprentice 

bridge and wharf carpenter with Gosford 

City Council. 

The weekend memorial event was enjoyed 

by all who attended, including family and 

friends. Plus they got to tuck into free BBQs, 

soft drink and water. As a self funded 

event - as in years before - competition 

entry covered the food, plus a beaut t-shirt, 

designed by Trent Brailley. 

“A couple of the boys made lovely timber 

trophies,” said Rhonda. “And in 2001 we 

had a surfboard donated with Adam’s 

photo glassed into it, as a perpetual trophy 

for the Open Division winner. This year’s 

win was again taken by Russ Molony, 

Over 28’s winner was Robert Coote, while 

Over-40’s was won by Matt Molony, Russ’s 

older brother. Under 18’s Girls was won 

by a newcomer Holly Gibbons, Under 

16’s was taken by Brenden Wall, Under 

14’s by Wade Clemens, Under 12’s by 

Joel Vaughan and Under 10’s winner was 

Hughie Vaughan, while Ladine Smith took 

honours in the Women’s Division. 

Extra meaning has been added to the 

classic over the past few years with the 

addition of The Luke Hankey Grommet 

Trophy, in memory of Luke Hankey, who 

was stabbed to death in The Bateau Bay 

Hotel carpark in 2007. Luke was a grommet 

who came up through the ranks since the 

very fi rst Molch and won the U18’s when 

he was only 14, he also made a couple of 

Open fi nals. The grommets trophy was won 

by Nathan Cook. 

Over the past years, Central Coast Kids In 

Need Inc has received proceeds from the 

raffl e, which has always included a custom 

Rex Marachel RMS Surfboard. To date 

the raffl es have raised around $25,500.00, 

which helps pay for families of critically 

ill children from the coast to travel and 

stay at Ronald McDonald Houses and 

Parents Hostels at Sydney and Newcastle 

hospitals. CCKIN assisted 238 families and 

outlaid $271,723.28 last fi nancial year 

alone, so every cent helps. Check out our 

website for more - www.cckin.com.au 

This year however, instead of the raffl e, a 

retro esky with this year’s Molch logo on it, 

donated by Safety One Workwear, was up 

for auction, and one of the competitors, Bill 

Mahony, gave $850 to CCKIN for it. Great 

gesture. 

For more info on the event or CCKIN, 

please contact Rhonda Doyle. 

rhonda@cckin.com.au 

CLOSEOUT: SOCIALS 



SURF COAST 

LONGBOARDERS 

Enjoys some cracker photos taken by club member Michael Reid during the October Surfcoast Longboarders Club 

Comp held at Point Impossible on Victoria’s West Coast. More on the club at www.surfcoastlongboardclub.com 

172 




Classic food with a modern twist 

Enjoy Coffs’ 

A BOUTIQUE ROASTERY 

WITH A PASSION FOR 

PRODUCING 

QUALITY COFFEE. 

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Tues to Sun 

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locally roasted beans 

Yes, this is an actual brekkie burger 

from The Galley... 

want Artisti 

in your café? 

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(02) 6652 9011 

(opposite the 

Hoey Moey) 

Ocean Parade, 

Coffs Harbour NSW 2450 Australia 

@ the Marina 

Opposite the Fish Co-Op 

Coffs Harbour International Marina 

T: 02 6650 0188 E: thegalleytakeaway@gmail.com 

37 VERNON STREET, COFFS HARBOUR 

0434 700 910 INFO@ARTISTI.COM.AU 

BUY ONLINE AT WWW.ARTISTI.COM.AU 

JOIN US ON FACEBOOK & INSTAGRAM 

Byron Sunset Happy Hour! 

Monday to Friday 4-6pm 

Half price selected Tapas (Calamari and dips) 

$5 select beers & house wine, $10 Margaritas 

MICHAEL CUNDITH 

SURF DESIGNS 

Telephone: 02 6685 8778 

Factory Showroom: 

3 Banksia Dve, Byron Bay Industrial Estate 

BYRON BAY NSW 2481 

email: info@mcsurf.com.au 

www.mcsurf.com.au 

Open every day Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Tapas till late. 

Cnr Lawson & Jonson, Byron Bay 

02 6680 9666 www.balcony.com.au 




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174 


BOARDS FIND 

NEW OWNERS 


Jay Pashley tells us all about the recent 

community surfboard market day held in 

Marcoola on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. 

WORDS & PHOTOS: JAY PASHLEY 

“Fine weather, small surf and the middle Sunday 

of the school holidays were ideal conditions for 

the inaugural Second Hand Surfboard Market 

at Marcoola. Over 150 surfboards of all sizes, 

confi gurations and conditions turned up for a 

consistent crew to consider, ponder, critique and buy. 

“Being our first attempt at something like this, 

we weren’t sure who or what would turn up, but 

the response was fantastic with nearly 60 boards 

changing hands on the day. We had a number of 

people saying they sold theirs before they even got 

them on the grass. 

“The day provided a great opportunity for the local 

Sunshine Coast surfing community to come together 

with a very relaxed and feelgood vibe. To top things 

off - thanks to the fantastic support of the local 

business community and the Mudjimba Boardriders 

Club - nearly $3,000 was raised through voluntary 

contributions from board sales and a monster 

fundraising raffle. The money was used to help send 

local junior boardrider Sienna Hanna to the Australian 

Junior Surfing Titles in WA this December (See Page 

18 for more on Siena), and also put towards a new 

community playground and park at Marcoola.” 

For more information and to put your hand up to get 

involved for the next one, get in touch with Jay: 

jay@northshorerealty.com.au or 0407 119 355 




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or water in your phone, iPod 

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the same again? Thanks to their 

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that the things that should stay 

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Buy online or ask your friendly surf shop... 

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0403 354 716 

176 


FUN IN 

THE SUN! 

Cale walking. Photo Noel Brady 

Noel Brady 


The 14th Annual Fun in the Sun team challenge 

lived up to its name again this year. Hosted by 

Caloundra Malibu Club, the two day event was 

held at Ann St, Currimundi as the aroma of fresh 

Amore coffee filled the air, and spectators took 

in the action from their grassy hillside vantage 

point under the Pandanus trees. 

With strong southerlies, a building swell and an 

outgoing tide, the conditions were testing for 

even the most experienced of competitors. A 

special mention goes to the junior competitors 

for their gutsy efforts. I think it’s fair to say that 

the old mal riders really had their work cut out 

for them. Catching a wave that linked up and ran 

all the way through to the beach was no easy 

feat. Those who were lucky enough to score 

one, were rewarded with an eruption of stoked 

hoots from the crowd. 

First place in Division A went to The Five Skins 

team from Alexandra Headland Malibu Club. 

Congratulations to Damien Coulter, Drew 

Coulter, Cale Coulter, Josh Berigen and Mick 

Vaisnys on a well deserved win. Division B saw 

the Smiling Assassins from Caloundra Malibu 

Club take honours. 

The Classic Malibu Performer and Global Surf 

Industries SUP raffle boards were drawn at 

presentation. Another lucky contestant took 

home the Factory Surfboards’ Grugstep log 

winning it at auction for a great price. It was a 

well organised event with a great vibe which 

would not have been possible without the 

tireless work of the club’s committed members. 

Thank you so much to everyone who helped out. 

For more info and full results see the website 

caloundramalibuclub.com 

Jodie Brady, 

Caloundra Malibu Club 

Winners - Fiveskins, Photo: Christo 

Noel Brady 

Kai Annetts, Photo: Noel Brady 

Eion Whately, Photo: Noel Brady 


Get out there, grab a few waves and a great break - see you all in 2015! Cheers for now... 

178 


SMORGASBOARDER


MALDIVES REMOTE ATOLLS 

2015 CHARTERS ON SALE NOW 

info@liquiddestination.com 

180 


SMORGASBOARDER

Smorgasboarder_26-xmas-2014-s

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