Buying the Perfect Surfboard

There is never a perfect surfboard for any surfer & conditions because the surf is always changing. This doesn't mean that you cannot strive to buy the best board possible.  Surfing is all about personal preference and what kind of waves you surf. I suggest  borrowing some of your friends boards so you can get a feel for what kind of board to buy or which boards you didn't like.

The biggest thing is that the board was shaped for the most common surf conditions at your local spot. A perfect board for Pipeline is going to look a lot different from a perfect board for Lower  Trestles.

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE

There have been so many great surfers to come and go through all of the over half a century that I have been surfing that I have probably forgotten more than I wish I have. But there are those, naturally, that have stood out as the best of the best. The hard part recently has been seeing some of the truly greats overlooked in much of the surfing media. They do these so called “greatest” surfers lists and they honor the wrong people. Well, let me take that back. They don’t honor some of the right people. One guy who has been overlooked lately who really deserves as much credit as anybody is Mike Doyle.

Mike Doyle is flat out one of the greatest all around surfers there has ever been. He was named the “Best Surfer in the World” by the SURFER magazine readers poll two years in a row in 1964 and 65. He won the Duke Kahanamuko Invitational Big Wave Championship in 1969. He is in the Surfers Hall of Fame. Plus he won numerous events here in California both surfing and as a swimmer, paddle board racer, tandem surfer, dory rower and all around “iron man.” Mike could do it all when it came to surf and ocean related sports. Actually I should say Mike CAN do it all, he is still doing it. The dude is in better shape than anybody really should be at his age, which is older than me and I am older than almost everybody. Not long ago I was surfing with him at a spot near his art gallery in Los Cabos, yes he is a very good artist too. After we finished surfing he asked if I wanted to go for a paddle. He had a couple of racing paddleboards. I was pretty worn out from the mornings surfing session so I said no. He jumped on one of the boards and took off like he was a Greyhound bus on its way to Barstow or something.’ I was kicked back chowing down on some bacon and eggs, toast and muffins, coffee and some orange juice watching as he disappeared over the horizon. A few hours later he reappeared and eventually landed on shore in front of where I was busy napping in a comfy hammock.

“Geeze dude, you were gone a long time. Where did you go, China?” I greeted him.

To that he commented that actually he had cut his paddle short because he and some pals had a tee time to play a round of golf that afternoon and he was close to being late. He took off munching on a fig bar. The next day he and his beautiful young girlfriend (now wife) Annie took off for the Rockies to go snowboarding. There had been a big snowfall and they wanted to be on top of it.

I first met Mike when he picked me up hitchhiking home from a surf session at Doheny one summer day in the early 1960’s. I was in ga ga awe at actually being in the car of this famous surf god. He had been a star in many of the early surfing movies and I had seen him winning surfing contests. We would later become close pals and spent a lot of time surfing together both here and in Hawaii. Mike was, as I said, a real all around surfer. He could ride anything. But it was in big surf that he really excelled. This guy was truly amazing when it got in the size range that most everybody else turned into total cluckers. I still have vivid memories of seeing him take off so late on a huge wave at Wiamea Bay one day that he totally free fell down the entire face, probably 30 foot plus by todays size scale, and smoothly landing it and pulling right into the barrel like it was a six foot wave or something. It was one of those moments where you just shake your head and go “wow.”

Today Mike is still charging it. He has a very clean line of surfboards and stand up paddleboards that he designs for the Orange County based Southern Calif Sports Industries, he is a renowned artist who gets tens of thousands of dollars a painting, he is the guy who invented the “mono ski,” which turned into the modern snowboard and the dude who put the “tweak” in the infamous “nose tweak.”

He is a fantastic guy, a excellent pal and by far one of the greatest surfers ever. PERIOD.

CORKY CARROLL is a columnist for the Orange County Register newspaper in Southern California. He was five times United States Surfing Champion, three times International Professional Champion and Number 1 on the Surfer Magazine Poll. Currently he opperates a surf adventure program at his home on Mainland Mexico.

Zinka Sun Block

For over 20 years groms and adults like have been using Zinka Sun Block. They are most popular for their "face paint" sun block. Coming in a wide variety of colors, their nose block is the perfect way to keep your face from getting burned when in the sun for long periods of time.

The thick Zinka sun block can stay on for all day, although you will want to reapply ever once and awhile. But aside from performance, most groms love the different colors of the Zinka sun block.

Oakley Holbrook

Oakley recently came out with a new Pair of  sunglasses called the Holbrook. I just got a pair and love them. Their style is like the frogskins, yet mixed with a more modern artsy look.

These sunglasses come in both normal & polarized lenses. The were designed by Shaun White in collaboration with Oakley designers. They are comfortable and are a great option for a pair of summer sunglasses.

Learn to Surf on a Single Fin

If you are learning to surf, always start on a single fin longboard. They can be harder to find since most longboards come with a thruster setup these days. But, single fins are often faster, smoother and alot more stable.

This makes it easier to stand-up and learn on. Not to mention you will have much smoother style/technique.  So next time you have a choice - always go for a Single Fin.

What makes a good Surf Movie

Surf movies are an integral part of surf culture, they are what helps to give surfing a presence outside of the sport's own followers (for example Endless Summer and Big Wednesday) whilst stoking the fire to get in the water for even the most seasoned surfer (The Modern Collective, The Momentum Series etc).

So the question is what makes a good surfing film?  There are five key elements that go into the mix when creating good surf films - the footage, the surfers, the story, the waves and the music.

The footage:

Possibly the most crucial factor as to whether a surf movie will be good or bad. Different surfers will have different views on what kind of style filming they prefer, for some it's all about hard fast action shots from the beach that capture just how crazy the stuff that the pro on camera is pulling, others may get their kick out off slow motion action or really atmospherically shot surf movies. No matter what style of filming you prefer you definitely are not going to create an epic surf movie from some pixelated mobile phone footage....

The Surfers:

There's no doubt a surfer needs to rip to make a great surfing video, but if you get a surfer that can double as a comedian (Brad Gerlach or Rye Craike for example) it can give a surf flick that little bit more. Brad Gerlach messing with an Irish guy in Thicker Than Water is a classic moment that comes to mind. Despite that for the majority of the time you just want to see the cream of the surfing crop pushing the boundaries of the sport further than you thought they could go.

Location:

Sipping Jetstreams, Endless Summer and The Drifter are examples of surf movies that are all about the locations. When a surfing video can take you to and make you feel like you are at that spot it makes you want to book your next surf trip asap.

The Wave:

10 years ago people would argue that the waves are a crucial part of a surf movie, in terms of big wave surfing or heavy throaty barrels there is no doubting that, however, more progressive surf movies such as the Modern Collective have shown what can be done with less than perfect waves, often at shore break. Jet skis have also made it possible for people to whip themselves in to less than perfect waves and turn the sea in to a surfing fun park. At the end of the day it's one of those things that depends on what you, the viewer, want.

The Story:

This is not the make or break of a surfing video. But while some have a cheesy corporate theme throughout the movie. Endless Summer, however (with what now days would be considered crap footage) has one of the best concepts and stories of not just surf movies, but sport movies from the past century, 3 surfers following the summer around the world, that's what most people would love to do with their lives.

Music:

The surf soundtrack, the most controversial of all elements that go into the mix when creating a good surfing video. The reason for this is that just as surfers come from hundreds of different nationalities, we all have our own flavours of music we like to listen to. Campaign 2 had a good extra on it's dvd that allowed you to pick which soundtrack you wanted to watch the movie with, it would be cool if more surf films had extras like this.

About the Author:

Nick Braithwaite loves surf movies, visit DailySurfVideos.com, for new Surfing Videos everyday.

The Leucadia Project: Handplanes

My friends over at The Leucadia Project have been recycling old surfboards and re-shaping them into bodysurfing hand planes. I love this idea becuase Hand Planes are fun to use, but they are also keeping boards out of the land fills. Talk about eco-friendly.

They take old boards - strip the fiberglass and re-shape the board into a few handplanes. Then do a little art work on the foam & glass them. Each handplane is different and unique from the others. All the boards are hand shaped by Kipp Denslow. From all the pictures these boards look like they are shaped very nicely.

They will even install a FCS fin plug on the nose so you can install a Go Pro underwater Camera and get some sweet footage - shown above.

Send them an Email & tell them The Surfboard Man sent you to get $10 Off .

Late Takeoffs

If you want to improve your surfing you have to be willing to take risks & have some unpleasant wipeouts. One thing that distinguishes an intermediate surfer from an advanced surfer is how they handle a Late Takeoff.

Advanced surfers take these in stride and can continue to surf the wave to its fullest.

So you might be wondering, "how do I get better at late takeoffs?" I suggest getting a small shortboard - something around 5'0 - 5'7 depending on how tall you are. Having a tiny board like this will require you to catch waves very late, right where it is breaking. Not to mention that a smaller board gives you a better work out.

Pretty soon you will be looking for late takeoffs because the air drop is alot of fun.

Alaias - are they still popular

For the past few years Alaia Surfboards were regarded as "the new thing." Something that "everyone" should buy. But I start to wonder if all the hype killed the revolution.

I have only seen one other guy ever surf one & to be honest, at least where I surf, the fad hasn't caught on. And some of that is because you can't get paulownia wood in California & a shaped board is going to cost you $600.

What do you think - is the revolution still alive?

Nike 6.0 Pro

Stopped by the contest at trestles yesterday. The waves were going off and Lowers couldn't have looked any better. But as I walked the trail to the beach, I couldn't help but think about how loud the walk would  have been if the Toll Road had been approved. Personally, its so nice to walk down the trail - its so quiet and surreal.

Matunas Surf Wax

A few weeks ago I got some bars of wax from my friends over at Matunas Surf Wax. They are based out of Santa Cruz, California. All the ingredients are grown on their 25 acre farm, which are 100% all natural. The wax's scent comes from strawberries, Raspberries & Jasmine.

The first thing I noticed was how good the wax smelled. The best part is that the smell comes from 100% naturnal ingradiants. Waxing my board was very easy. It went on easy and formed small bumps with very little effort. While surfing, my traction was very good and measured up to any other brands of surf wax that I have used. 

Overall I really like the product & I will always support any company who strives to provide surfers with all natural products.

Catch Surf 5'0 Quad

This past week a friend got me a Catch Surfboard to review. Whats funny is that I had been contemplating buying one for a few months. But I was still hesitant to spend over $350 on a softtop. Sure, it was a quad fin. Sure, its "different" & more "high Performance" than other softtops. But is it really worth $350. Well the answer to that question is YES!!!!

The board is very fast once you get into the wave. When paddling into waves it also seemed to have a little longboard glide right as you caught the wave which is nice. I was pleasantly surprised at how loose it was. Not to mention how well it turned. Most of my on rail turns had spray which is surprising for any softtop.

Overall I really enjoyed it and will continue to ride it, especially when the summer crowds show up.