Skate Family

So I want to start by saying a big  THANKYOU to James Fernandez and Austin Mautner!!

Austin, thank you for the Sector 9 I learned to skate on.  

James, thank you for the out front sessions and the panther arena bombs which I am still hooked on!!

Without you guys, I would have never been on a skateboard!!

Also, Thankyou Mom and Dad!!!

Snub Nose 5'

Paris195's with SOY Wheels

 BEWISE!SURFWISE!WISEDESIGNS!

SIMBAT 3' 3-5ply Scrap

Concave Deck and rounded belly

From Mex to NorCal and Hawaii

"OG Noseriders"

Concave Decks and Rounded bellies

OG Noseriders 

Wise Family

Simmons, Simbat, Snub OG, OG, OG, The EGG, and Oldschool

The "Newschool" in the mix

"Newschool"

Otis/Wise Collaboration

Otis and Wise Shape

Daniel Partch   "Nuuhiwa style" Wood Fin

1" in Balsa Stringers

Bing Volan Glass Job

Seaweed Comp Band

Malibu on a glassy 3ft day!!

 

SimBat

So I have a few simmons inspired boards that have been collaborations with other shapers, but I finally ventured to make my own.  The first was a 6-8 with a concave deck. 




This board is alaia stlye, being only 1 and change thick, but it is almost 22 wide.  Twin Keel fins from Daniel Partch of Encinitas and a double concave runnnig down the back third of the board.  Small Ridge running down the center of the board for added rail to rail maneuverability.  Board is super loose in the juice and perfect for anything about head high or below. 


~Josh Hall Checking the board out~

From here I wanted more volume and a shorter board.  The 6-0 was born out of the Surf Garage!!


A 6 foot Twin fin with half moon trailer.  Shaped the blank out of the garage, fins by Daniel Partch and Glassing by TR down at Joe Ropers.  Pinlining by TC!!  Thankyou Ricky of Psylo Graphics in Oceanside for the board lams and thankyou Mark Weisser Graphic Productions for the stickers!! 



               Sister Boards
6'0-White bottom   5'10-Black Bottom


I used a couple of Ice 9 foam blanks, which is actually a local Melbourne, FL company.  They came recommended from a excellent shaper, So I ran with em.  I bought the last 3 blanks Mitch's had and here is 2/3 of the result. 

One more simbat for R&D coming soon...............................

JH Fish Simmons

So I recently had the honor of watching Josh Hall shape a 10'6'' Fish Simmon's for Gil and it was nothing short of perfection.   The whole process took about 4 hours start to finish and was a great experience.  Josh Truly is a master shaper who has been shaping for over 12 years professionally.   Josh is putting out amazing boards that are just perfect.  There is something to be said for the "OLD SCHOOL" Hand-shaped board.  It has a true heart and soul.

Josh learned from the Real Master "SKIP" and has a little shop close to Skip's.

As Josh puts it "He was in the right place at the right time and lucked out".  So was I.

It was an honor to watch him make a board.

Off to Michael Miller's the "Fish Simmons" goes........

Stringerless Noserider

BING

Stopped by BING to pick up 2 boards and check on a double stringer balsa blank that took a month to make.  Thankyou BLAIR foam!  10-2 dual balsa stringer blank with a 26.5 width.  Matt Calvani and Jim Phillips truly are masters of both wood and foam. They Added a 2 inch center foam to get the desired width, and now just waiting on a CNC cut to save a lot of time.

While I was there I saw some unbelievable nose and tail blocks that are just insanely intricate.  Foam is tough, but wood is tougher.  Jim Phillips does unbelievable work.  Also the guys Jorge and Javier in the back are super nice.  They are some of the best glassers in all of San Diego, but they don't surf which is crazy to me and even crazier that they don't swim.  Gotta get em swimming and surfing.  They dont know what they are missing.  

5'10''  1960's Lissy Fish with Partch Keels



1970's Gerry Lopez GUN
7'0'' Single Fin

Cardiff

http://otisdesigns.com/includes/gallery/index.php?level=picture&id=117

Love seeing this man out at cardiff.  Almost always on a retro log and ripping.  

You are the man Haffey!!  

My first Shape

So last month I finally decided to cut apart an old beat up longboard I bought for the Tudor fin it had in it.  The board had a weird ripple to it, almost like the blank reacted to the resin.  But I was able to get a 7'4''x23 blank out of the board (A Recycled blank).  I planed the ripples out, and shaped a board that was based on a Bob Simmons design.  I made a few changes to the design however.  I put a bat-tail on the board, which combined with the concave deck are the most noticeable changes.  Also, I left a slight channel down the center of the board, which allowed for a little rail to rail maneuverability.  The Daniel Partch keel fins are just perfect, and pushed forward a little bit to add to the looseness of the board.
To date, I have ridden the "SIMBAT" in both waist high and overhead swells both and can honestly say, the board thrives on a 5 foot+ wave.  It is super fast, but also super loose at the same time, the perfect mix.

Thankyou Moyer for the board which inspired me
Thankyou Daniel Partch for the knowledge and wisdom of shaping both fins and boards
Thankyou TR down at Ropers for doing one heck of a glass job

                                                               Larry with the display
          
                                                                         JH and JW

The Jump to San Diego

In December of '07 I made the biggest change of my life.  I moved across the country, from Ft. Lauderdale, FL to San Diego, CA.  It was a big move and an even bigger lifestyle change living downtown.  However, without doing so, I would have never met some of the best friends that I have.  While living downtown, I traveled the coast several times searching for the perfect board.  


While traveling I would start in OB and drive to Oceanside and I realized San Diego had a LOT of surf board Shops and even more SHAPERS.  I stopped by the Pure Fun Shop in Leucadia and visited Mr. Hank Byzak where he sold me a 9'0 5 fin Modern.  It was my first board, and I thought I had a longboard. 
 In florida I had 1 board I bought for $100 when I was 17 from a buddy.  (that board so happened to be a G&S 8'0 Midget Smith shaped thankyou liebs and austin)
When I finally bought the modern, I was living 4 blocks off tourmaline and finally I had a board to surf with.  I went out that same day I bought it and within a week I was surfing.  


Since then I have been hooked, trying to learn about the history of the sport, the original designs, the designs that work and the designs that don't.  I have learned that every board is unique, however the stoke they give you is the same.  Glider, Noserider, Simmons, Fish, Twin Pin, Simbat no matter, THE STOKE THE SAME!


I have recently began shaping my own hulls and will be posting some pics soon.  


Surf Wise!!!Be Wise!!!