It’s always fascinating to watch the direction a company will move as they expand and pass through the growth process. Facing the countless variables and unknowns that go along with executing an idea, it’s very evident (especially in this industry) that the core values on which a company bases itself will slowly but surely surface and many times end up being the deciding factor between success and failure. Surfboardbuilders.com is no different and appears to be taking custom-built surfboards to the next level and doing so in the right way.

We first wrote about SurfboardBuilders when they launched back in July and have been watching them closely ever since. Here are a few of the reasons why we felt that SurfboardBuilders is moving in the right direction:

Accessibility - Anyone looking for a new board would be hard-pressed to find a retail shop that gives you the same access to as many well respected and highly skilled shapers that you get at SurfboardBuilders. With 18 and counting of the industries’ best (Gary Linden, John Kies, Bill Shrosbree, and Doc Lausch to name a few) as well as a bit of personal history on each, you are now given top of the line options as well as a bit of interesting insight into who it is that’s creating your board.

Value - Thinking about the countless boards that have made their way through my own quiver, there have always been a special few that become impossible to part with. Once I know the boards performance ability is where it needs to be there are a wide variety of reasons that go into making a board ’special’ therefore keeping me going back to that particular shaper. With the process used by SurfboardBuilders.com, the boards value is being built well before it even touches the water. As soon as the customer begins to put thought into what he wants from his board and visualizes himself ripping session after session with it while moving through the creation process, the unmade board is already building value in the surfers mind. If the quality and performance levels are where they should be that value will only continue to increase as waves are had and the tendency will be to return to the boards creator time after time when it’s time to make additions to the ‘family’.

Simplicity - Being a person that can easily become lost and confused when moving around certain sites, finding the most ‘user-friendly’ site for whatever it is I’m looking to do becomes key. SurfboardBuilders custom board building process is easily started on their home page and the user is taken step-by-step through the process in a simple manner until finished. Even purposely attempting to complicate the ordering process (which for me is pretty easy to do) used on their site went to no avail.

SurfboardBuilders has recently added a blog that features insightful interviews and thoughts given by their featured shapers that can end up being pretty useful, if not just interesting to read, when looking for a customized board. As they expand their pool of shapers the accessibility and additions of well-crafted boards similar to those your favorite pro rides will only continue to increase and the possibilities of what your next ride will be on become endless.

surfboardbuilders.com

With heavy amounts of rain pouring all over Hawai’i and the absence of any type of significant swell in sight, things aren’t looking so hot for the final rounds of competition in the Monster Energy Pipeline Pro right now. Over the past 72 hours more than two feet of rain have fallen in some parts of the State and Oahu is about to receive another ‘wave’ of rain as a heavy band of showers crossing the channel between Maui and Oahu advances northward. In order to determine a winner the contest still has over a full days worth of action to run. Being that there are only two days left in the holding-period with more rain and small surf in the forecast, things could get pretty interesting and not in a good way. It’s looking pretty likely that this years contest has seen its best days.

monster energypipeline

Around this time each year it gets harder and harder to convince myself to paddle out. With water temps bottoming out and air temps looking mighty similar to that of the ocean, it becomes increasingly easier finding a reason to pass on a session and wait for the next swell.

Like clockwork though, surf mags and sites start throwing up random shots and articles of die-hards charging snow covered beaches and coming up out of the water with ear to ear grins and icicles creeping down from their hoods, quickly putting a damper on my self-inflicted pity party I throw myself each time I ‘brave’ the icy 57 degree waters of Southern California.

A nothern-euro surf company, Nord Surf, is setting out to harness the energy shared by winter condition chargers with their Cold Water Stoke contest. With rewards of boards and clothing from their recent line, they are encouraging surfers world wide who brave the chilly temps to send in their photos that best illustrate their passion to surf in even the most blustery conditions. In turn they are seeking to end up with a wealth of marketable material illustrating the passion of cold-water warriors everywhere.

Cold: Describes the condition of low temperature or a type of upper respiratory infection.

Water: A common chemical substance that is essential to all known forms of life.

Stoke: A state of mind and necessity to survive in harsh climate.

Even though my shots of dawn-patrol sessions at San Diego breaks are highly unlikely to pull in any swag, I find what Nord Surf is setting out to do pretty interesting. The photos of waves being ridden in these types of conditions typically draw a lot of interest by those flipping through mags, watching videos, or cruising sites. It doesn’t appear that they have gotten the response they are seeking quite yet, however judging by the quality of the shots they have up so far and with the right approach to reaching the masses of ‘lovers of ice cream headaches’ worldwide, Nord Surf may just be able to capitalize on the fact that if waves are rideable, regardless of freezing temps and icy water, surfers will be riding and stoked to tell about it.

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Pancho Sullivan of Sunset Beach has become the monster trialist no one wants to face in the Billabong Monster Energy Pro men’s surfing contest. For the second consecutive day, Sullivan was one of the standouts as the second day of competition was completed yesterday. The third round and half of the fourth round were run in 4 to 8 foot surf at the Banzai Pipeline. Sullivan finished 2007 ranked No. 7 in the world, but he willingly accepted a spot in the first round, also known as the trials, and was stoked on just having another opportunity to tackle Pipe without having to deal with the insane crowds that gather there to surf on any given day.

With Andy Irons being eliminated early following an abnormal lack-luster performance, Sullivan remains in the competition as the highest ranked surfer left. Sullivan advanced through three heats on the opening day of the contest, then dominated his fourth-round heat yesterday. His fourth-round win becomes even more impressive when figuring in that the other three surfers in the heat were Rob Machado, Roy Powers, and Myles Padaca. Having surfed Pipeline since he was 12, the now 34 yr. old gave credit of his success to his knowledge and comfort of surfing a break he knows so well. The top Hawai’i finishers will earn invitations to the prestigious Billabong Pipeline Masters contest in December.

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Remember that young Kauai girl that had her arm completely ripped off from the shoulder down by a 14-ft. Tiger shark while surfing near home a few years back? Chances are, even with just one arm, she is a better surfer than both you and me. And honestly, that is really nothing to be ashamed of. That same Bethany Hamilton is throwing it down harder than ever and earned herself an impressive third-place finish over the weekend at the Roxy Surf Festival held at Phillips Island, Victoria- Australia.

If you ever want to get the slightest glimpse of just what it is what this inspiring 17 yr. old has to overcome every time she paddles out, you can try something the next time you head down to your favorite-break for a little sesh’ time- Take one of your arms, put it behind your back, and then make an attempt to paddle out and see how well that works for you.

Not only has she been able to find a way to do what she loves to do most after going through something that would keep many others out of the water for a long time, but she’s doing it better than most and showing no sign of slowing down. You can try, but you will be hard-pressed to find any comparable story of an athlete in any sport losing a full limb and still being able to successfully compete and perform at such a high level in his or her sport. It just does not happen. Hamilton’s ongoing demonstration of perseverance, passion, and drive to succeed after experiencing what she did will continue to blow all of our minds as she moves throughout her surfing career. But even if she were to drop out of the tour and never pick up a board again for as long as she lives, Bethany Hamilton will forever be a main character in one of the greatest stories that could ever be told.

After watching a re-run of Fuel TV’s “The 808″ again for the first time in months last night, I was left with the same embarrassment and sickening feeling that I had the first time I saw the original episodes that began airing last summer.The 808 sends the wrong message in so many ways. Kala Alexander tries to paint himself as the peace-keeping Sheriff of Pipe, but the reality is that he is a whistle-toting thug dispensing vigilante justice. And the execs at Fuel are knowing accomplices.

How many 16 year olds out there, surfers, skaters, snowboarders, motocrossers, watch this show and think “we need to protect our turf by any means necessary, too.” Makua Rothman, who recently just signed a deal with RVCA, punching out someone for dropping in on him shows a lack of discipline and self control that will likely end up causing him difficulty in the future (i.e. Sunny Garcia). Not only that, but had the submissive body-boarder he was kneeing and punching decided to press assault charges he would simply need to show tape of this assault to any police officer and Rothman would be in a world of trouble.

For Fuel to air this episode and all of the others that include this type of gangster mentality is irresponsible programming and is the same as condoning it. For example, viewers know that the violence on a show like The Sopranos was a scripted drama. We all new they didn’t really kill anybody. The 808 is the worst sort of reality show, because the violence is real.

The scene that included a whacked out Buttons Kaluhiokalani (who also made an appearance on “Dog The Bounty Hunter) at the Turtle Bay restaurant meeting of “Da Hui” hierarchy really left me scratching my head. Bug eyed, whacked out, and unintelligible. How did that sequence end up in the final cut? When you cut out all of the fluff this show did nothing more than glorify drug use, violence, scamming chicks, and drinking.

Fuel likes to portray itself as a hip, clean cut messenger for the world of action sports and, for the most part, they are right on. However, by putting the 808 on air for every 14 year old wanna-be to watch and learn from they are inspiring a whole new generation in the wrong way and teaching them that this is the way you need to carry yourself to make it to the next level.

And what about the other message. The one that says “We own this spot, keep out.” Hawaii has a bad enough rap for localism without this. This message is intentional on Kala’s part, I believe, in an effort to keep his own slice of the pie. So much for the “Aloha Spirit”, I guess.

fueltv

Riding the wave of environmental concern, an Encinitas woman is planning to open a new surf school that she says will be friendly to the ocean and eye-opening for surfers. Torrey Trust, the woman behind the new school, Surf eCo., says she’ll use environmentally sensitive materials and approaches throughout her surf classes. For instance, students will use surfboards made from a special soybean-based foam instead of fiberglass and the wax used on the boards will be organic instead of being made from petroleum. Trust even takes it to a whole new level by using towels made from bamboo (sounds soft, huh?), and sunscreen that contains minerals and organic ingredients instead of synthetic chemicals.

The inspiration for this eco-friendly surf school came after Trust visited Costa Rica and discovered much of the rain forest she had seen on a previous trip had been destroyed by illegal logging. And since making a living from these classes and lessons isn’t her motivation or concern, for every participant that signs up she will even be purchasing one-half acre of rainforest through the Nature Conservancy Rainforest Program with a goal of protecting 1000 acres of forest by the year 2010.

I may be wrong, but I don’t think the simple fact that they are going ‘green’ will by itself get people signed up for classes and lessons. I did, however, notice that their prices are fairly affordable when compared to those of other surf schools in the area and with the school shooting to keep class sizes smaller, it may be a solid opportunity for those wanting to learn to surf a chance to do so while hooking up our one sweet world in the process.

It’s good to be Jordy Smith right now. Having already signed a seven-figure deal late last year with O’neill, the 19 yr. old Smith recently hooked a deal up with DVS shoes and is in the process of putting out his signature pair of sandals. It seems like everyone is trying to get a piece of the up-and-comer that many are calling the best young surfer to hit the tour since Slater. They have good reason too. Smith absolutely crushed the ‘QS in 2007 setting an all time points record with 14,575. His best seven results averaged an amazing 2,082 points per event, which included wins on four different continents.

With the ASP World Title being dominated by Americans, Australians and Hawaiians over the past 30 years only time will tell if Smith can follow in the footsteps of World Champions Shaun Tomson and Martin Potter by bringing the title back to South Africa one day. South Africa has always produced great surfers and it has always been hard for them traveling internationally, but Jordy is leading a new generation of rippers that are sure to shake up the rest of the surfing world. One thing that is certain, 2008 will be one of the most exciting years in history on the ASP World Tour!

o’neilljordy smith
dvs

Bonga Perkins might be a former world champion of longboard surfing, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be a future one as well. It has been over 11 years since his world championship, but Perkins proved that he can still beat the best Hawai’i has to offer by winning the pro longboard division of the 14th annual Quiksilver Makahiki Games. The two-day event was held over the weekend at Makaha Beach on the west side of Oahu.

With so many talented young surfers making their way up through the rankings this really became a statement win for him. Being an ASP event, the Makahiki Games win for the 35 yr. old from Haleiwa earned him valuable points toward qualifying for the larger international events later this year.

Perkins wasn’t the only ’seasoned’ longboarder making a statement at Makaha though. Russ Keaulana, and former world champ as well, followed Perkins up with an impressive second-place finish. The 41 yr. old legend from right there in Makaha seemed genuinely surprised with his result. Anyone who knows Rusty though knows this is just him being humble. The Keaulana family and Makaha beach are go hand in hand. There are few, if any, who know this break better than them.

Those poor British surfers. Beginning in November of last year, British Airways decided to stop carrying around certain pieces of sporting equipment due to….get this…’handling complexities.’ Of course, surfboards are right there on the list and therefore anyone choosing to fly the friendly skies with B.A. has to leave their quiver at home. Aside from surfboards, British Airways has also included these pieces of sporting equipment on their list of no-nos-

hang gliders
windsurfing boards and sails
surfboards
kayaks or canoes
pole vaults
javelins

Any surfer will tell you carrying boards is a difficult and worrying process at best. The wait at any airport collection to see if your boards have made the journey in one piece is never a nice one. However, surfing in great waves on your own equipment is the best feeling you will have. The last thing you want to worry about while paddling out to an unknown break you’ve been reading and hearing about for years is breaking in a board you’ve never ridden.
I have a hard time believing that very many other airlines will follow suit and institute such a ridiculous ban. These days it’s almost impossible to even pry a second bag of dried-out peanuts out of the kung-fu grips of flight attendants. I say that’s fine, they can keep their nuts, just don’t make me paddle out to my dream-break for the first time on an unknown board!!