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Wave Rider CollectionAs a furniture maker for over 30 years, I endeavor to design and create heirloom quality furniture that can be appreciated for generations. A few years ago my daughter, a surfer living in Hawaii, and my son suggested I shape a surfboard: “Dad, you love making furniture and you love surfing, so you should sculpt a surfboard.” I didn’t think much of the idea until my daughter sent a copy of “Surfer’s Journal”, in which the legendary Greg Noll was featured with his masterful replicas of early day Hawaiian surfboards made of beautiful solid planks of redwood and koa. I later discovered an article that featured a collection of 1950s style solid balsa surfboards. Suddenly, it seemed a natural evolution to take my woodworking experience and apply it to crafting wood surfboards. As interest grew, I began a quest to find quality Ecuadorian balsa and to gain knowledge of the history of balsa board crafting. I learned very quickly the challenges of correctly creating a solid wood surfboard. Crafting solid wood surfboards is time consuming and not profitable, but it is very rewarding. I make each board personally “from scratch” one at a time in my one-man shop. I mill my own lumber and stringers to create the blanks, and also make the wood skegs, nose, and tail blocks. I find creating wood surfboards to be an extension of making fine furniture and it connects me with the “golden era” – the soul of surfing. |
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