6/30/09
6/29/09
k or c, they both work fine with me.
cyrus sutton will be joining us this august. here is a taste of what he has been working on...
Korduroy.TV Trailer from Cyrus Sutton on Vimeo.
6/26/09
tradition vs. progression
As our featured shaper for the summer, we wanted to pick the brain of Dave Allee at Almond. All of Dave's boards are so classic in design and shape, and for a 23 year old, it seemed appropriate to ask the following...
Q: As a younger shaper- why have you chosen to do more traditional shapes and designs?"…
A: The reason I probably didn't go down the typical 6'2 thruster path is mostly due to the advice of my Navy SEAL cousin, Reed, who used to own property in Hawaii and Costa Rica, he's surfed his whole life, and he was telling me about these boards he surfed in Costa Rica that would blow my mind. He kept telling me how much drive and speed they had and how you could get way out in front of the wave and wrap these huge smooth cutbacks. He told me to keep an eye out for a twin fin fish with a swallow tail that was at least as big as a shaka from point to point.
Within about 4 months I picked one up and quickly discoveredthat he wasn't kidding about these things. I was so sold on the twin fin fish. I started seeing Alex Knost and Scotty Stopnik on them that same winter at Blackies. (2004 I think) They were surfing tiny ones and absolutely killing it out there. I had been longboarding on a kooky high performance board as a kid (like most kids) but once I figured out how cool these fishes were, my interest in different shapes started to grow. That inevitable led to flatter heavier logs and the interest exploded from there.
As I surfed fishes and logs more and more - I began to realize how much thrusters were limiting the surfing of so many people. There was so much more potential in some of these "outdated" designs. I also started to gain more of an interest in these types of boards because it encompassed a whole new element to surfing. Shortboarding is all about where you are on the wave, but with longboard and even some of the fishes it was about where you were on the wave AND where you were on the board. At that point I was convinced I would never own a thruster.
I got my start shaping in 2006, with a 6'5 solid balsa singlefin with five redwood stringers. (pretty much just a replica of the Channel Islands Machado Singlefin). After doing 2 wooden boards, my interest in shaping foam blanks just seemed like a natural progression. Starting by doing a 5'10 sandia fish (still surf it) and I hacked up a 6'11 shortboard blank that someone gave me to create the very first kookumber.
It was almost a year before I got around to making myself a longboard because I was suddenly selling every board I tried to make for myself. The feedback wasn't always perfect at first, but I was trying to shape a patiently and methodically as possible, and I was getting better.
By Fall of 2008 I was so far behind on orders, and still getting them, that I brought in Griffin Neumann-Kyle to start helping me catch up. He's been the only reason I've been able to open the shop and dedicate time to so many other aspect of running a business. He loves shaping longboards and fishes and stingers and guns and anything weird or unique, but he's always surfed thrusters. (which oddly enough he doesn't really like to shape) so we've finally got him riding a 9'8 log and a 5'9 fish exclusively now... and he's got a new excitement about surfing like you wouldn't believe.
My favorite thing that customers say is "I've been surfing a Merrick Flyer my whole life, and I'm just kind of realizing that maybe a shortboard isn't the board for me..." That's when I get really excited about helping people find a design that is going to allow them to access waves better and more often. Not that I'm looking to fill up my own lineup with a bunch of shortboard converts, but I get stoked to see people thinking outside the masses and outside the mags.
There is so much fun to be had in the ocean, and we'll keep doing our best to help people find that fun.
Dave Allee
Almond Surfing Boards
Q: As a younger shaper- why have you chosen to do more traditional shapes and designs?"…
A: The reason I probably didn't go down the typical 6'2 thruster path is mostly due to the advice of my Navy SEAL cousin, Reed, who used to own property in Hawaii and Costa Rica, he's surfed his whole life, and he was telling me about these boards he surfed in Costa Rica that would blow my mind. He kept telling me how much drive and speed they had and how you could get way out in front of the wave and wrap these huge smooth cutbacks. He told me to keep an eye out for a twin fin fish with a swallow tail that was at least as big as a shaka from point to point.
Within about 4 months I picked one up and quickly discoveredthat he wasn't kidding about these things. I was so sold on the twin fin fish. I started seeing Alex Knost and Scotty Stopnik on them that same winter at Blackies. (2004 I think) They were surfing tiny ones and absolutely killing it out there. I had been longboarding on a kooky high performance board as a kid (like most kids) but once I figured out how cool these fishes were, my interest in different shapes started to grow. That inevitable led to flatter heavier logs and the interest exploded from there.
As I surfed fishes and logs more and more - I began to realize how much thrusters were limiting the surfing of so many people. There was so much more potential in some of these "outdated" designs. I also started to gain more of an interest in these types of boards because it encompassed a whole new element to surfing. Shortboarding is all about where you are on the wave, but with longboard and even some of the fishes it was about where you were on the wave AND where you were on the board. At that point I was convinced I would never own a thruster.
I got my start shaping in 2006, with a 6'5 solid balsa singlefin with five redwood stringers. (pretty much just a replica of the Channel Islands Machado Singlefin). After doing 2 wooden boards, my interest in shaping foam blanks just seemed like a natural progression. Starting by doing a 5'10 sandia fish (still surf it) and I hacked up a 6'11 shortboard blank that someone gave me to create the very first kookumber.
It was almost a year before I got around to making myself a longboard because I was suddenly selling every board I tried to make for myself. The feedback wasn't always perfect at first, but I was trying to shape a patiently and methodically as possible, and I was getting better.
By Fall of 2008 I was so far behind on orders, and still getting them, that I brought in Griffin Neumann-Kyle to start helping me catch up. He's been the only reason I've been able to open the shop and dedicate time to so many other aspect of running a business. He loves shaping longboards and fishes and stingers and guns and anything weird or unique, but he's always surfed thrusters. (which oddly enough he doesn't really like to shape) so we've finally got him riding a 9'8 log and a 5'9 fish exclusively now... and he's got a new excitement about surfing like you wouldn't believe.
My favorite thing that customers say is "I've been surfing a Merrick Flyer my whole life, and I'm just kind of realizing that maybe a shortboard isn't the board for me..." That's when I get really excited about helping people find a design that is going to allow them to access waves better and more often. Not that I'm looking to fill up my own lineup with a bunch of shortboard converts, but I get stoked to see people thinking outside the masses and outside the mags.
There is so much fun to be had in the ocean, and we'll keep doing our best to help people find that fun.
Dave Allee
Almond Surfing Boards
6/25/09
i just threw up in my mouth...
a real article from good housekeeping, 1955. thank god times have changed.
ahoy handmade bags
we just received a box of killer handmade board bags from darren at ahoy surfboard bags. he makes each one by hand, and i must say they come out pretty great. we have a bunch here, and if we dont have the size you need- just let me know and we will order one up!
6/24/09
monday morning waves
we got out in the morning for some birthday waves. photo by our own jim mcginley :: the fin studio. jim has just finished his site, and it looks beautiful.
thanks mikey
just want to say that for those of you that have not seen mikey detemple's film,picaresque- do it. we hosted the maine premeire this past monday, and it was pretty rad- one of the best soundtracks out there right now. mikey and his freinds were super fun and maine served up some of it's best waves for them. thanks guys.
6/19/09
our first featured shaper- dave allee|almond fine surfing boards
we are finishing up the last pieces for our first featured shaper- dave allee and his crew from almond. we have decided to take a bit of a different approach to selling boards. boards to us are pieces of art, so we are going to treat them that way. starting monday, (which you should have marked on your calendar as it is picaresque night...) we will be featuring almond's shapes exclusively in the shop. you will be able to come into the shop and not only learn about the shapes, designs, and shredability- but also learn the story behind each board, see some beautiful photos of the process and the people, and then read about the people behind the work. we believe that it is far more than just a board, it is a rideable piece of art- handmade with love.
thank you kyle lightner for this photo of dave.
6/18/09
6/15/09
fellow east coaster- mikey detemple
Matt Pruett, Editor of Eastern Surf Magazine, might have best said it best when he described Mikey: “Few surfers personify the essence of modern East Coast longboarding like Mikey DeTemple – classic yet rebellious, stylish but aggressive, competitive though utterly soulful.” Mikey has been dominating the East Coast’s surf scene since the age of 16, when he won his first pro contest and became a staple in the world of pro surfing. Now, at the age of 25, this East Coast pro has set the benchmark for longboarding on the Eastern Seaboard. Gracing the covers of Longboard Magazine and ESM, it seems as though whatever Mikey puts his mind to will come out shining.
6/11/09
wanna go to the movies with us?
great!
because we are hosting the maine premiere of mikey detemple's new film, picaresque.
come meet mikey and watch the film on the wall.
monday, the 22nd, night starts at 7-ish.
besides, it's on monday- what else do you have going on?
because we are hosting the maine premiere of mikey detemple's new film, picaresque.
come meet mikey and watch the film on the wall.
monday, the 22nd, night starts at 7-ish.
besides, it's on monday- what else do you have going on?
Picaresque Trailer 2009 from High Seas Films on Vimeo.
6/9/09
friday saturday sunday... we are pretty lucky.
this weekend we had a pretty full schedule. no complaints here though... we got to meet, see, and play with some pretty great people, while seeing some great work..
friday... asolare's opening.... way too much fun.
saturday... a good friends wedding, little peelers coming in while we ate and talked with burton riders, grain guys, amazing artists from all over the country, and some very beautiful sweet people.... ahh love.
sunday... open studios day in south boston. where josh falk calls home as well as some other great artists.
friday... asolare's opening.... way too much fun.
saturday... a good friends wedding, little peelers coming in while we ate and talked with burton riders, grain guys, amazing artists from all over the country, and some very beautiful sweet people.... ahh love.
sunday... open studios day in south boston. where josh falk calls home as well as some other great artists.
6/2/09
the makings of asolare's windows...
angela haven and i made a stop by my step-father's shop last night to do some drilling for asolare's window installation and get a few lessons on how to have the sweetest shop in the world...
my step-father joe has never surfed a day in his life, but i guess there is something about the grain guys that make him smile... notice anything on the door?
my step-father joe has never surfed a day in his life, but i guess there is something about the grain guys that make him smile... notice anything on the door?
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