Society has come up with all kinds of labels and assumptions for those who consider them to be a part in board culture. Some may be false, but the outside community’s take on the themes and vibes that come out of this lifestyle are completely accurate. One thing that I noticed is that all of these themes can also be qualities of humanity. Creativity is one of the themes that come to mind when thinking of these board sports. Surf Craft does an excellent job visually and literally explaining how creativity is involved with surfing in specific. There are two main ways that it can relate: First, a high level surfer has to be creative in which the way that he portrays his style along with being innovative and original with his maneuvers; second, and most evident in the book, is the creativity involved with creating new shapes and concepts when it comes to surfboard creating. This could be a whole array of things. A fin adjustment, volume increase in a specific area, radial changes to the rocker or concave (vertical/horizontal curve) of the board, materials, weight, width or even the length of the board are all extremely common change applications to board creation. Since surfing has been a progressing sport for so long now, there are all kinds of different board types that suit specific conditions and purposes. Want to have stability and speed on a choppy wave but you don’t want to ride a board that feels like a longboard? Of course! Make the tail of a board the shape of the tail of a fish so you have the volume in the back that keeps your speed but still allows your tail to sink and slice through the rough water! Live in an area with steep-faced waves that seem to move sideways too fast for how much room you have to pump to generate speed? Sell your tri fin board and pick one up with a quad-fin setup so you can lock yourself in the sweet spot on the steep face and thrust your way horizontally across the wave to beat the whitewater! Not only does this book explain what can differ between all surfboards both conventional and nonconventional, but it also describes there applications to every-day riding.
Photo: Lost Surfboards
This book is also filled to the brim with information on surfboard shaping history. From ancient finless wooden planks to the modern dual hulled thrusters this book covers almost all shapes of surfboards, body boards and kneeboards that I have ever came across in my solo research. Along with all of these shapes, the book also goes on to describe the shapers themselves who have come up with these ideas and expressed their own creativity.
The photo above taken by Craig Richardson is of shaping legend Jon Wegener. Jon's work is widely recognized thorughout the community and generally consists of modern approaches on ancient finless surfboard styles.
Photo: Lost Surfboards
This book is also filled to the brim with information on surfboard shaping history. From ancient finless wooden planks to the modern dual hulled thrusters this book covers almost all shapes of surfboards, body boards and kneeboards that I have ever came across in my solo research. Along with all of these shapes, the book also goes on to describe the shapers themselves who have come up with these ideas and expressed their own creativity.
The photo above taken by Craig Richardson is of shaping legend Jon Wegener. Jon's work is widely recognized thorughout the community and generally consists of modern approaches on ancient finless surfboard styles.
John-Luc,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you are getting back on track here. I think this post is good because in addition to telling the reader what you mean, you also show them. That's going to be essential because some of the people who might want to read your blog may not have technical expertise.
Something that you need to add/change, though, is that you need to include the author of your book, use quotes, cite them, and you also need to indicate but underlining, etc. the title of your book. I caught it here because I'd heard you mention it before, but an outside reader might miss that you were writing about a book entitled _Surf Craft_. Anyway, since you learned so much from it, the author deserves credit.