The race is on. But where’s the finish line?
It seems that almost every month there is a new advanced surfboard construction coming out on the market. Every major brand is trying (most of them successfully) to come up with new constructions to help improve flex, recoil, weight, strength–basically, the overall performance of a surfboard. This is without even considering different shapes, just the materials involved in the build to help set these brands apart.
Some manufacturers are developing their own that they plan to use exclusively on their boards, while others are designed and made available for any other brand to make use of.
The vast majority of these new or unique construction methods focus on flex properties of a board in one way or another. Some direct their attention to the amount of flex and recoil, other focus more on torsional flex, which is the twisting of a board.
With the exception of DHD Surfboards new Epoxicore–which blends polyurethane foam with EPS foam–most of these technologies are also related to epoxy boards only. This may be because ultimately people are looking to create that optimal flex that traditional PU boards have, but in a lightweight board. EPS foam is completely different than PU, so its natural flex properties are vastly different on their own.
DHD Surfboards new Epoxicore has been rigorously tested by Steph Gilmore, Mick Fanning and Jack Freestone…all loving the results.
It’s also good to take an in-depth look at surfboard constructions from the point of view of different board performance characteristics like surfboard flex.
Many new technologies are the result of the combination of ongoing experimentation with materials and feedback from professional testers. A good shaper/craftsman looks to the past, guesses at the future, and gets input from surfers. They ask questions: what worked in the past and why? Is there is a theoretically process or method that should work, but has not had success in the past? Maybe it has to be seen through a new pair of eyes and tweaked a little to really open its potential.
Future Flex construction from Haydenshapes is widely available from most brands if you request it.
There was/is nothing new with constructions or materials used like Haydenshapes Future Flex, SUPERbrand’s SUPERflex or DHD’s Epoxicore, except for the way they are used.
All of these brands have looked to the past for how each material or construction had been used, and either put their own spin on it or took the time to experiment with different variations using the world’s best surfers to refine them to optimal performance levels.
Carbon Wrap Technology comes to mind as an existing material used in a unique way. DMS Surfboards toyed with the idea of laying the carbon down in strategic patterns to help control the flex and spring of their boards. Now it has caught the attention of …Lost Surfboards Matt Biolos, who seems to be stoked on the results and offers it for all of their models too.
DMS Surfboards Carbon Wrap Technology is turning heads, including Matt Biolos’s from …Lost Surfboards.
The future comes in the form of new materials. Take Varial foam, for example. Although the material has been used in aerospace for years, it is relatively new the surf industry. Shaper Jeff “Doc” Lausch of Surf Prescriptions played a huge role in bringing this material into the lime light.
One thing that is clear: we’re in an an exciting time for surfboard development. From all the new materials, designs, wave pools, etc…there is so much happening and we imagine that 2016 is going to bring us a lot more.
It seems that the surf industry is starting to put more focus back on boards than they have in recent years. We can only imagine what boards will be available and what some surfers will be doing with these new technologies in the next year or so to come.
This originally appeared on Boardcave.com.
