Well, winter is here for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere. That means cooler water temperatures and a bit more north and west in the majority of swells. It means brisk fall mornings and brisker winter afternoons. It’s a good time of year, if you’re dressed for it. It’s a better time of year if you’ve got the right equipment under foot. Rob Machado, is a man who is very devoted to surfing on experiments, refining said experiments until they work the way he’d like it to, and then unleashing them onto a hungry market. He’s got a winter quiver that covers basically all of the daily bases.
It consists of three surfboards: the Sunday, the Mashup, and the Too Fish. They all have different applications, but they share at least one similar trait. All are surfboards that the Average Joe might have a little more fun on while surfing average conditions. They’re not heavily rockers, super narrow, lightly glasses performance shortboards.
“The winter for me is about having options,” he said. “On any given day, it seems like we don’t have to chase a lot of swell. There are daily options. Generally, it’s colder, and it takes a little longer to get the body moving, so I like to start off on a Sunday most of the time.”
The Sunday is a mid-length made for long, wrapping turns and truly excels when you’re in waves that might be a little softer or mushier, but have a bit of size on the face. Also in his quiver is the Mashup, which, as the name implies, is a combination of Dan Mann’s Dominator and Machado’s Seaside. “The Mashup is Rob’s favorite shape for Boardrider’s club competitions and round pocketed days at home,” Firewire wrote. “Any conditions that call for quick response, crisp turns and fast cracks in the lip.”
Next on Rob’s list is not a surprise. He’s been extolling its virtues for quite some time now. It’s his version of the California fish — a board that paddles easily, catches waves even easier, and is a race car on the open face.
