Ryan Harris (L), creator of the finest eco-friendly surfboards, had his studio broken into. Police suspect it was broken into by the man on the flyer. Photos: Ryan Harris
Ryan Harris makes extraordinarily nice surfboards. He also makes surfboards that don’t murder the environment, which is a nice little add-on. Add that to the fact that Ryan Harris is one of the nicest people you’ll ever have the pleasure of meeting, and you’ve got the making of a very good person in general. Someone who is not as good of a person, however, decided to rob Ryan Harris’s Eco Board studio at the Sustainable Campus at AltaSea in the Port of Los Angeles over the weekend. Now, Ryan needs the surf community’s help.
I have a personal anecdote about Ry. A few years ago, back in 2018, something rather shitty happened. As a result, I lost my collection of surfboards — nothing too special, but special to me — and The Inertia team got a hold of Ryan to build me something as a tribute to that shitty thing. A beautiful surfboard that is, all these years later, one of my most treasured possessions. I have never been one to not ride a surfboard (I’m a firm believer that surfboards are meant to be ridden then hung up on the wall when they can be ridden no more), but after getting it wet exactly once, I decided that this particular surfboard was too special. When I was finally able to thank Ryan in person, he just laughed.
“I’m just glad you like it,” he said. “That’s what I make them for.”
View this post on Instagram
And he wasn’t just saying that to sound good. Ryan Harris really does want people to love what he makes for them. He really does want to help people have as much fun as possible. But now that he’s been robbed, he’s going to have a much harder time doing that.
“Had a brutal break in/burglary at my Eco Board Shop/Factory over the weekend,” Harris explained. “It’s devastating. He got an e-bike, solar powered generator, and a couple of small tools, but this punk stole my design laptop, too.”
Do you know this person? Photo: Ryan Harris
As anyone in the design world knows, losing work can be crippling. “Five years of my life on there,” Harris continued. “Literally ALL of my shape files, 3D modeling, and proprietary intellectual property that’s critical for my business and brand. I’m asking personal friends, family, and clients to please help. Donate. Share. We set up a GoFundMe since insurance ain’t doing squat for me.”
This suspect is thought to have been doing this sort of thing for a while, and although police do have images of him and a pretty good idea of where he might spend his time, they’ve yet to find him, largely due to the fact that their resources were a little tied up.
“They already identified him a couple weeks ago after the first burglary when he stole my e-bike,” Harris said. “There’s his picture on the flyer. He’s riding my stolen e-bike around locally. The problem is that then the fires hit, and the local law enforcement agencies had to pull personal and send them to the fire zones to arrest a bunch of looters. We have loads of footage.”
View this post on Instagram
Harris is no stranger to helping others, but it’s not easy for him to ask for it himself. He’s been instrumental in getting aid to folks — most notably to me, in the aftermath of 2018’s Woolsey Fire — who need it. And now, he’s the one who needs a little boost.
To help Ryan Harris, donate to his GoFundMe campaign here.
