The Dutch North Sea

These are some boards made by Eef in Holland.  He takes spare scraps of wood and makes raw functional boards for sliding.  He puts his touch on them with paint.  His daughter even helps him out a bit. He's a stoked guy and I'm stoked for him.  Check him out at:

http://www.monsterboardsorg.blogspot.com/

Hawaii Testing

This is my first plane being sent to Hawaii. Rick has been a good guy to work with. Should get some good testing this winter on the North Shore. Plus, lots of input from some experienced people. Including a very well known bodysurfing lifeguard at Pipeline. Went with the spine on this one to hopefully help with hold in hollower surf. Hope Rick enjoys it.

Tom Wegener Handplane

Here is a contribution from Hamish. During my first move up to North County from the city beaches, I used to surf alongside Tom quite frequently. He always had a huge smile on his face and seemed to be having the most fun of anyone in the water. I moved back to the city, he moved to Australia. Though I've been following his career since his move, I haven't seen him. Always glad to see that he's still putting stoke in everyone around him.

hi there
I just came across your site and thought you might be interested in this. I asked Tom Wegener to make it for me at the start of this year. It's Paulownia and is just incredible.
cheers
Hamish

Shippin Out

I've been working real hard the last few days. Trying to get some boards done for those that have so patiently waited. Was aiming to get six done over the weekend, but, a last minute trip to the beach today with the boys to boogie, after a day full of soccer, put me back by one. Here is a look at a few that will be going out soon.

Support Your Local Surfshop

Mmmm Paulownia

Special thanks to Ian. He gave me a Paulownia blank to try out. Never met him. Still to this day. Our schedules didn't work out, so he dropped it off at a shop for me. Picked it up the next day. This is the result. Shaping Paulownia versus Poplar is definately different. The Paulownia is much easier to shape in some ways, because it is alot softer. The downside is that it isn't as consistant. Soft spot between the grain, and pretty hard on top of it. Almost like shaping over a knot. Have to be real careful or you get lots of highs and lows. Whereas Poplar is just plain hard and real consistant. I finished this one off the same way as the rest. Didn't do the dip in linseed oil. Used the Helmsman Varnish. Nice, shiny, and durable. The Paulownia is feather light and floats real well. I'm not sure if float is a real issue though, as it's not meant to be a floaty device, just something to help plane. Not sure what the pricing is gonna be on Paulownia, as it isn't a hunk a wood you can go down to the local wood store and get. Got to use it today in some nice semi-closed out barrels. The Paulownia is real functional in the water as the weight is really manageable. Nice and easy to paddle with. So far I'm pretty stocked on it.

The Pinliner Model

I made this one for Peter St. Pierre. He has been an inspiration in my handplane quest. He was actually the first person to show me a handplane. Danny Hess sent him one of his models. It was pretty neat, and I filed it in the back of my head. A while later, he was at the beach one day and we again got to talking about bodysurfing and items used as assistance. He was talking about things they used to use back in the day. One of the big things he always went back to was a ping pong paddle. With that, he still stressed that anything would work. So, prior to using that makeshift board I found on the beach, I tried one of the kids plastic shovels. It didn't do much. We got to talking again the other day, he again he brought up that his favorite thing was the ping pong paddle. He likes his Hess, but sometimes feels it's a little on the big side. He wanted something that was smaller and a little more functional, especially for waves that were top to bottom and super easy to catch. Waves you didn't need a big plane to get into (Think Wedge, Marine street, or just use your imagination.) Something like the ping pong paddle. He gave me some general dimensions and this is what I came up with. I like it alot, and will definately be making myself one, and I'm sure many others in the future.

Meeting with Cyrus

Last week, while visiting the fine folks at Moonlight, I formally met Cyrus Sutton. We have surfed around each other for quite a while, but never really talked much to each other. He was in doing some filming on something. Don't really know, but could only imagine that we'll soon see it on Kordoroy, or in a future movie. He, for some reason, had already known that I was building handplanes. He has been doing the handplane thing for a while now. Still seems stoked as ever. It was really cool to talk to someone that seemed to have the same passion. We are planning on meeting up this week to have a surf, then shape some boards together. Should be fun sharing ideas and more stoke. Here are a few that Cyrus made recently.

ONE FOR MR. SURFY SURFY

Just finished this one up for JP. He and his dad, Peter, have helped me out a great deal over the last few years with surfboard design and building. They have always shared their knowledge without anything in return. They are nice people, and I really appreciate having them in my life. This is the first board with my new template. A little more pointed nose, a little wider, and a slightly more rounded outline. Looking forward to his input, as he has used some of Danny Hess's planes in the past. In the process of building Peters new barrel rider.

WATCH THE MELON

A couple things I've learned while using the Handplane:

First, as stated in a previous post, people WILL burn you. Be it your best friend (who woulda probably burned you anyway), or just the random Donkey visiting from Kansas. It will happen. And happen ALOT. I try and keep my composure and remind myself that I'm not on a board. If I were, knowing myself, and my sometimes lack of self control, I'd probably be constantly yelling if I got burned so much. So, with my accepting attitude about being burned, all I ask is that you watch out for my Melon. I'm gonna be behind you, even though you think not, just don't cut back on my head. I kinda wanta keep it intact, at least for a few more years.

Second, boy, it's sometimes pretty blinding when planing. Many times, especially while trying to get into the wave, your head is completely underwater. Your kicking as hard as you can, trying to make yourself streamline like a fish. You can feel your arm planing, but, you're not quite in the wave yet. A few more kicks, and you're going. Raise your body and your head, and finally you can see. Hopefully you set your line correctly and are actually now trimming down the face. Uh Oh, you've gotta push through a crumbling lip ahead, there goes the vision. Whitewater in the face, still planing, hoping to push through. Yes, there it is, back on the face and a nice section ahead. Stall, pull in, twist your body so now your back arm is above you, and actually stalling in the back part of the barrel, and wow, you've just experienced one of the best sensations in wave riding. As close to what the dolphins feel as any human can get. So, getting back to the blinding parts. Many times I'm doing this in a crowd. Unlike surfing, where my head is constantly above water and I can see who is in front of me, I can't see people paddling out through the waves. Someday, and probably soon, I'm gonna hit someone. To that person, I apologize. And also say, next time, get the fuck outta the way, cause you're the asshole that just burned me.

CHANNELS

Here is another experiment with channels. This took me about twice as long as the one's that I am making with the deep single. Lots of work, but, man do they look great. As for performance, I would say that it works great on short barrel type waves. Holds in really nice. On the downside, it doesn't plane quite as well in other types of waves. Definatly a good design, but meant for the right waves. Just made another one of these for Rick in Hawaii. I think he'll be stoked on it, and also utilize it for what it was designed for. Gonna make a new one soon for Pinliner, but he wants it really short, and a rounded tail. Basically enough board to help get up and going, but not for longer rides where the waves aren't round.

BASTARD CHILDREN

I've definately had my words in the past about SUP's. Most are related to the mass public interest. The people who never really stepped foot in the ocean, or did it on an occasional basis. The SUP gave them the freedom to all of a sudden have a huge advantage over the paddle-less others. They didn't need to serve their time, work their way into the line-up, take the left overs, etc. If they were smart, All they needed to do is spend a week paddling on calm water, then take that act out into the line-up and learn to catch waves. Soon, they could be sitting out further then the rest, and stroking into waves, with hardly a competitor. I think I could teach a non-surfer how to paddle an SUP and having em ligitamately catch waves in 2 weeks. How long does it take the average surfer to learn to catch waves, stand up, and go down the line? Most of these newbies have absolutely no etiquitte whatsoever. They never learned. They never had some guy at WindanSea throw a punch at them, because he grew up their, not because he was right. They never had an older buddy constantly grind their mind with the rights and wrongs, the places they shouldn't go, or the places they shouldn't go with anyone else. They just don't get it. They don't understand why they hear comments as they paddle by. They are just out getting some exercise, just as they would on the basketball court or the softball field. Then, throw in the fact, that most of the ones that don't fit this bill, that actually surfed, then started to SUP, usually don't do it at the break that they used to surf at, well that is just plain fucked. My question to them is this, "You seem to surf well, why is it that you are all of a sudden coming here to SUP?" Why don't you SUP at the break that you used to surf at?

As many of you know, lately I've been really into this handplane thing. Today I got some of the best waves I've had with a handplane yet. Probably one of the funner sessions in the ocean this year. One thing that I've noticed while learning to handplane, is that when you are out bodysurfing, you also get absolutely no respect. On a surfboard, at most breaks, I usually get a fair share of waves. At the break I frequent most, usually more than my fair share. I think I know the wave pretty well, but, I also know the people as well. I've put in a decent amount of time, and think that I'm pretty well respected. That all seems to go out the window when you put on a pair of flippers. You could be talking to the guy next to you, hand over your plane for him to check it out, set comes, you are in position, and he'll burn you everytime. Doesn't matter if you can plane down the face and ride it as long as him. Doesn't matter if he saw you get perfectly slotted the wave before. For some reason, he thinks that because he's standing, it's his. The clincher is that these are the very same people that are making the comments that I made above about the SUP's.

So, now that I've got that all straightened out, the reason for my rant. There are about 5 guys that I know that SUP that I really respect. They started doing it way before the craze. All surfed well prior to starting to SUP. Know etiquitte well. Most importantly, grew up surfing the break that they now SUP at. Tom English is one of them. I enjoy surfing with Tom and talking with him in the lot. He's a smart guy and is always willing to share or give away a wave. Here are a few picks of Tom and myself last weekend, riding a wave together. The part that was missed in the photos, was when we were actually right next to each other, gave a nice High-5, then he sling-shotted me into the next section. One of the most memorable waves of the year. Memorable, while still being the Bastard Children of the Ocean.

HANDPLANE GOODNESS

Well, I've been pretty much addicted to this handplane thing for the last month. Have gotten in the water almost daily, foregoing surfing, in hopes of getting a few good ones with the plane. I pretty much tweaked my original prototype on a daily basis. I then made, tested, and tweaked a few others. Screwed with channels, holes, and multiple straps set-ups. This is the version that I came up with that seems to fit my needs the best. Wood is Poplar, which is a nice hard wood and will hopefully be real durable. Strap is adjustable for tightness. Board is sealed with 4 coats of Helmsman Gloss. The belly flows to about the strap placement, and I stayed with the deep single concave, because overall, I seemed to get far better waves and was able to stay in the pocket far more often then when I was using the board with channels. For the guys that contacted me about making one for em, should be starting later today as I've now finished most of my experimentation and and ready to make some.

I LOVE TO PLANE

Handplane that is. As a follow up to the post from a while ago. I got around to making a handplane. I am totally enthralled with it. It's pretty much all I have been doing over the last month. 3/4 of the times I have gone to the beach, I've not surfed, only to handplane instead. Somedays, I'll surf for a while, then switch and get in some time on the plane. It's amazing that in 25 years of surfing, I never got into this. It is so much fun. Nothing like the feeling of your body sliding down the face of a wave, stalling for the upcoming section, then contorting your body to fit into the barrel. Prior to this, my idea of bodysurfing was catching a wave straight to the beach to retrieve my board. Rarely was I ever able to get on the face of a wave and go down the line. If so, then it was a very short ride. Now, with a plane, I'm catching waves as easily as if I had a board, and riding em just as long. I can't explain the feeling, and I know, eventually, I'll probably get bored, just like in surfing, but, for now, it is all I can think about. So, I've made a few planes now, but I still mainly use the initial prototype that I built. Initially, I built it without a strap or hole. I just palmed it. I really liked it in that phase. Just me and some wood. Plus, it was nice to swim with. I was urged to either put a hole in it, so the fingers went through the board, or attach a strap. I'm not a big fan of the hole, everyone says that is doesn't affect function, but, I just like the thought of water flowing freely along the contours of the bottom. Holes in Handplanes do keep it basic and aesthetically pleasing, and allow some for control. I also don't like the looks of most straps. They just look like they don't belong. The curiosity got the best of me. So, one morning I went in the garage and found an old bodyboarding strap, cut off the leash, and screwed it to the deck. Wow, the newfound control was pretty amazing, but honestly I still like the pure and plain aesthetics of just a peice of wood. I learned alot about what a strap had to do to be functional, which definately needed to be taken into consideration when designing a strap system. The next phase in the process, was to come up with a strap system. I tossed around some ideas with others, my main concern being function, but also something that looks good. I mean, you gotta a beautifully carved piece of wood, with a nice finish if desired, you can't put a piece of dogshit across the top. So, the strap system below is what I came up with. It is adjustable for looseness, and also pivots that way a good strap should. Plus, I think it looks pretty good too. The last thing that I've done recently to my handplane was add two channels (actually did it this morning). They aren't pictured, but run about an inch from the rail, parallel to the center, about halfway up the board. So, I think I've run the course with this first board and plan on making many more just like it in the future.

Handboard World Championships

In The Beginning ...

This is what started it all. I found this makeshift handplane on the beach. It was sitting next to the kids boogies. It sat all day with nobody to claim. At the end of the day, I threw it in the back of the van and their it sat for some time. One Saturday I took the kids out to the low tide sand bar to boogie. Perfect reforms taking them quite a ways to the beach. I noticed a nice waist to chest high wave breaking pretty fast over the sandbar. Once the kids were tired, I grabbed my fins and did some bodysurfing. Next day, same thing. This time, I decided to try the little hand plane that I had found. I had so much fun. Never realized how much a hand plane makes a difference. I was actually trimming and pulling into some nice views. I'm addicted. It's all I've been thinking about for the last few days. At first I was a little turned off by the outline of this thing. It was pretty crudely made, no sealer, but they did put some belly into the nose. I had been eyeballing some of Hess's handplanes, and even looked at Peter's extensively. This one just seemed kind of basic. What I didn't realize, is this basic outline provides a pretty good ride, but, it also is very functional in the water. It's easy to paddle with, and actually, I was able to just palm it, and swim normally. I like it. I'm gonna make a few. I've got some leftover Redwood from our table project from last year that I'm gonna use. Gonna make some modification that I think will help performance and function, but, otherwise, gonna keep it nice and basic. Can't wait to get working on em.