Aloha, Shredderz! This entry is being written from beautiful Hawaii. More on that later! In the meantime, enjoy a selection of some recent social media posts from the wonderful world of vintage surfboards.
I’ve posted many of Jimmy Metyko’s photos, and as long as he keeps publishing great ones, I don’t see any reason to stop! Metyko’s photographs documented the Santa Barbara surf scene during Tom Curren’s rise, and the results are amazing. Here’s a shot of Al Merrick posing alongside two of his creations. This must have been sometime during the early to mid Eighties, given the thruster and the twin fin, and I like how the photo gives a clear idea of the rocker on both shapes.
Here’s a great photo of Herbie Fletcher taken by the late, great Larry “Flame” Moore. I love that Fletcher is putting one of his surfboards on a rail. There’s also some great trivia, which I had never realized before: Fletcher means arrow maker, hence the arrow logo on Herbie’s shapes!
Here’s a killer shot of Carl Ekstrom taken by Jon Foster. I was actually shocked when I read the caption — I just assumed this photo was far more recent than forty three years ago! Ekstrom is widely credited with inventing the asymmetrical surfboard back in the Sixties. Most recently Ekstrom has been collaborating with Ryan Burch. I’d love to know the back story behind the board featured in Foster’s photo! The photo at the top of the page features Carl Ekstrom posing next to one of his asymmetrical designs in the Sixties, and was originally found on the San Diego Reader website.
Last but not least, here’s Skip Frye posing alongside one of his signature fishes. How about that killer airbrush!
Remarkably, this bad boy is only $350. I’m shocked that it has lasted this long. The fin box could be dicey and there’s also what looks to be an old repair on the tail, but I think this thing is so sweet. I’m wondering if it’s shaped by Phil Becker, but it’s impossible to tell from the pics. I believe this is being sold by Eric at ChubbySurf.com.
This is the same board featured at the top of the page. This bad boy is clean and mean! I can’t get enough of the pin lines. Am I crazy or is this priced to move at $399? Maybe I’m missing something but it seems like a reasonable deal for a beautiful board in great condition.
Is this considered cheating, considering I featured this board on my Instagram the other day? Either way, I can’t help but admire this bad boy. I’ve quietly been geeking out on Ekstrom’s boards for a bit now. He seems like he was way ahead of his time on certain designs, such as the asymmetrical tails that are now being popularized by the likes of fellow San Diego foam mower Ryan Burch. Richard Kenvin of Hydrodynamica fame has also expressed admiration for Ekstrom’s designs. The board is listed at $1,400, which isn’t cheap, but it’s not easy to find fifty year old boards in great shape.
According to the seller this was a Sam Hawk shape. I can’t recall whether or not Chris Hawk also shaped boards under this label. I think it’s overpriced at $400 considering the condition, but I still dig the board. It also comes with an absolutely killer fin that probably makes up a good $100 – $150 of the overall cost.