December 5, 2005. A day that will live in infamy?
i hope ambrose writes up a good one about this.
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My first time on swaylocks…I’ve been broke twice trying to improve on Grubby’s technology. (see Surftech’s website under McTavish) But finally have a heat and pressure molding system and fabulous tight 35gr EPS blanks in production NOW! Blanks 6’2 and 7’9. The foam is so good it supports FCS and all other fin systems without extra re-enforcing. Single 40z if you wish. Lightest boards you’ll ever see. Near the port in Brisbane, Australia. Anyone interested?
Bob McTavish
Amid all the confusion: a proper welcome aboard!
It will be the hold out season. You know in America if money is to be made that hole will be filled soon!
OK, Lots to talk about.
First off, Gordon Clark has no intention of opening back up, here or Mexico or anywhere. He’s over it!
We owe him a huge debt. If he had his way he would have ended this thing a long time ago.
He is not stoked. Not because of money, but because of friendships.
So many of the “new guys” in the industry will not be able to understand this.
I’m so sick of the “new attitude” (screw you old man, where are my blanks!!??)
This day was coming. Most people knew but didn’t want to think about it. Well, it’s here now deal with it.
the EPA is corrupt (big fu@kin surprise!!) I’m not blaming the liberals on this, but oh well.
But while we’re on it lets look at the Teamsters and why Diesel engines are humming along with no sanctions. Wow that’s a can of Fuc%in worms!
Bottom line is I think Gordon is relieved. He’s at a point in his life where he shouldn’t have to deal with this sh%t anymore.
It will be a bummer for awhile until everybod y figures it out. I think it will benefit us in the long run.
Until then I want to be the first to thank Mr Clark for his contribution to the sport and to the industry.
ALOHA GORDON!!!
C
ps,
Maybe someone will buy the operation, pay off the crooks at the EPA turn the blank machine back on and bump prices 40 %.
HMMMM!!!
Welcome aboard Mr. McTavish… We all look forward to your insight…
on another note… I guess its crunch time now… I hope the glassers and shapers make this transition smoothly…
so greg… how’s this going to affect RR prices? (if there will be any effects)
Early this afternoon we received a 7 page fax from Clark Foam. The second paragraph is as follows, “Effective immediately Clark Foam is ceasing production."
The following is a consolidated version of his fax:
The main concern is the use of Toluene Di Isocynate (TDI). Other concerns are the use of polyester resin, dust, trash, custom equipment, and safety concerns for employees and the local community.
Twenty years ago OSHA came down on Clark’s use of TDI very hard. They survived this and met all of their requirements. A little more than 10 years ago the Orange County Fire Authority changed their inspection methods. California also passed some new laws on TDI use. In 1999 the Federal protection Agency copied parts of the Calif. law on TDI and implemented a weaker version. Then Calif. added to the new fed law and made their version considerably tougher. The local Fire Authority has taken an even tougher line that could be focused on closing Clark Foam. Clark Foam has spent more than $500,000 on paper work and equipment, far more than the equipment itself. They are still not satisfied. And the Fire Authority reports them to other agencies. They had a 10-page citation with the Ninth District of Federal Environmental Agency (EPA) that remains unresolved. These are so serious that Gordon (Clark) could be fined an astronomical amount of money and possibly go to prison.
There is a good chance that Calif. will require a TDI fume scrubber in the near future, which would cost more than a million dollars. There is current Calif. legislation being proposed that would result in Clark’s current TDI supplier withdrawing 100% from Calif.
Clark Foam emits over 4,000 pounds of styrene fumes per year. It appears that they will soon call for a million dollar scrubber for this too.
The Surfrider Foundation is a leading advocate of the storm runoff legislation. Clark has been cited several times and nothing but a 100% indoor operation would be in complete compliance.
Clark Foam has 3 ex-employees on full Workman’s Compensation Disability – evidently for life. The widow of an employee who died of cancer has made another claim. According to the claim, the chemicals at Clark Foam caused the cancer.
Another owner or tenant cannot use the buildings without bringing them up to the current code. This would be impossible, so the buildings must be torn down.
Clark foam is unique. There is almost no process or equipment that is not custom built to produce blanks. Since it is unique, Clark Foam becomes liable for everything designed, built, modified, or used in their unique process.
OUR FUTURE PLANS:
I have been on the phone non-stop for the past 6 hours. I have talked to many old friends in the industry and we all are confident that this billion-dollar industry will survive. There are many options such as Australian foam, over seas foam and EPS foam. Over the next few days we will look into all of these and come up with some solutions. We have a stock of blanks on hand, but customers will have to be a little more flexible on their choices.
In closing, Harbour Surfboards has been at this since 1959 and have no thoughts of quitting. There will be a solution, and we will find it.
Clark Foam gone? I’m so disgusted I may even quit Swaylocks.
Check the new issue of Surfing mag… I think with Rusty P. and Al M. turning to epoxy, the writing on the wall changed to a bright red flashing billboard. The EPA was the final straw, or maybe the other way around?
FWIW, anybody who was around in 1974 experienced a similar hit when the Arab (not racism - just fact) oil embargo affected all petroleum supplies - resin, acetone, etc. to all the little guys. As a hobbyist, I couldn’t buy resin for months and when it again became available, the price had literally quadrupled.
my blanks are 15 bucks and are much ligther… i stopped relying on technology from the 1930’s years ago…If half of you were as eco concious as you pretend to be, you would of made switches a long time ago. This is going to make things more interesting, and frankly im more excited then anyhting…sucks for some who don’t want to deal with a change in the status quo, but thats the reality of industry, even one so bent on tradition as surfing…things are going to start happening alot more rapidly now, people are going to be giving different materials a better look now, because they have to. How is EPA corrupt for finally enforcing some enviromental laws?? The technology to suppourt the industry has been there for awhile, while petrochemicals continued to pollute the enviroment… Greg and Ken, I guess it’s a big day for you guys, good on you for pushing the envelope all these years… I suspect you guys are going to be alot busier now, as well as sfoam, and whatever other EPS blank companies are out there. Im sure some will make the switch to XTR now and in a couple years will kick themselves in the ass for ignoring problems experience by many, many times before…Lets see who can convince EPS manufacturers to start dealing out the 3 and 4 densities first…Sandwiche construction is still king though, delay it as much as all you want. It will just give me more oppurtunity down the line…
Thank you very much Rich. Your words about keeping on are calming like the comforting smile from a stewardess on a bumpy flight.
And you’re right Cantellya, I’ll be the second and offer my “Thank you” to Clark. Aloha.
My previous was way too negative. I would liek to send an Aloha to Clark. and it was his blanks that were my first, even though abandoned years ago…I think this is a farewell to an era. I wish all you long time shapers much luck and hopefully you can find a smooth transition, whether it be another supplier, or another material all together…
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In closing, Harbour Surfboards has been at this since 1959 and have no thoughts of quitting. There will be a solution, and we will find it.
Rich, thank you for the extra information on this issue and for letting us know you intend to continue on! After 46 years, we wouldn’t blame you if Clark closing was something that caused you to be “over it” and quit as well. The fact that you are instead eagerly searching for solutions shows us how much you really love making surfboards. I look forward to the opportunity to surf more of your boards in the future.
-Rich in Pacifica
Man alive.
On the one hand I am yearning for news that they will reopen offshore somewhere…but the enviromentalist in me then says “why make some third world country deal with the pollution for your convenience?”.
You know what, that voice in my head is right. Maybe in the long run a permanent closure of Clark would be good for the industry, there certainly would be an adjustment period, but people would figure it out. Or would they?
Would a permanent closure just cause many custom guys to hang up the planer (instead of learning and apadting), forcing many more of us to buy chinese and thai manufactured surfboards, therefore propogating the destruction of the remainder of our domestic industry? The irony there would be that by trying to save one nation the trouble saddled another with it in any case.
We seem to care so much as surfers about the enviroment, yet for years we have read the articles that have told us in plain language that current pu/pe construction is terrible for the environment. I have just taken the boards for granted I suppose.
I have heard some thing recently here in the CFL area about the EPS blanks not being consistent, and teh difficulty in acquiring consistent blanks. Some stiff, some not, with terrible quality control. Is this indicative of the eps industry as a whole?
It’s been a good run and I appreciate the hard work and great products Clark put out.
Look to China? Excuse me, Tawain, Chino.
Greg, it’s too bad ‘nobody’ came up with a poem about this.
how about the people who owe mr. clark dough pay it to him …(eh, hmmm santa barbara “underground”… etc. ) then he could pay off the epa etc. all is good, but when you are asked to pay your bill you are surfing 2 foot rincon,that is awful… but, mr.clark is over you. pay up. you know who are. pay up. sure mr. clark has plenty of dough. glad i’ve got my quiver. we all need to help mr.clark so we all can keep our quivers going so pay up sucka!
So clark just stopped their foam production right?
what about other stuff that they ‘make’?
I was hoping santa would get me a clark foam planer for christmas…sigh
Rio
a sad day indeed. I didn’t beleive it when I read on the surfermag forum…But it’s true. Honestly, this sucks. That fukkin sucks. No other way to put it.
Thanks to guys like mctavish and harbour for letting us know it is true. Even so…im bummed.
What will happen to surfboards? Prices are about to jump big time. People are about to wish they could buy that $500 merick out of the shop. This may be the biggest thing to happen in surfing in the last 30 years…
fukkk this. Don’t get me wrong, Eps and epoxy is cool, and it is going places, but who the fukk wants to lose an option. An option they have had forever. An option you never thought would be gone.
let me just say fuck one more time to express how I feel…
how do I get ahold of walker?
So we’re going to continue let products into our country which do not adhere to the same standards and regulations we set for ourselves and our land?
I can understand the regulations on the chemicals. It’s just that any product brought into America ought to also have been produced under the same strict regulations.
ok i am all for over coming and adapting.
but how do i build my 30 pound early 60’s tanker without using 300 dollars in glass?
Aloha Mr. Clark, sure, few have contributed to our livelihood the way he has, but why go out like this? If this has been so long in coming, and it sounds like it has, why not prepare the industry for a bomb like this? Why not announce his plans a year ago and allow for people who have relied on him for decades to count their cards or fold if need be? The reverberations here will be deep, from his employees (both current and retired) to the backyarders to the industry heavies, and I’m left scratching my head at why a factory isn’t pumping out blanks as usual in Nevada right now…
Willy Wonka indeed,
JM