I had to google “Greenough’s edge designs” b/c 1, he’s about my age if still alive (haven’t heard of him for a while, have we?), 2. he was frequently featured in surf media for a while, though I never worshipped him, 3. I kneeboarded for several years, back in the day. Later I realized that kneeboarding was for a time a big fish in a small pond, and the rest of surfing caught up and passed, the experiences offerred by kneeboards.
Back to edge designs: I’ve never believed that one could put this design feature for that purpose, plus another design feature for another purpose, and get a board that served both purposes. THIS I BELIEVE: you ride the sum total of the board, not parts of it, here and there, as you momentarily think you want to. I won’t deny that a little of this, a little of that MAY result in a board that is perceived to ride “better” than the last one; I hope we all get better at riding waves. But note that I’m saying WE (in the large sense) get better, that’s the sum of person, board, waves that day, mood that day: ALL THAT.
Y’know, surfing is pumped so full of the most egregious twaddle by those standing to make a buck, enhance their ego, return stockholder profits, further the financial interests of sponsored persons, and so on. It could be part of the intent, the mission of this site to part the curtains of such BS and enhance our ability to see what actually improves the experience of riding these natural energy manifestations. The site does that in some small measure, but there’s no filter for BS, nor enough people calling it out when it’s served up by the shovel full. Some of our holy surfing forbears and their “secret sauce” need to get properly skewered by such a reveal.
I don’t for a minute doubt that swizzles, Fat Penguins, pickle forks, bonzers, star fins and all that will “work” for some, on some days and conditions, but there are too many physical variables and mental quirks, waves, and personalities for them to serve the masses. Nor should they be thought of as such.
