After reading the description of what is to be posted in the General Discussion Forum, it sounds like this week’s project warranted being posted here. some of you may have read my posts under the Surfshop section, which Huck started back when, hoping that I would continue contributing to Swaylocks. That thread pretty much became a substitute for a blog.
This is different however.
The new norm in surfboards has been guys pushing the envelope on creating something new & different. Hence we have seen a strong proliferation of square noses, snow ski type cutaways, edge boards, extreme concaved bottoms & decks… really the gamut, in search of either the ideal ride experience or maybe something that gains traction and SELLS.
My current star rider & what we are now calling a “Brand Ambassador”, Derek Thomas, had asked me about a Stinger (more correctly Sting) I had made for a label I shape (Aviator Nation).
For those of you that weren;t around in the early to mid 70’s, the Stinger was an innovation that longtime Hawaiian surfer & shaper Ben Aipa designed for his riders LARRY BERTLEMANN, BUTTONS KUHIOKALANI, AND MARK LIDDELL. They regularly surfed Kaiser Bowl on the South Shore during summer and it is a wave with a unique personality. One quick turn, a barrel, cutback and you’re out! They wanted a surfboard that could turn with a super short radius to fit this wave.
Ben created the “Sting”, and not only did it do its job admirably at Kaiser’s, but THE BOYZ took it everywhere else they surfed turning heads everytime they paddled out.
It is in this spirit, I presnt to you a bit of history of THE STINGER OR MORE CORRECTLY THE STING, it’s journey, and my personal revisitation of this unique design.
Enjoy, and keeping thinking outside of the box!
BF aka DS