looking for an article published in Surfer mag in the mid 70’s regarding Tom Morey’s crew on Kauai that was experimenting with air-lubicated boards. In the article Tom did alot of drawings of what he thought were some “next generation” boards.
Anyone still got their collection of Surfer Mags to help me pinpoint the article?
The article was a real inspiration to me at the time. I remember doing the whole alka seltzer in resin and soap thing he discussed… I’m really looking for the board drawings he did expecially the “soft” concept he did which was I believe is the grandfather of the Fat penguin and the UFO design we’ve seen lately.
Shwuz needs something to new to inspire him anyway after his last great adventure…
does it make your board go farter or what ? Riding on air eh ? [puts a whole new spin on “jet bottoms”, don’t it ?!
ben
I’m sure I’d remember THAT issue but alas… I miisssed it I guess!
I did , however, see an interesting article with photos a few years back on Greg Webbers’ 'experiments, which seem to have predated doc Lausch’s UFO. now, did I buy that issue ? [time needed]
Yeah, that sounds like some really interesting design concepts there. I managed to miss the UFO somehow, though. Can someone point me in the right direction?
Yep, the fattie was, as I told my little woman, the “last board I would shape for a while”… But it’s never too early to start planning, right?
Tom was just here a couple days ago. He came by to check out a new soft board fin we just made. Anyway he's got a board hanging on the wall of his condo, that is vented to draw air from the deck side and release it under the board. It's pretty wicked looking. He's got a really bitchin workshop down stairs with a CNC router. The guy is always tinkering. Anyway, he's also got a Jazz Band that he's the drummer for and is playing "at both the<span style="font-style:italic"><span style="font-weight:bold"> Salt Creek Grille</span></span> in Laguna, Every Sunday 11:00am -3:00pm [ brunch ], and<span style="font-style:italic"><span style="font-weight:bold"> Cafe Renaissance</span></span> in Dana Point every 3rd Sunday of the month [5:30pm - 8:30pm."
I managed to miss the UFO somehow, though. Can someone point me in the right direction?
oops … apology to doc Lausch of Surf Prescriptions , and his rider Donut van Frankfurt eater… that should have read “the u.S.o”…["unidentified SURFING object "]… HERE IT IS, for your viewing pleasure !! build one of THESE please, Shwuz…then bring it to perth thanks ! ben ps - I think it’s featured in ‘framelines’ , the billabong video (from ? last year?) A single keel made of foam, not unlike our clubbie coolites…jazzed up a bit… [see surfprescriptions.com under ‘surfboards’ …he even makes one called…wait for it… the ‘fish’n’chip’ !! ]
The article is in Surfer, Volume 12 Number 1, March 1971. I have a copy, but no flat bed scanner. Maybe I can get access to a scanner. Is it ethical/legal to scan a copy and post it here on Swaylocks? I don’t want to break any laws or cause any problems for this site.
There were a number of air hole designs… Tom Morey,Herbie Fletcher and Pat Hanifin immediately come to mind.
There was a design or two of Morey’s in the old Ventura Surf Museum next to the Holiday Inn at the point. Deep concaved bottom and even the top side of the rails. Quite similar to FP in a number of ways.
Howzit John, There are still a couple of those air boards around the island. I have one friend who uses them on his boards and says he can tell the difference, but he says that he finds that it doesn’t work on all shapes. Vinnie Bryan has been riding them since the 60’s and the last board he shaped had them. I always chuckle and tell them to watch out and don’t put their feet over the intake holes. Aloha,Kokua
I clearly remember that article. I was shaping my very first boards around that time, and it opened my mind to some new thoughts about design. I’m pretty sure that I still have it archived somewhere, will look for it tomorrow and post it if I do find it.
if the copyright is an issue could you just send it as an attachment in a PM to me? Then you don’t have to be worried about the public realm intellectual rights stuff…
I’ll also try and see you can by reprints of an old issue like this from Surfer.
Again mahalo to you both!
Chip
basically Tom said to crush bottles of alka seltzer and dump it in a real thin hotcoat you applied to the bottom of your board then right before you went out or after you paddled into the lineup you sanded and exposed the foaming tabs and took off… It was a mess but not as bad as…
The second idea was to wax the bottom of your board with an entire bar of soap maybe two… That one was real messy bubbles and soap film everywhere and talk about slipping and sliding off your board… I think we were still using parafin then too…
Did try them both at the time and it was hilarious to say the least… Would’ve rather rode one of his air-injected boards than mess with that stuff. Don’t know how many marine animals I killed with that too… But in those days you didn’t think about those things.
Somewhere in the archives there is a picture of one. I had it on my desktop for a while but will have to refind. can’t even remeber the thread it was in but fairly -this year - recently.
the older east coast Aussies here MAY have seen these, perhaps…
Erle Pedersen [yes , the “jet bottom” man!] had a step bottom model in the 70s with big holes drilled into the foam [horizontally] in the step’s ‘ridge’ [if that makes sense !]
If I was a petrolhead, I’d know the ‘proper’ term, but it looked like those ‘air vented’ thingamebobs that rise out of the bonnet on hotted up cars [see them in car shows from time to time].
A mate of my brother’s had a “step bottom air vented jet bottom”, by Erle Pedersen, back in about 1980/81, I think it was…wish I still had the photo!
Tracks did an article called 'U.S.O.'s, back in the early 70s, it had a shot of that “kneeboarder from space” I posted at surfer …remember that shot, Shwuz ? …the guy with the helmet and goggles and beard and flippers, with a board not at all dissimilar to donovan’s pictured above …
