What's soul? New Technologies - PU vs Epoxy vs laminate vs popout vs carbon fiber vs wood

General Discussion
1

I’ve been reading the forums a lot lately and noticed that there’s some negative energy towards new technologies - epoxy, laminates, popouts, carbon fiber. Questions of soul, performance and such…

Did PU get the same bad press when it came out as a new technology? Someone please give me a history lesson who was alive in the 1900’s and alive today.

Soul - When was IT lost?

When we stopped going into the forrest to chop our own tree down and ordered a blank online?

When boards went from Koa to Balsa?

When people added a fin? 2,3,4 fins?

When we reduced a surfboard from solid wood to a little strip of wood called a stringer?

When we went from solid wood to man-made foam?

When people stopped melting candle wax for traction and started using surf wax?

When surfboards were created on the mainland instead of THE ISLAND? Or maybe now that some are created in Asia land?

When we went from 100lb boards in the 1900’s to 50lb boards in the 50’s to 15lb. boards in the 80’s to several pound boards of this era?

When the fin went from wood to glass to carbon fiber?

When fin boxes were used instead of glassed on fins?

When we went from 14 foot boards to 6 foot boards or anywhere in between?

When we went from a hand saw to a power saw? Hand sander to power sander? Hand shaped to hand molded to vacuum formed?

When we started whering masks and stopped breathing in the essence of the surfboard that was destroying lungs?

When boards were ragged on in person versus on the Internet?

If I showed you a video of Taj or Kelly on a Firewire versus plain 'ol Joe on a PU - would you say the PU has more soul/performance?..doubtful

If I showed you a video of Taj or Kelly on a PU versus plain 'ol Joe on a Firewire - would you say the Firewire has more soul/performance?..doubtful

People are funny about change…

The way I see it is…surf to have fun. Create the soul in the experience, with the ones who share that

same love, with yourself…

2

check the archives

sole is a fillet

soul is a place betwixt rocka nd roll

and gospel

a flying butress has soul that Le corbusier wishes he had,or not

Trif and kip and glinch

and the boys at the pier squabbling

dont hold a candle to the ol’ soul three towers south

that connects em up and kicks out ten yards short of the pier rip.

to me ,the way I see it,my soul aint for sale

I give it with impunity

and there is a vacuousness

in the eyes of the competitive driven

surf mediaocracy*

that is singled out

by the happy fun hog

cultists in hopes of setting

their loves and efforts aside from

the cash promoters

driven to milk the

life essence of this zen of surfing

fir their own financial gratification.

support private enterprize

and surfboard outsourcing

of make it yourself…?

you choose.

…ambrose…

you got soul.

till you dont

some sell theirs

did robert johnson

sell his?

some think so.

some think not

charles-edouard jeaneret

was he the father of modern architecture?

or just another pencil pusher?

did he have soul at nineteen?

or only after he turned

77?

*mediocre over promoted by the media

3

The only thing I care about when I surf is if I am having fun.We all have soul.I personally like all the new stuff coming out in regards to surfboards.Its about time things start to change in this industry.Thank god that no other industries are like surfboard shaping.It seems strange that so many like to keep things the same and don’t like progression.Keeping it real can be a real bad thing just watch the Chappelle show on comedy central.I am Rick James Bitch

4

I think soul is found in what you GIVE. So in that respect, it’s hard to quantify and defies unilateral definition. I also think that surfers don’t have a monopoly on soul. But one thing we can all agree on… you know it when you see it.

I post a surf report online pretty regularly, and one of my frequent “thought of the day” messages that follows my daily report is, “got soul?” Because I think we have to keep checking ourselves. In other words, we have to keep asking, “what did I/can I give today?” Maybe it’s a wave…or just some sound advice on Sways…or a ding repair for that kid you don’t even know down the beach who can’t fix it himself, and you’ve got a little uv resin and a torn off corner of sandpaper in your truck. He’ll paddle back out in 15 minutes, and in 15 years he’ll still remember that day and do it for somebody else’s kid.

Where soul isn’t found?.. In spite of his appearance, the bearded, pickup-driving, beaver-tailed, longboarding wave hog who surfs like he’s the only one in the water. Surfshop owners who chase kids away from their storefronts because they don’t spend enough money there. Poachers, litterbugs, and theives. Beachfront property owners who don’t pick up after their dogs and will call the police on surfers who access the beach through their vast, perfect, chemically treated lawns.

So in terms of equipment, I think there’s no uniform policy on soul. It dosen’t matter what you ride, or if you wear a leash or not, or your choice of foam and laminant. Because soul is alive and well on all kinds of boards, and in all kinds of wetsuits, at all surf spots, no matter how urban or remote. Soul is not dead. But we all have to ask ourselves, “is it IN ME?” And if it’s not…well…maybe we should find a way to give. That way, we all win. In my book, that’s soul.

5

A 7’6" single fin pintail. Surfed goofy foot in very hollow lefts. A lightning bolt on the deck may help. Mike

6

The notion of “Soul” in a surfboard is relatively new…

The most intense period of commercialisation of surfboard manufacture was not last year, or the nineties, or the eighties…

I can’t speak for California or even from experience, but the stories I’ve heard put this picture together:-

(I’d welcome input from the horses mouth to fill the holes.)

Australian surfing between the wars was mostly connected to surf life saving clubs. There was a cottage industry in building the equipment, many club members building their own paddle skis, and standup boards emerged, sixteen foot long hollow “toothpicks”…Board riding was definately in the league of sport and recreation in a time when the lifesaving institution was straight as a pin.

1956 - The American Olympic waterpolo team visits Sydney, giving surfing exhibitions on the earliest polyurethane “Malibu” boards. It all goes down so well with selection of guys who already built toothpicks, and some keen groms. Replicas quickly appeared - the rockers, the rail profiles, the outlines, in hollow construction, because we still did’nt have blanks.

Some figured out how to blow foam…They were the lucky ones and a handful of Sydney names burgeoned into the “Brookvale Big Bang”, men in the right place at the right time. Woods, Keyo, Bennett…

They made the blanks, they imported the resins. The Industry that developed through the early and mid sixties at times saw mega-factories doing hundreds of boards a week, pro models, Ghost shapers…QC issues…

Surfing was preppy, sporty:- crew cuts and boat shoes. Nat Young writes of taking orders for boards from Department stores.

It was all Business, and it all fell apart…

Some of the Industry’s bastard children started cutting whole feet off the length of boards. It was the most intensive period of innovation in board history. In a few short years the Brookvale big bang fizzled.

Was that the birth of soul?

Is innovation the birth of soul?

“Soul”…Basically, put it down to an image change surfing went through after the Shortboard Revolution…

1968 - Acid, dope… Tune in, turn on…Long hair, shape your own board in the yard…

The ex-employee list of the Sydney mainstay brands of the sixties is a who’s-who of seventies shaping…McTavish, Farrelly, Young, Fitzgerald…

These guys were the real thing, they went through it all, but again, in the right place at the right time…and cultural movement worldwide carried “Soul” as a tag…

A tag both used and abused to this day - It still sells stuff.

Countless small board making outfits sprang up, board building developed as a perfectionist handcraft, and the industry standardised again. A good single fin pintail saw service for nearly a decade.

But dedicated men continued to push the envelope of both the craft and board design. The era is a treasure trove of foils, pinstripes, resin tints…

Artful passion in the hands of a craftsman…

Is that the birth of soul?

The Thruster came in, then the 6’2" squashtail X 50 million. You can get one that was never touched by the hands of a surfer.

And now machines can shape exactly the same board as your last one, and in exactly the same materials as the 1956 Malibus.

Or you could live to satisy an urge to make gorgeous surfboards, the apple of your mind’s eye. Whatever the materials, whatever the tools, its the hands of innovative craftsmen that change surfing.

I can feel another birth coming on…

Josh

7
Quote:

I’ve been reading the forums a lot lately and noticed that there’s some negative energy towards new technologies - epoxy, laminates, popouts, carbon fiber. Questions of soul, performance and such…

Did PU get the same bad press when it came out as a new technology? Someone please give me a history lesson who was alive in the 1900’s and alive today.

Soul - When was IT lost?

When we stopped going into the forrest to chop our own tree down and ordered a blank online?

When boards went from Koa to Balsa?

When people added a fin? 2,3,4 fins?

When we reduced a surfboard from solid wood to a little strip of wood called a stringer?

When we went from solid wood to man-made foam?

When people stopped melting candle wax for traction and started using surf wax?

When surfboards were created on the mainland instead of THE ISLAND? Or maybe now that some are created in Asia land?

When we went from 100lb boards in the 1900’s to 50lb boards in the 50’s to 15lb. boards in the 80’s to several pound boards of this era?

When the fin went from wood to glass to carbon fiber?

When fin boxes were used instead of glassed on fins?

When we went from 14 foot boards to 6 foot boards or anywhere in between?

When we went from a hand saw to a power saw? Hand sander to power sander? Hand shaped to hand molded to vacuum formed?

When we started whering masks and stopped breathing in the essence of the surfboard that was destroying lungs?

When boards were ragged on in person versus on the Internet?

If I showed you a video of Taj or Kelly on a Firewire versus plain 'ol Joe on a PU - would you say the PU has more soul/performance?..doubtful

If I showed you a video of Taj or Kelly on a PU versus plain 'ol Joe on a Firewire - would you say the Firewire has more soul/performance?..doubtful

People are funny about change…

The way I see it is…surf to have fun. Create the soul in the experience, with the ones who share that

same love, with yourself…

Soul is nothing more than a word used at times by surfers so they can point the finger at someone else and say “they don’t have it” or point to themselves and say “I do.”

8

That’s exactly what I think it DOESN’T mean…

Soul is a question… a search… a vehicle for introspection, not finger pointing.

Soul is about selflessness… it is spiritual and not carnal or material.

9

how about

are you dedicated?

to surfing?

HOW MUCH???

heart and soul bruddah

hart an soul…

…ambrose…

the industrial revolution

perhaps is the antithisis of

soul…

surfing,the industry…?

an industrious chipmunk is a metaphor

the chipmunk collects acorns to survive

10
Quote:
how about

are you dedicated?

to surfing?

HOW MUCH???

heart and soul bruddah

hart an soul…

There was a backlash against PU when it first came out. same with when boards went from red wood to balsa, but that was because the balsas were light and “girl boards”

11

A word recently popped up in an e-mail exchange with one of the more soulful people/surfers I know…Harmony.

Soul = Harmony

Harmony doesn’t preclude professionalism or the surf industry. Nor does it preclude bodysurfing, bodyboarding, mats, paipos, longboards, shortboards, funboards, big waves or small waves.

Sticking it to each other to get more for yourself is not harmonious.

Some people may think total soul harmony is a boat trip to indo with “the bros”…others may think that a week in Hell.

Change is not always good. Change for the better is. Change for the sake of increasing sales in the third quater is apocalypse…

Nels

12

“Soul” in surfing = a marketing ploy often used (ironically) by folks trying to cash in. It’s just a word used as part of an effort to glorify hand shaping or some other aspect of the lifestyle. A hand shaped board of whatever material doesn’t have more soul in it. It just takes longer and is likely going to have more imperfections.

If you appreciate hand shapes as an art or craft… fine, but let’s face it, the “soul” thing is basically sales pitch.

13

There is no soul in an inanimate object such as a surfboard.

14

…you can’t market soul…

You can try, and many do, use “soul” as a marketing ploy. I agree with you there. But that’s not TRUE soul in surfing. Because you can’t find soul in a board, no matter what it’s made of, or how it’s made. And soul can’t be bought or sold. Soul is GIVEN away. Soul is an act of kindness. Soul is stoke.

I have to ask myself (and I encourage others to do the same), “what makes me feel soulful.” For me, the answer is passing along the joy of surfing and the craft of building boards. I teach people how to surf. I teach people how to build boards. And neither one makes me any real money. It pays for my next blank and bolt.

I do my work in a co-op. The sign on the door reads Willow Avenue Soul Boards. All are welcome, as long as you sweep up when you’re done and do your sanding outside.

15

I recall that the term “Soul” first came into vogue in the late sixties/early seventies after the shortboard revolution took hold. The terminology of the time genrally referred to “soul surfing”, rather than “soul surfboards”. The genesis of soul surfing was one effect of the sweeping social changes going on at the time. The anti-establishment movement in young people all over the planet was in full swing. Some of those young people included surfers. “Soul” was in reference to the surfer and/or the surfers lifestyle as much, or more, than it was to the equipment. Contest surfing, surf teams, team jackets, short hair, nose riders, as well as just about all equipment from the “big” manufacturers of the day, like Weber, Hobie, or G&S etc. etc. were things that were considered to be part of the establishment and therefore to have no “soul”. On the other hand, surfing just for the fun of it (no teams or contests allowed) on homemade, or backyard shaper equipment (which could be cutting edge, or just plain crap, depending on just who the backyard shaper was) was considered to have “Soul”. You could go so far as to make the point that it was the dramatically changing culture of the times that helped drive the short board revolution. We (the youth of the day) were in a period of change for change’s sake. After all, what could be more anti establishment than taking your 10 foot name brand longboard and chopping 3 feet off the nose and hacking out a new nose using whatever tools were at hand. Top that off with a glass job that included lumps, bugs and lawnclippings and you had the ultimate “soul surfing” machine. Whether or not the mods actually worked very well was another story, but they certainly had “Soul”.

In retrospect, it had to be a very hard time for the manufacturers of the day just trying to keep up with the speed of the often radical changes to the equipment taking place in the water. I suspect the big vendors of the time really couldn’t afford to have “soul”. It’s likely still true today.

Pardon the ramble.

16

Soul comes from the hand making of something, either it be a piece of wood carved into a chair, or a piece of mud turned into a bowl, or even a chunk of foam (any foam) turned into a surf board. Soul is individual, soul is a one off. Soul does not come from a CNC that makes the same thing exactly 1000 times. Not everything has soul, Nor should it.

Does soul come at a price? I think so.

It’s not the material, it’s the person breathing life into the inamate object.

Now go make a surfboard with your own hands, paint it with your design, glass it with your own hands, and sand it with your little mits until they are raw, then gloss it, and polish it by hand…Then paddle it out on a perfect glassy head high day, and tell me that the board didn’t speak to you. Tell me that you didn’t have a grin all session long, because you were surfing something you made,…and you can’t believe that it actually worked…Soul maybe, stoke… yes.

17

SOUL

[/i][/i][/i][/i]1 : the immaterial essence, animating principle, or actuating cause of an individual life[/i] [/i]

2 a : the spiritual principle embodied in human beings, all rational and spiritual beings, or the universe[/i] [/i][/i][/i][/i]

3 : a person’s total self[/i] [/i]

4 a : an active or essential part[/i] [/i]b : a moving spirit [/i][/i]

5 a : the moral and emotional nature of human beings[/i] [/i]b : the quality that arouses emotion and sentiment[/i] [/i]c : spiritual or moral force

Enclosed, capsuled in this aura,
orbiting
the strange wilderness,
past reality, beyond grasp,
times vacuum infinite,
from stardust born,
the perpetual soul,
timeless existence,
eternal presence,
stardust heaven take me,
our souls exist forever
as atoms in this vast universe,
fragile,
enduring
dust.

18

Resinhead,

My sentiments exactly! While reading the previous posts it’s precisely what I was thinking!

Stoke/soul riding a Surftech? Sure, but the soul/stoke is in the act of the beautiful activity that is surfing - minus the “connection” to your “object”. You may love that board, but is it the same?

Stoke riding your own creation? A big yes!

Is there “soul” in that creation? A huge yes! You put your heart, mind, body and all of your SOUL into it!

19
Quote:

That’s exactly what I think it DOESN’T mean…

Soul is a question… a search… a vehicle for introspection, not finger pointing.

Soul is about selflessness… it is spiritual and not carnal or material.

I agree…what you call soul should be about some of that and sometimes is. Of course…selflessness in a selfish sport? Don’t know about that one one. You can’t get away from the competitive atmosphere of a lineup. As for spiritual. Not everyone believes in that figure of speech.

I love surfing. I love how it makes me feel. I love being out there on the ocean and it gives the the feeling of riding the earth’s energy. Is that spiritual? Something I may call spiritual will have to be way more important that surfing.

I like what one famous boardbuilder said…" I am just riding on my own beam of light."

20
Quote:

“Soul” in surfing = a marketing ploy often used (ironically) by folks trying to cash in. It’s just a word used as part of an effort to glorify hand shaping or some other aspect of the lifestyle. A hand shaped board of whatever material doesn’t have more soul in it. It just takes longer and is likely going to have more imperfections.

If you appreciate hand shapes as an art or craft… fine, but let’s face it, the “soul” thing is basically sales pitch.

Can we have an Amen.