Sunshine Coast surfboard news

nOt nORMal " is my side project, it is all about being totally creative to make alternative surf craft. This is for those surfers open minded enough to ride surf craft that are not mainstream in any way. Its about always taking the most creative option in design whilst still ensuring it is a fully FUNctional craft. I'll be creating assymetrical, finless, belly-boards,hand-planes and anything else that's different enough to be classed as 'nOt nORMal '...this desire to be crea...tive will hopefully flow into the colouring of the boards too, wether its me doing the art, or getting an artist to go wild on it, or if you want to do your own art...its a very creative realm for people who wish to enjoy the waves on something that's totally not the norm...nuthin mainstream and mass produced or sterile here, put some creativity into the surf craft you ride....
* these are not surfboards, these are STRESS REDUCING, REALITY ESCAPING , FUN MACHINES *

Magix

Latest epoxy/carbon/pu foam combo’s are looking and surfing very sweet indeed....these have been dubbed “magix”, surfing super livey with great flex in the tail and tons of pop in the lip....
these babies feel unreal, super light but strong with 1 x 6 and 1 x 4 decks, and the combo of the epoxy and carbon when used correctly can be excellent...I dont use carbon in the tail coz it stiffens up boards and I want mine lively with good tail flex....mp

Twinzers

Twinzers: The forgotten four fin design

Mr Quad said, yes, it did go alright, and yes it felt good, he went on to describe the feeling of the board and its performance in florid language. Clearly he enjoyed surfing it. But then the line of questioning took a turn away from the sensory and toward the scientific: Why was the board so fast? Why did it perform differently than his last board?

...and the answers ceased to flow as freely. Mr Quad attempted to respond but he was obviously fumbling.

The conversation caused me to think how little surfers know about board design – and I include myself in that assessment. We may understand what particular design features do – pintails hold a line, twin fins are skatey, thrusters more stable – but we don't necessarily understand why they work the way they do. I'm talking about the theory of board design here. The physics of waterflow over fibreglass that makes design features – pintails, twin fins, thrusters, etc. - work in their own peculiar way. And in the case of fins, the more there are on a board the harder it is to grasp the relationship between them and so understand why the board behaves the way it does.

An exception to this is the Twinzer, the fin configuration that's best described as an augmented twin fin. For those that don't know, the Twinzer is a standard twinny with two smaller fins sitting just forward and towards the rail of each larger fin. Early iterations also had a narrow tail for increased hold with a concave running out the back. But it was the fins that were the defining feature. The Twinzer was invented in the late-80s, refined in the early-90s, although the theory behind them had been used in aerodynamics for many years previous. Unlike most other surfboard designs the Twinzer incorporates a commonly understood physical concept.

will-jobson.jpgThe fin configuration was first placed on a board by Will Jobson while shaping in Southern California in the late-80s. For arguments sake it'd be good to know Jobson's thinking when he placed the fins the way he did. Was it just trial and error experimentation, the method that led to breakthroughs such as the twin fin and Thruster, or did Jobson understand the laws of physics before he created the Twinzer? Unfortunately I couldn't get hold of Jobson for this article so the question remains unanswered.

However, for the time being we'll leave the physics and trace the short history of the Twinzer.

In 1988 Martin Potter was in Southern California and rode one of Will Jobson's new designs. He liked it and took the idea to his shaper at the time, Glenn Minami of Blue Hawaii. Potter had success on twinnies in the early-80s and in the Twinzer saw a way to remove the “terminal skittishness” of twin fins. With a Twinzer among his armoury, Potter built up a head of steam in 1989 and went on to blitz the world tour winning six competitions and the World Title.

In Australia, Stuart D'Arcy was taking notice. In 1986 Pottz stayed at D'Arcy's Cronulla house during the Beaurepaires Open and the two remained friends. When Potter left Blue Hawaii in the early-90s D'Arcy not only offered to shape his boards but also to go shares in a new label, Pottz surfboards. The Twinzer thus became part of D'Arcy's shaping repertoire. In 1991 the Twinzer went into production at Pottz surfboards with some changes to the tail shape. According to Darc the design sold well.

Back in California, Will Jobson travelled to San Diego and shared his design with Rusty Priesendorfer who was “blown away at the difference in feel from a conventional twin fin”. Rusty subsequently made “quite a few” Twinzer's paying Will a royalty for his idea.

As well as being a shaper of principle - how many shapers voluntarily pay royalties? - Rusty is also the best person to explain the physics behind the Twinzer concept. To begin with, many people call the smaller outside fins 'stabilisers' or 'sidebiters' but the correct term for them is 'canards'. The canards, Rusty says, “help punch a hole in the water” before the main fins run through it. When turning a twin fin, the inside fin is pivoting and also holding the board in the water. By redirecting the water flow the canard “creates a wider effective base” on the main fin, thereby allowing a higher angle of attack - read: sharper turns - while lessening the chance of them spinning out.

In short, canards prime the water allowing the main fin to work at its best – reducing drag and increasing foil efficiency. And the principle works across all fluid dynamics. The theory dates right back to the Wright Brothers; the Wright Flyer biplane had canards when it launched at Kittyhawk in 1903. The term 'canard' means duck in French, owing to the fact the French public thought another pioneering biplane, the Santos-Dumon 14-bis, looked like a duck with its stabilising control front wings.

typhoon_over_the_falklands_mod_45157164.jpgIn modern times canards can be seen on supersonic fighter jets, the most well known being the RAF's Typhoon (seen at left), and the Mirage, used by the French and Australian air forces. Many commercial and private jets also employ the use of canards.

In the mid-90s Rusty extended Will Jobson's concept evolving it into the C-5. Where the Twinzer was an augmented twin fin, the C-5 was an augmented thruster: it had canards placed outside and in front of the forward fins in a standard thruster set up. Both the Twinzer and C-5 enjoyed a brief period of popularity in the mid-90s before being lost in the rush of retro designs that defined the late-90s marketplace.

However, Twinzers never fully went away, they've always remained around the periphery and with quad fins currently the source of much experimentation it was only a matter of time before shapers began investigating 'the other four fin' again. One of them is Sunshine Coast shaper, and Swellnet's local reporter, Mark Pridmore:

Swellnet: How did you come across the design?
Mark Pridmore: I remember seeing a few in the mags and then saw a Glenn Minami Pottz version about '89. I rode one a few times but didn’t think it went that great, but it was different and I have always been drawn to anything different in design, so I decided to revisit it.

Do you consider it an extension of the quad, or another design altogether?
Not really, although I do enjoy a good quaddy, it's more about being curious about other fin set-ups that offer different performance benefits.

dscn5361.jpgDescribe the feeling.
I think they feel free and fast, kinda like a twinny, but they have the drive and hold of a quad fin yet with exceptional manoeuvrability. They definitely aren’t slidey or too loose like a twinny usually is.

Why the Nubbin fin?
Because it adds hold, and with a wider tail or in bigger waves, or even if you just want to push harder through turns, the Nubbin allows that with no slipping.

Have you ridden it without it?
Yes, sure have I've ridden it with about 10 variations. I had to trial lots of things with the entire set-up to understand it and get my version of it to feel great.

What’s the difference?
Without the Nubbin it's looser and some lighter footed surfers don’t need the Nubbin, but I like to push on rail and the Nubbin allows me to do that. I don’t wanna nurse turns...

Best type of surf to ride it?
I ride mine in everything. My current fave is a little 5’5” wide-tailed thing with the Twinzer set-up but with two small nubbins, as I like the feeling of no centre fin, and it adds hold and drive on such a wide tail. I cant stop riding it, I even took it to Fiji and rode it in waves that were way too big for it. But once I got into 'em it went insane, it's just a magic board for me. It's a big call but it's the best board I have ever ridden and best thing I have ever shaped for myself.

Generally I ride it in head high and under waves, but that's thereality of living on this coast and not the limitations of the fin set up.

Where do you think this Twinzer design could lead?
Personally, I like it more than a quad or thruster, and they go insane, though they may be too different for many people.

Board Meeting Charity Surf Event

The Board Swap Shop entered a team in the recent Board Meeting Charity surf event, and we took out 1st place...the team was Harry Cumming, Jack Bailey, Glenn Corbet and me....all riding MORE surfboards...the waves were rubbish but money was raised for a great cause...and the boys were ripping ( well some of them were haha )...., mp

The Steamed Dumpling

The Dumpling is back...well after many requests and enquiries I thought it had to come back, but I couldnt just bring it back the same, I had to tweak and improve as always, so here it it, the new and improved Dumpling, called, ‘the Steamed Dumpling’....its very similar but I have made it a touch narrower for better rail to rail surfing, little less area up in the nose for tighter surfing and to make it handle steeper and suckier waves better.., also got my bevelled MORElease rails from the flyer back, ..can come with many different tail shapes depending on ya liking but this ones a diamond tail to shorten the rail length a bit ....this ones also got a sick “Pshyco-delic inlay”, just some cool trippy graphics I am doing a few of recently,..dims of this baby are – 5’7” x 20” x 2 1/2”, volume = 31.9 ltrs
Just another super FUNctional design for those average days to make ya surfing time even MORe enjoyable...yewwwwwww.....,mp

MORE surfboards will soon be available at a new Kawana Surf Shop, MORE details and info soon....,Mark

MOREgasm

The latest edition to the range came about after I made a one-off custom for a local fella, then another guy wanted one, then his mate ordered one and then a few MORE, so I knew there was something good happening here, so I made myself one, and sure enough, WOW, super fun little beasts...they fit in the range somewhere between the ‘dim-SIM’ and ‘the Fat Beaver’, but then again, its a totally different board and they dont need to fit anywhere...its just a super fun, fast and manouverable small wave design....I suggest riding them fairly short, an intermediate to good surfer at 5’9” should ride a 5’5” or 5’6” version, but best to chat about all details as skill, fitness, waves to be ridden etc etc all make differences to your ideal version....single to double concaves, 5 fin plugs for options , predominantly a quaddy but goes fine as a thruster too....lotsa fun and great paddlers too, cant believe how many waves I been getting on mine lately....another fun small wave shape...if ya wanna know MORE, flick me an email or gimme a buzz...yewwwwww,
mp

Black Magics are my latest creation...they are designed with the higest level of small wave performance in mind...Either EPS or poly ( depending on whats best for the specific board/surfer/wave type ) with epoxy resin, I am utilising carbon so it adds strength where its required and not just so it looks cool...Carbon reduces flex , so I wont be putting it in the tail where flex is required and makes a surfboard perform better and surf with MORE life and twang...Many people are using carbon the wrong way ( thats my opinion ) and with the wrong resin too, so its just for show and cosmetics and actually serves no performance or strength benefit ( even though you pay for it as an extra ) but the Black Magics have a good combo of materials, and used how I believe they create the best performing surfboards...early feedback and testing is insane and people are frothing over them...
These will be available very soon...yewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...,

Welcome to the team Jack Bailey...Jack is a young Kawana ripper who is improving quickly, he also kills it on a kite board...Jacks riding a 5’7” Space Cadet...MORE pics of him soon....

Twinzers Are Back!

I have always been a fan of the Twinzer fin set-up and some of you may even remember I had a twinzer here as a model...but then I removed it to do MORE trials and testing to make them better...and now they are back... I have been testing them on several different shapes and in many different wave types, and couldnt be MORE stoked on recent results and feedback....there’ll be pics and info available soon, but if ya interested in a Twinzer ( or my versions of them ), let me know....I have been riding them alot of late and personally think mine goes better than a quad...feels faster, MORE drive and better manouverability and just great flow thru turns...and I can ride whatever I want, and I choose a twinzer ( plus 2 )....People see them and freak out coz they look different, but so did the 1st thruster and quads took a while to be accepted also....they wont be accepted by the narrow minded or conservative, but for you out there that wanna try something different and in my opinion, better in many ways to standard fin set-ups, give me a call or flick me a message.....,
Mark PridMORE

New shirts with a message I believe in. These are available to buy for $25 each, plus $5 postage within Australia ....contact me thru here if interested....limited stock and sizes available, 1st in best dressed...

MP Classic Comp

Here’s a few pics of the MP MOTE replica I did for the recent MP Classic comp...Mikey Wright took it home, and I just hope he rides it a few times....

Bellyboards

I have been getting right into a few bellyboards lately and will be doing MORE too, these little things are super fun, super fast and a great way to ride a wave, especially if you have any knee or back issues, plus , you can get tubed when its only 1 ft, NOW thats gotte be a good thing.....yewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...

Here’s a few random shots of different ones done recently, there’ll be MORE added to the BOARDS page once I have finalised things and make them a regular option as a model to order...

THE MYSTERY BOARD

The MYSTERY BOARD is where the customer hands over total creative control to me, the designer/shaper. I have had several people request this from me lately and the results have been excellent, so I am going to make it an option for all my customers now. Obviously, I will still need some good information from you ( the customer ), but the design and dimensions will be left totally up to me. I have the best knowledge of each and every shape and model that I do,so I am totally confident of creating you a suitable and extremely enjoyable board. It may be a total custom shape, a hybrid design, or tweaked model, possibly a new prototype model that’s yet to be released or whatever I believe will be genuinely the best shape for you and your needs...If there’s certain shapes or fin set-ups you dont like, you can give me this info and we’ll discuss things, but you wont know what you are getting until it arrives...this will not appeal to everyone, but I know there’s people out there who would be right into this.., the surprise and the total stoke when getting the MYSTERY sled, they do mystery bets, mystery flights and mystery hotels, so why not surfboards...flick me an email or gimme a call to discuss further...,
Mark

MICHAEL PETERSON Surfboards now being produced by MORE surfboards. Its a great honour that we get to replicate and also do custom versions of the iconic designs that the legendary MP once rode.
Boards can be ordered here and feel free to contact me with any enquiries, either by message or phone...cheers,
Mark

I was recently asked to do 2 Michael Peterson replica surfboards for a charity group called ‘The Board Meeting’ and of course I was honoured to do them, especially being such a big MP fan. The boards turned out really well and even got the comment of “the best replicas ever done” by Joan Watt ( MPs Mum ). 1 x Morning of the Earth cutty board and 1 x Fangtail....Here’s a few pics...

Here’s a recent interview done for the web-site “The Free-Ride Voice”, if ya havent seen the site, check it out, good stuff on there, interview by Steve Shearer...This is one small part of the interview and I’ll be adding MORE here soon...thanx,
mp

Here’s a little vid of myself and team surfer, Paul Jones surfing a few fun little Autumn waves. Jonesy is on a 9’1” B.O.B and I am riding the MORE the merrier 2 traveller 5’5” Dumpling, hope ya enjoy....

SHORTY IN THE PA

Big congrats to Shane Jefferson ( SHORTY ), who was ripping in the recent Pa Bendall Memorial comp at Moffats Beach. He ended up with a 2nd in the masters division but was a stand out with big committed top turns through all his heats... Shorty was riding his fave 5’8” SS quaddy E-CON...good effort mate...

The MP3

I am bringing back the MP3 but its been seriously reworked. This one has the same planshape as the MP cutty board ( from the icinic Morning of the Earth shot at Kirra ). I have modified the bottom shape to suit a wider range of conditions and to be MORE user friendly to todays surfing styles. I am super stoked about this one...check out the early pics of the prototype, they’ll be available real soon.....oh yeah, the MP stands for Mark Pridmore, or mp and the 3 well thats the amount of fins, a single centre fin box and plugs for the side fins which are optionsl, ride it as a straight single, or a 2 plus one, or even as a thruster.....yewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww,
Mark

FreeRide Voice

Here is a little video by Pablo my Spanish mate from the Board Meeting which MORE surfboards are proud to be supporters....ENJOY

I have another travelling surfboad project which starts soon ( mid Jan 2013 ). Its a Dumpling 5'5" x 20 1/2" x 2 7/16 with a volume of 31 ltrs, it wnt be suitable for everyone but I hope many will get involved and record their experiences on the FaceBook page - http://www.facebook.com/MoreTheMerrier2?fref=ts . Below is the new logo designed by Ian from SurfDecals.com, check em out for great decals and custom surfboard graphics, if ya click on and enlarge the logo pic , you can read the speil inside the map of Aussie and it explains a bit MORE. We have had support from a few companies like Shapers Aust., Haste Clothing, Splash Ding Repairs, SurfDecals.com and also Filtrate Eyewear, all great companies with great product, thanks for the support guys....,
Mark

I recently had a bit of fun while competing in the Kawana Boardriders Club end of year expression session", it was a hot day and I had to keep my fluids up.....,
mp

NEW TEEs

New shirts now available, artwork by Cain Pridmore, tee's are $30 plus postage....

E-Con

The E is for Epoxy and also for E in EPS, the CON is for CONstruction, and these boards are going awesome and once you have ridden them, its hard to go back. They are lighter, they are stronger,they have better floatation, they are MORE responsive and they just surf amazingly well. The combination of these materials and the right custom design can take your surfing to the next level. I have been trialling them with myself and team riders for months now and and I couldnt be happier with them. The performance and FUNction is always my first priority but I have got them looking great and the quality is exceptional too, so they are proving very popular and customers and team riders alike are stoking on them...If you are interested in a stronger, lighter, better surfboard, lets talk and get you a MORE "E-CON" so you can get ya freak on.....

MORE Surfboards have a new team rider, Kale Battistin, a young goofy footer from Kawana...Welcome to the team mate and I look forward to making you some super sick sleds....

Here is some footage of some fun we had a few months ago trying alot of different boards...ENJOY ", footage and editing by Steve Shearer

Team rider, Shane Jefferson ( or 'Shorty' ) has been ripping and recently came 3rd in the O35 Qld Masters comp here on the Sunshine Coast. He is loving his EPS-epoxy and it was definitely working for him throughout the event where was he laying down some big turns that the judges were frothing over....CONGRATS SHORTY....

this is a Fire-Fly Twinzer , a design I have been testing and trialing . As a shaper-designer, I want to try everything and see what has potential and use what I learn to creat the best boards possible for my customers...,
mp

by mp

After the recent passing of the great Michael Peterson, I thought I'd shape a few of his well known shapes from the past, not for profit, not as a retro model, but MORE as a FUNctional memorial to MP. This one is a 'Fangtail' and its a little different in a few ways, it's made from the latest high-tech materials so its a real blend of an old design with new materials, should be an interesting board to ride and even to own. Dimensions are 5'9" x 20 1/8" x 2 3/8",its obviously going to be a single fin and its also going to be a prize for the Retro division in the upcoming Hayden Winter Classic which I am sponsoring. It was fun to shape but not sure my glasser will enjoy glassing it... Cant wait to see it all finished up...R.I.P MP

Ever wanted a board that is lighter, stonger and with better floatation ? Well that's exactly what the new materials are allowing us to do. Nicknamed the 'Styro Pyros' and getting exceptional feedback from some super stoked surfers. They paddle great due to the additional floatation properties of this particualr type of EPS ( approximately 10% better floatation so you can have 10% less foam for same float as standard PU foam, or keep thickness the same and have 10% MORE floatation ), the cloth and resin combination that I am using is extremely strong and very,very resilient against deck sink and depressions, the chosen use of carbon gives plenty of strength but still allows some flex and twang, super stoked on these and looks like I will be doing quite alot of these in the near future. If you are interested, flick me an email and let's chat, cheers,
Mark

Nubbin to sea here....

I have been designing a little half-fin stabiliser for while now and have also used several versions in my less-finned boards like the Fish-Fingers but due to recent popularity caused by one Mr. K. Slater, I have had several customers requesting them, so here it is, "The Nubbin". They are great for that little extra hold in quads either to get MORE drive or hold, I have been surfing my 5'4" Dumpling with one for a while now and its doesnt come out, it goes great and I can push that little bit harder thru turns, it holds a bit better and it drives a bit faster...I have designed "The Nubbin" so it can be reversed and used with either the higher part of the fin towards the tail for MORE hold, or turned around so the highest peak of the fin is to the front, then it gives just a little less hold , so you have MORE options to fine tune your equipment just the way you like it...if interested in Nubbin, give me a yell...move along now, Nubbin to sea here ( yes, I know I spellt see wrong, and that one two....haha,,,
MP

R.I.P. MP YOU LEGEND

The great surfer and extadorniary competitor, Michael Peterson is no longer with us. He was an icon and an idol for many Australian surfers including myself. A very sad day for the surfing world but plenty of great memories have been captured for us all to enjoy and appreciate his skills on movies like Morning of the Earth. His shaping and design skills were underrated. I was lucky enough to meet him and he even posed for pics with my kids. He may have had his battles and demons but it is his pure brilliance on a single fin, especially in the winding tubes of Kirra that he will be remembered for.
RIP MP

An old buddy of mine, Federico from Argentina sent me an email the other day. He is currently in Mexico and he tells me he is stull surfing and loving the boards I made him here in Australia in 2008. He has a 6'1" Fat-Bat and a 6'3" step-up board ( one he is riding in pics ). He is a mad keen surfer and has travelled a large part of the globe chasing waves, he also is a talented photographer and is having his first exhibition in Mexico , ( good onya mate ). It was good to hear that my shapes are still giving him alot of stoke and half way across the world too. Here are a few pics of him surfing in Mexico....

These are 2 freshly cooked 'dim-SIMs' with some tasty colours and artwork. The blue and orange one is a custom shape for Lindon from Peregian. It's 5'2" x 21" x 2 1/2 " and feels great under my arm. The tint work looks amazing and the polish just really highlights the awesome, vivid colours.I just know Lindon is gunna be stoked on it as he ws really keen on a nice tint job with a retro feel. The dragon and fire fabric inlay one is also a 5'2" but its 21 1/2" wide and 2 11/16" thick, this one is in Underground Surf at Noosa. This fabric inlay turned out better than I ever imagined and it really is eye-catching with the mirror perfect polish. I couldnt be happier with the way these shapes are surfing and looking...

Sunday Funday, Maroochydore

We had our get together ( which was previously known as the Surfboard Demo Day ) on Sunday where anyone could come down to the beach and try one of 26 different surfboards available. We had 'dim-SIMs', Dumplings, Fat-Bats, Quadfathers, Fish-Fingers, longboards, Swingers, Double-D's and even a dimple bottom twinzer. There definitely was something for everyone. We scored a few fun 1-3ft waves and the winds werent too bad either, it stayed fairly clean all morning, it wasnt pumping but was good enough for trying some different sleds. We had a steady flow of punters eager to have a go on something different to what they usually ride. The most popular boards of the day were the 'dimple bottom twinzer' which Corbo and Steve Shearer really enjoyed ( and Steve actually was seen slipping into into his car and heading back towards Lennox ) but the other fave of the day was the 'dimple bottom Fish-Finger', plenty of smiles were seen after anyone tried the semi-finless Fish-Finger design for the first time. Local ripper and longboard world tour competitor, Mitch Surman turned up and was doing 'Pop-Shove-its' on his new finless creation. Alot of fun was had, thanks have to go to Nigel and Sharon from Da Bomb Surf Centre, Steve Shearer and Pete Webb for the marquee....,
Mark

Another happy customer

Here are 2 fresh sleds I shaped for Glenn, who lives here on the Sunny Coast. He had a few spots in his quiver that needed filling so we had several discussions and hundreds of emails before we finalised the designs and dimensions that were gunna be spot on for him. The whole process was a bit challenging but still very enjoyable . The Dumpling is his small wave board, dims are 5'9" x 21 3/4" x 3" and the Quadfather is his step up board for good waves on the Sunny Coast as well as for a trip to Fiji he has coming up, dims of the QF are 6'3" x 20 3/4" x 2 3/4"....below is a few words from the owner...

"Well I have the new sleds and I couldn't be more stoked - except I have to wait until Monday to cure properly.

The QF is 6'3 x 20 3/4 x 2 3/4 but doesn't feel anything like those dims under the arm. Rails are much finer than the photos can do justice and Mark has kept them nice and round and subtle for more neutral feel and then amped up the sharpness right in the tail if I push it hard enough.

The ChopStick ( 'Dumpling' ) 5'9 x 21 3/4 x 3 square tail, the rocker could be used as a calibration tool at a ruler factory but enough nose flip to keep it out of trouble. The brief for this one was out and out groveller and she should do the trick. Check out the s-deck in the side shot and the massive vee on the tail, I have been rubbin my hands all over that little mound for an hour today.... and the little bevelled edge rails on the tail. Chubby, loose and fast.

I've got to say, it's been a long time since I've had anyone provide the level of service Mark has. He spent an incredible amount of time working through what boards I ride and what I liked and don't like. Coming from riding exclusively high volume flat/vee bottom McCoys for the last 4 or so years, this is going to be a challenge but I'm looking forward to it and I'm confident Mark has interpretted everything I've asked for perfectly. Part of the reason I love the McCoy brand is Geoff's passion for his craft and level of service. I put you on par mate, so thanks heaps and I just hope I can do 'em justice."

The B-52

After some very positive testing and trials, "The B-52" is now available as part of my range. The interest on this shape has genuinely surprised me. Seems alot of people are looking for that all-rounder to cover just about any surf conditons. Below is a few picks of the first batch . Dims of boards in pics are 1- 5'10" x 19 1/8" x 2 1/2" , 2- 6'0" x 19 3/8" x 2 9/16", 3- 6'2" x 19 1/2" x 2 5/8" "The B-52" is a simple , clean, forgiving, easy to surf shape designed for the average Joe type surfer, coz lets face it, not all of us are at that pro level so we are going to struggle on pro type equipment, better to be realisitc and ride what is going to ensure we get the most enjoyment possible from out surfing time. If you are interested in a "B-52" , flick me an email or give me a buzz, I'd be MORE than happy to chat.,
Mark

Now that's the kind of board meeting I like

A few weeks back, MORE Surfboards entered a team of 4 surfers into 'The Board Meeting Surfing Event' which is a fund raiser for disabled and handicapped kids. It was basically a fun comp which included a tag team as well as an expression session. We actually did quite well and there's a rumour we may have come in 2nd or 3rd in the teams event ( official results are not on their site yet but this is what I have been told ). We also scored a 2nd in the expression session and a first in the best manouver section so it was a succesful and an extremely fun day even if the waves were only 1-2ft and crosshore Kawana. The team consisted of Cain Pridmore, Sharon Jackson, Nev Hellmuth and myself. We rode some different boards which was a good representation of what we do at MORE Surfboards. Here are a few pictures of the day, I am already looking forward to next year's event...
MP

T-shirts

New print tees are now availbale. I have a bit of a mix of colours but mosly black, white and light blue but there's a few random one off colours too, just flick me an email or give me a buzz and I can get one sent out to you. $29 plus postage...

Custom creation - "The Turtle"

I was recently asked if I'd shape a belly board by a friend of mine and I was amped to do it. I like the challenge as well as an opportunity to be creative and design something a little unique. He had some ideas but was open to my suggestions and it was right up my alley after alot of work on my 'dim-SIMs' and my finless and semi-finless boards recently. So here's what we came up with ( see pics ), its 4'2 1/2" x 22 1/2" x 3", its got seriously deep rolling double concaves, chine rails in the rear, slight scooped deck, twin fin and some pretty cool turtle shell artwork done by Cain. Its Pete's first dabble in belly boarding and he is fully stoked and its obvious when you see him in the waves, he is smiling like a grom learning to surf all over again. He told me he just keeps riding it over all his other stand up surfboards and he is having a blast trialling alot of different fins in it too. I think its great when someone has an idea for a board no matter how different it may seem , and they work with a shaper to make it a reality, the stoke of seeing your ideas come to life as well as the enjoyment of riding it is well worth it...

'Hi,
The turtle of "GST" as we dubbed it came about after I'd wanted to try a fibreglass paipo (bellyboard) for years.
I hadn't found anyone locally who I thought would make a good one. I was interested in even importing one from the US.
After seeing Mark's work on both his mini-simmons style and finless boards I knew I had found a shaper up to tackling the task.
We talked about what I wanted out of the turtle...Go fast and look for tubes...which seems an easy brief but this had to be done prone not standing up so a challenge.
We talked about everything about the board from planshape, bottom contours, rails, tail, deck with all the relevant dimensions, fin plugs and of course the glass job.
Once Mark had shaped the board Cain took over working his creative talents into a great graphic of a turtle shell with Posca pens on the deck.
The board's performance has delivered in spades. I've had an absolute blast riding this board. It's so much fun to ride I've been out surfing my new 6'4" surfboard and twice on different occasions paddled in to swap it for the turtle.
The fact that Mark has got this board to work so well is a fine testament to his understanding of what needs to be done to make a board work (even a prone board) and his willingness to listen to a customer and try anything.
Cheers,
Pete.'

The Turbulator

The trialling of the 'dimple bottom' has been continuing and results have been extremely positive. I am totally stoked on their speed and they are now available to anyone who wants them. I am calling them 'Turbulators' due to the turbulence that is created within the dimples and here is a bit of an explanation of how this 'golf ball theory ' works, fair enough, golf balls arent in the water but once I tried these dimples , I knew it worked in water and works really well. -

- "The reason why golf balls have dimples is a story of natural selection. Originally, golf balls were smooth; but golfers noticed that older balls that were beat up with nicks, bumps and slices in the cover seemed to fly farther. Golfers, being golfers, naturally gravitate toward anything that gives them an advantage on the golf course, so old, beat-up balls became standard issue.

At some point, an aerodynamicist must have looked at this problem and realized that the nicks and cuts were acting as "turbulators" -- they induce turbulence in the layer of air next to the ball (the "boundary layer"). In some situations, a turbulent boundary layer reduces drag.

If you want to get deeper into the aerodynamics, there are two types of flow around an object: laminar and turbulent. Laminar flow has less drag, but it is also prone to a phenomenon called "separation." Once separation of a laminar boundary layer occurs, drag rises dramatically because of eddies that form in the gap. Turbulent flow has more drag initially but also better adhesion, and therefore is less prone to separation. Therefore, if the shape of an object is such that separation occurs easily, it is better to turbulate the boundary layer (at the slight cost of increased drag) in order to increase adhesion and reduce eddies (which means a significant reduction in drag). Dimples on golf balls turbulate the boundary layer.

The dimples on a golf ball are simply a formal, symmetrical way of creating the same turbulence in the boundary layer that nicks and cuts do."

- These things seriously reduce drag and increase speed so if you want to go faster, lets talk about getting you on a new 'Turbulater' soon...,

-The 'Turbulators' are the dimples on the bottom which are placed strategiaclly to reduce the drag and increase speed. The Turbulators are available on any shape that it will be suited and beneficial. I will be riding boards with them on almost all my boards because I know they work, any queries, please contact me....
Mark

CAIN IS ABLE!

Dad has asked me to put together some of my board spray pictures and write a few words about my art. I really love doing art on surfboards because it gives me a good feeling when it is finished and when I see it in the surf and it looks cool, I feel good to know I did it, plus the money Dad pays me is nice too. I have been doing art on the boards for about 3 or 4 years now and I think they are looking ok but I want to keep doing them and to do different styles and come up with new ideas. Here are some pictures of some of the boards I have done and if you want a spray on your next board, I would love to do it, Thanks,
Cain Pridmore ( 12 yrs. old )

Here's another bit on a guy who has a few of my boards. His name is Doug, he's from Sydney and surfs all over the place, he takes regaular surfing trips overseas and up and down the East Coast. Doug has a few boards in his quiver and likes to have a board to cover all bases so we have always worked to create a fun and efficient little quiver, he is open to trying new and different designs and he isnt too shabby on a computer either. Here's a few words Doug recently sent me about his MORE surfboards....

"I first had exposure to Mark's boards through his travelling Aquabat, which I took with me on a short Pacific surf trip.
I only had limited opportunity to try it but it got me intrigued as to what all the hype was about four fins , as I'd only ever been brought up on singles and thrusters, so I ordered a custom 6'4" FatBat (on the right below) for surfing small summer gutless waves, but it also held it's own in a return trip to some South Pac reef breaks (pics 3 & 4).

Next board(centre below) was after trying another of Mark's travellers-The Quadfather.This was another custom order(6'5") for a Sumatran trip(pics 5,6,7) but also for surfing winter waves round Sydney .Pic no 7 was using two forward and a small centre trailer fin for some sliding fun when it was small.( the line through the bottom of the board was due to some over- zealous indo baggage handlers which had to be repaired. )

The next (below left) was after reading/hearing discussions about returns to riding shorter boards with more volume.It is 6'1/2" but with well hidden volume,allows floatation required for keeping up with the pack in the paddling stakes, but also extra manoeuvrability as required. It is my current go-to board in anything under 6', as a 4 fin but also loving it as a thruster, and if anyone would have said 20 years ago I would be riding a board 4 inches shorter than I am when I'm 50 I would have had them committed!

Over the next few months I will be posting little pieces about some of my customers and their boards, I recently sent out an email asking some of them to flick me a few pics of them selves with their MORE Surfboards. I just thought it'd be interesting to see 'real' surfers and not just team riders and young rippers like most sites.
-This is Pete, he is a keen surfer who enjoys riding a wide variety of surfboards. He is excellent to work with coz he knows what he wants from a board but also gives me plenty of freedom when design choices are made, he doesnt care about too much besides making sure they board goes well for the waves he wants to ride it in. Not only do I enjoy shaping Pete's boards but he gives me alot of feedback, honest feedback, so we can use that info to work on improving future boards. Pete has a 7'0" Swinger which he wanted as a mini-mal option type board, he wanted a good paddler that had stability, speed but still wanted it to be able to turn sharply. It might be an odd looking shape but its fully FUNctional and its what Pete wanted and he is really enjoying it from what he tells me. Pete gave Cain a bit of free reign to do a bit of fun childish art on it just for a bit of colour... The shiny red baby is a 'dim-SIM' and its a 5'6", been dipped in cherry glaze and then again dipped in chocolate,looks good enough to eat....last I heard Pete had only had a few surfs on the dim-SIM and still getting used to it but I am sure he'll be lovin it coz they are just too much fun not to...

\Well the Surfboard Swap Meet was a big success with hundreds of people coming along for a look at the very wide range of surfboards which were on display. There was also alot of people who brought a board or several alnong for sale or swap and quite a few people left with smiles on their faces but also quite a few left wondering, " what will I tell my wife when I get home with another board ?" I met alot of cool people and was really an enjoyable few hours and people were already asking me when will the next one be on ? I'd like to thank a few people who made this event possible - NIgel and Sharon from Da Bomb who had the venue and also alot of boards and did a great job of setting the venue up with shade and tarps, Alex Mal Club who supplied some of the tents and worked the BBQ, Swellnet who spred the word on their web-site and also my kids, Cain and Sirrah who designed and helped me distribute the flyers, thanks alot and I hope everyone enjoyed themselves as much as I did, see ya next time....,
Mark

Here's a few recent shots from the Sunshine Coast Daily and the little write up about the Surfboard Swap Meet. It's looking like being a fun day...

SURFBOARD SWAP MEET

Hope to see you all there, should be a fun day to check out alot of different surfboards and chat with fellow board lovers, any queries, just email me, thanx,
MP

Here is Mr. Steve Shearer with Derek Hynd, Rusty Miller and Richard Tognetti. Steve has been doing an article on Derek and doing some surfing on varied finless craft so I cant wait to read this article, it is bound to be interesting as DH is one of a kind and Steve can really write. Note the MORE the merrier tee Steve is wearing too....

Fins

They give us hold, drive and control . There is an endless supply of options available. Some like to have 1, 2, 3, 4 or even MORE on their boards. It is impossible to know everything about them but the better your knowledge, the better you can tune in your boards. They come in all shapes and sizes. Today with fin plugs, we can interchange and try just about any one or any combinations. Every surfer has his own preference and what works for one, doesnt mean it works for another. Trying different ones can be extremely fun. Changing them can allow 1 board to be way MORE versatile. Removing them is something all surfers should try at least once. Without them, surfing is extremely challenging. I love them and they all can go well in the right board, in the right place for the right surfer. I want MORE of them.....

SWINGIN IS FUN! - words by Surfer in pics, Alex ( Bonzie ) . Pics by Don Norris

The Swinger is one of those boards you just cant get your head around when you look at it, but believe me it is a huge performance advancement on the quad-fin semi-fish design. Its more complex than just two boards stuck together, its a clever combination of design elements and reconfiguring of volume. You have all of the flat planing area, volume up front, and quad fins for stacks of drive and glide over flat spots. You also have all of the curves and tail release to surf it hard and tight to the pocket, giving you the best blend of a semi-fish and a high performance board. This board absolutely loves long fast walls or a punchy point wave, but will keep its flow through weaker sections and smaller beach waves as well. I have been surfing this board 80-90% of the time since I've had it. I reckon anyone that likes surfing shorter wider quads who also like to surf tight to the pocket will absolutely love this board. I'll be getting this board copied exactly when it dies (god forbid), I haven't surfed any board like it.-
Bonzie

BOARD TESTING DAY

MORE Surfboards are having a morning where you can trial many different surfboards for free. It will be at Maroochydore on Australia Day. It will most likely be around Pierce Park but weather may force a move but a board will be there to notify any change of venue. We'll be there at 7.30 - 8.00 am and should be there til luch time depending on weather and waves. There'll be approximately a dozen boards of varying designs from mini-simmons, quads, semi-finless and hybrid shapes to trial so come on down and have a look and a chat about boards, it'll be a very relaxed and friendly morning, no ego's or bad attitudes are welcome, just a fun morning to get a few waves and talk surfboards, hope to see you there. Feel free to call me with any questions, cheers,
Mark

0405 475 026

Family ties

This MP3 was raffled to raise funds for North Shore Boardriders 41st Anniversary. My Dad ( Bob Pridmore ) was a founding member and my kids and I now make it 3 generations in the club.

Fat Bat Story in Telegraph...

The recent article in the Sydney Telegraph generated alot of interest in the Fat Bats and also for the MORE the merrier project.

Cl