Shaping Surfboards

June 1979

Being interested in everything about surfing, I wanted to shape my own surfboard. It's easy to make a surfboard but it's difficult to make a surfboard that works. I knew good surfboard shapers and picked up the basics. All the shaping was done by hand. A slow process, but harder to make a big mistake.
In the background is the organic garden and greenhouse of flowering plants. A simple life, long gone.

Some time later, the board is shaped and ready to go to the fiberglass shop.

The finished board turned out to be a couple inches shorter than I wanted, but not a major issue because the board was a little thicker than was fashionable at the time. I like short boards, but being 6'2" tall, I need a little volume for steeper waves.
I rode the board a lot and learned a lot about shaping surfboards.