SHAPING THE FEELING

I’ve always shaped boards for the feeling—speed, flow, connection. It’s not about gimmicks or trends. It’s about creating something that moves the way I want it to, responds the way I expect it to, and most importantly, makes surfing feel good.

I started shaping because it was in my family, but I stuck with it because I wanted to design boards that fit my own criteria. Something user-friendly but still able to be pushed hard. A board that carries speed, has drive, and lets you surf with freedom.

Blending the Past with the Present

A lot of my designs are influenced by the boards I grew up on—single fins, twin fins, classic outlines—but I’m always refining, tweaking, and testing new ideas. The Duo came from that mindset. I’d been thinking about it for a while before I shaped the first one. It was an experiment, but straight away, it felt good. It blended the deep drive of a single fin with the turbo of a twin. Over time, I’ve played around with fin placement, tail shapes, and rail volume, but I always come back to the same principle: simple is best.

Sometimes, I’ll take a board out, make a tweak on the beach, surf it again, and feel the difference immediately. Other times, I’ll go through five or six variations before realising the first one was actually the best. That’s just part of the process.

Handshaped, Built to Last

These days, most boards are shaped by machines, but I’ve always believed in doing it by hand. A shaper needs to train their eye, use their hands, and feel the curves. If you rely too much on machines, you lose that connection.

Every board I make is shaped, glassed, and finished using quality Australian materials. I work with people I trust—Taka and his team at Sun Glass Glassing, Steve and Tracey at Australian Fin Co, and Burford for their long-lasting blanks. I don’t do mass production. I focus on quality over quantity, making sure every board that leaves the bay is dialed in and built to last.

Surfing for the Purest Feeling

For me, surfing isn’t about chasing trends. It’s about flow, speed, and the pure joy of riding waves. Whether it’s the Duo, the Stingfish, or whatever design I’m experimenting with next, every board I shape is about enhancing that experience.

At the end of the day, performance is nothing without glide. If a board makes you want to surf more, I know I’ve done my job.