Dyadic Muse Hawaii

Photo above taken by Ryan Harrah (@ryhno_harrah)

It is often hard to get quantifiable data on the way surfers view surfboards. I usually get short summation feedback that is condensed in a quick conversation. It is sometimes hard to get in depth feedback from others on the surfboards they ride. Too often getting wrapped up in my own ideas, I’ve tried to get better at asking the right questions that best let people convey their thoughts and ideas. Building good surfboards often comes down to the practice of listening intently. As a surfboard shaper, much of my time is spent obsessing and analyzing what I feel when I’m surfing. A practice that is now almost subconscious. Trying to put words to what I experience on the surfboards I build or ride from others so that I can learn.

A big part of continuing to learn more about surfboards has come from building surfboards for Jimmy Thompson. I started building him some surfboards in the summer of 2021. What got me most excited about building surfboards for Jimmy was his interest in the North Shore of Oahu and wanting to surf large waves on surfboards with two fins. Both from the East Coast and our mindsets aligned, a good amount of my favorite surfboards I’ve built have been the ones I built for him. We surf often together and that has helped me learn how to make surfboards that compliment a person’s specific body movements. As well as, what somebody wants to feel while surfing. Most of the feedback I get from Jimmy, I’m lucky enough to get in real time. Describing the memory of an experience is ill defined to the comparison of watching that experience while it is taking place.

In the winter of 2021/2022, we both learned a lot about what worked and what didn’t for the quiver of surfboards I built him for the North Shore of Oahu. The main underlying factor I found to be present was most of the surfboards were too wide for the way that Jimmy surfs. The width of the surfboards were dulling down some factors that make his surfing unique and fun to watch. They masked the fast twitch movements. Slightly delayed, the surfboards were not moving as fast as Jimmy could. There were still some magic moments on these handful of surfboards and Jimmy surfed amazingly (above pictured is from that winter on a 6’ 10” x 19 1/2” x 2 9/16” Ordainer), but there were plenty ways to improve. Exciting for me as I had another 6 months to work on the next winter’s batch of surfboards.

The summer and fall of 2022 was spent working on longer rail lines, absurdly thin tails coupled with channels, and surfboards no wider than 18 1/4”. The few clips below filmed in Portugal of October, 2022 are representative of that. He had the opportunity to travel for waves at a few different locations before Hawaii, giving the opportunity to test boards in places other than California (a stark contrast in boards built for Hawaii versus California).

With the 2022/23 winter season coming, I approached Jimmy with an experiment I thought he would be psyched on. I gave Jimmy a journal for him to write several paragraphs on each surfboard he wanted to have me build for his winter on Oahu. Less concerned on aesthetics, I told him to give me a length and describe how he imagined surfing each board and what he wanted to feel when surfing. It was then intended that Jimmy would amass data in his journal of his experiences on these surfboards over the entire winter and spring. I thought that a mass of qualitative data would be a way of bringing more intentionality into how I approached surfboard building. I knew I would learn a ton from him as I’m impressed by how he processes information, especially related to surfing. I’d also been wanting to test out several hypotheses for surfboards in bigger waves. With a way to document how these hypotheses and thought processes played out, we’d both get to learn and it’d hopefully lead to better surfboards.

Jimmy is a great artist and that is seen on many of his surfboards he rides. The work of his alcohol based paints glassed underneath. He painted the batch of winter surfboards and was able to develop his first impressions pre/post glass on these several surfboards.

Before he would make it to Hawaii, he’d have written about his ideal surfboards, pre/post glass impressions, and anticipated wave heights capable on each. The idea was that in this journal, Jimmy would be writing entries in the future after each surf on Oahu about what he had experienced with a particular surfboard. Highlighting good and bad. The question was would the hypotheses hold true over time. Anyone that surfs knows that views on a particular surfboard shifts with time. What was once bad, we can grow to enjoy or vice versa. A batch comprised of 8 surfboards. All of two fin configuration (including the guns) ranging from 5’ 10” to 9’ 6”.

At first, I was planning on just comprising data for data’s sake with the first Dyadic Muse film based around this goal. It felt a stale ending sitting on all of this unused data. Midway through the winter season, the idea of summation slowly came together.

The final piece is that I was to build Jimmy one surfboard based on my reading of his journal and consistent conversation over the 5 months of his time on Oahu. Usually I build a surfboard for someone based off a 30 minute conversation. This surfboard of summation was based off of hours of conversation and mulling through Jimmy’s journal. Both of us back in San Clemente, I wanted to be present for his first session on this qualitatively built board. I felt an unfamiliar feeling of nervous excitement. Similar to when I first started building surfboards. Trying something new without having an inkling to the results. I watched from the beach and hoped the board somewhat worked. It did, but that’s enough for now.

I’m looking forward to sharing this project in the form of the first Dyadic Muse film. Currently working on and releasing later this summer. Also, some more things to keep occupied in between.

It’s tough to encapsulate someone’s experience in the water so I thought this a way toward accomplishing that. All based around staying in the mindset of constant learning.

Image below is Jimmy at Pipe this winter (2022/23). Compare to top image of previous winter (2021/22).

Photo taken by Shane Grace (@shane_grace)

Coming