The board is finished! The last bit of sanding was completed, a few coats of acrylic added, a wax and a shine, and Voila! The board came out really well, weighing in at 14lbs flat it isn’t the lightest board ever, but for the shape and thickness it isn’t bad. The final measurements are 6’1″ long, 22 3/8″ wide, 14″ at the tail, 19″ tail (1′ from back), 18 1/2″ nose (1′ from tip), and 2 7/8″ thick. Really hulled out all the way through the tail, with knifey rails and a flat-bottom channel.

Visually, the first impression spells “fast”. It looks so sleek without fins, the deep channel, and the near-flat top deck. The threaded inserts won’t be drilled out until I see the need, or until there is something to attach. The first piece to be added is the “tunnel fin”. I’ve always been curious about the characteristics of such a fin, and now I will try it. The pictures below show the final glassing of the fin. I will sand and hot coat it tomorrow, and then give it a spin.

I took the board out for the maiden voyage this evening, and it was sooo much fun! I only got a dozen or so waves on it, but they were nice waist high peelers.

First impression: Fast. And fun.

The board was quite difficult to maneuver  at first, it seemed to be locked in pretty well and I found it really hard to turn. By the second wave that changed. This is the widest tail I’ve ever surfed, so that was an adjustment. Once I figured that out it went really well. The board sticks in the face of the wave really well, and in full control.  If weight is transferred forward, the board takes off and becomes far more loose, allowing 180′s, 360′s, side-sliding, and many more fun things. I am really impressed how well the channel “bit” into the water, I tried sliding out of a couple waves at the end which resulted in me burying the rail and carving really hard rather than sliding the tail sideways. I did manage a few 180′s and 360′s, and am looking forward to more.

Martijn.