Blazer

GENERAL GOAL | THEME OF THE BOARD:

An all round board that works in all conditions whether it's flat, side wind or mush.

WAVE TYPE | SIZE IT'S WORKING BEST:

All waves. From just under waist high up to head and a half.

MANEUVERS IT DOES BEST:

Nose riding, carves and cutbacks. 

SKILL LEVEL IT'S BEST FOR:

Novice to Pro. 

PADDLE POWER:

SPEED: Excellent.

DIRECTIONAL CONTROL: Excellent.

OVER WHITE WATER: Better than excellent.

WAVE CATCHING ABILITY: Too easy. 

WHAT YOU THOUGHT OF WHEN YOU DESIGNED IT?:

We had a large number of requests for a board that did a bit of everything. People were asking for the paddle power, glide and nose riding in one board.

WHAT IT POSSIBLY COMPROMISES ON THEN?:

It does just about everything, but one excels in one specific style of riding. 

OUTLINE:

Full wide longboard style nose, wide point forward, clean outline into a relatively pulled in rounded pin. The wide nose gets up on the plane really early with minimal effort, with all that area you can easily step forward and hang on the nose, the clean outline maintains good speed down the line and the narrower tail means it still does a decent turn in the pocket. 

RAILS:

Full shoulder in the standing area and forward, but pinched down so they are quite low, beveled bottom edge up front, blending into a low apex mid rail, then the typical hard edge in the tail with reduced volume in the shoulder. The full shoulder in the standing area is to get the deck flatter for comfort, but with the pinched low rail it makes it easier to sink the rail into a turn and it also adds to paddling and stationary stability as the rails are submerged below the waterline. With the wide nose up front it can get in the way on the way down after a reo or snap, so the bevel lifts the front rail out of the water reducing the chance of a rail grab. The hard edge in the tail offers plenty of squirt and release for performance surfing, with the rail being really low volume in the tail it buries easily and slices through the water.

ROCKER:

Performance tail, flatter nose. The flatter nose has good carry and speed when forward, great for nose riding and paddle power. The tail rocker is identical to a high performance model, so off the tail it still delivers a decent turn. 

BOTTOM:

Flat nose blending to a single concave. The flat nose helps paddle speed as well as helps keep the front rail out of the water reducing catching in comparison to a single all the way. The single kicks in under the front foot and goes right out the tail, it helps to get the board on rail quicker and easier, as well as engaging the rail better on the drops. 

DECK:

Flat standing area, rolled tail. Flat in the standing area for comfort, then rolled under the back foot to get the rail volume reduced.

FINS:

2+1. This fin set up works well with the longboard theme, the single offers good stability while walking, and good direction while on the nose. The side bites come in handy when you want to rip some turns.

FINAL STATEMENT:

I would say this is the board to have if you don’t get out much or you're just getting into the surf and still haven’t figured out what style of board or surfing you really want to do. Or if you’re just looking for a reliable all rounder, it's a surprisingly high performance board considering it can be nose ridden well.