Derek,
The piece at issue focuses on Skip's big boards/gliders and traces through their inception and heritage to their present use. Key elements discussed are their unique range of use both in performance and geography, their niche appeal and their connection to place/time. If you'd be willing I would love to receive your thoughts on a few key questions:-What do these long craft allow that is unique?
-What are the fundamental elements of their ride?
-Negatives at play in their use?
-Anecdotes about use at JBay, other locales?
-Reference to the big board (via Pavel?) used in Litmus, as it is one of the only traceable connection points in surf film.
I appreciate any consideration you might give and hope all is well in your pursuits.
Best,
pXs
1. "Glide".
2. "Glide, entry speed, low line drive, high line drive"
3. "None. Ridden the way Skip appreciates it, the trim of the gannet is the thing closest to mind. It's a matter of offering respect to the man with every wave ridden. Skip builds subtle curves and wings depending on a surfer's needs and the predominant wave in mind.
I was at Malibu last summer in the crowd. I thought one surfer stood out. She wasn't a notably skilled surfer in going up and down, indeed, to some she would have looked like a kook, but the way she held crouched poise from go to whoa, even in the pull out, seemed ideal treatment for the board she was riding. She wasn't on a Skip butthe concept was similar. The way she offered less right there was perfect".
4. "Well, you know, every surfer has differing appreciations. The Litmus Fish really liked the spear takeoff, no paddle takeoff, fast paddle takeoff...it was all about controlled speed entries. That 5'8" liked the wave the bigger it got. I learnt another side of surfing on that old friend ala glide etc. That's not to say there hadn't been other revelations on other boards. Particularly - the key of Campbell Brothers rail fins in accelerating layback snaps at JBay in the late 80's...not unlike the feeling of Al Merrick's 6'4" bump tail of around 1987. Put the right board in the right wave and any surfer feels touches of magic".
5. "There's not much reference between Skip and the big board in Litmus. That was a 9'9" Brewer built for Roger Erickson around 1986. It was his backup board. What it offered though was the chance for a small guy to get used to a big man's gun. I mean, if ever a board was perfectly built for a man mountain like Roger, this was it. It had all the attributes of entry speed and glide, only stepped up for serious surf. The connection it brought was in
bringing together day long sessions of starting on big boards and ending on small boards.
In order to keep the power on ala Skip Frye, this is the gig. Skip has thrived on it for many a year. Pavel's yellow board from Glass Love was along the same line. Rich seems to be the scream feeder between Lis and Frye. What he's done in evolving or assassinating the soul of Fish surfing in the past 10 years is open to debate. Certainly, he ramped up the vibe way beyond Skip's vision. Rich's yellow 11'4" was my interpretation of Skip's Fish Simmons.
Rich was asked to pull the width right in so it was more of an straight line elephant gun. I ripped the back fin out of an old McTavish Bluebird. The result was something that I don't think has been replicated. When I first rode it I thought I'd achieved a milestone of stupid direction...worst board I'd ever ridden. All it meant though was how badly I needed to change. In the next 6 months it became the best all round board, 6" to 10 feet, that I'd ever owned. One angled drop on a big wedging day one winter had me thinking on the way down that not one bit of fin was in the water and how the speed was building because of it. It was all about the rail, flat chat. Maybe a seed of finless started then. Hacked all the fins off it a few years later".
(I have a shot a big yella from Bells...finless...if you would like).
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