Ep 34 - 'STAB in the dark' Season 11 - Surfboard Review

In this episode I sit down with Luke Howarth from Howie Shapes and Nick Blair from Joistik Surfboards to talk about what we observed in each board's performance submitted to 'STAB in the dark' - Season 11.

Shapers are often asked for their opinion of regarding different boards on 'STAB in the dark'.  Ethan Ewing is such a supremely talented surfer that demands a lot from his equipment.  

It was easy to see when a board would underperform or fail for Ethan, but why?  Why did a particular board fail at a point during a turn? Why did some boards transition between turns better than others?  Most importantly, which one did we think performed best?  

I have a lot of respect for Howie and Nick, so I really enjoyed the opportunity to hear their perspectives and share my own observations.  We discuss the influence of outlines, rockers and fin placement that we identified as the reason for each board's performance.

During our conversation we share some insights into the surfboard industry and as always have a good laugh.  Make no mistake this is not a fluff piece, and we are honest in our appraisals.

We also discuss possible ideas that we would like to see in future 'STAB in the dark' seasons, and I share an idea from co-host at large - Johnny 'Robbo' Robertson that might blow your mind!

After the last season of 'Stab in the dark' with Kelly Slater, I received many messages asking what we would shape for him?  What surfboard design characteristics would we implement?  Nick and Howie provide their answers as an extra conversation after the episode.

This was a fun episode to record but it may be one for the real surfboard nerds...?

Enjoy!