Channel Islands Surf Board Demo Saturday June 30th

Channel Islands is offering surfers a chance to try out all their latest boards Saturday, June 30th at Zuma Beach.  Make sure you bring your ID.  We carry a great selection of CI boards, including the Al Merrick shapes.  We just got in a bunch of Kelly Slater’s Semi Pros, A few Fred Rubbles, Neck Beards and the Sperm Whale (info on those below).  Hope you can make it out!

The Fred Rubble is actually quite a bit different than other shortboards. It has a lower entry rocker and a wider outline. It has more volume than a Proton, but it isn’t really short and chunky like a Dumpster Diver. It’s just a fun board for waves from waist high to a little over head. Ride yours two inches shorter than your standard shortboard and 1/4 inch wider.

After a year of tinkering with different concepts, Dane Reynolds launches the Neck Beard, his favorite free-surf board. No longer working to hide volume from the judges like with the Dumpster Diver, Dane is letting it all hang out with a wider nose and chop tail. With light single concave and vee out the back, this board is faster down the line, has increased rail-to-rail transition, and is more stable when landing airs. Super user-friendly, this is the board Dane grabs when its 1-foot to head-high.

The 2012 Neckbeard tail is taken directly from Dane’s hand-drawn template. Dane kept the overall generous plan-shape to provide a skatey feel but the tail refinement allows for slightly more back foot sensitivity. Light single concave and vee out the back, increased rail-to-rail transition and wider through the nose and tail.

Dane rides the Neck Beard as a tri-fin and as a quad for speed. Comes with a five fin setup to get the best of both worlds. If you are a fan of the Dumpster Diver, then definitely grow out your Neck Beard. Order yours 4 to 6 inches shorter than your height.

Fine-tuned during the course of Kelly’s 2011 campaign, the Semi-Pro 12 comes from Kelly’s wider forward outline which incorporates a 12” nose. The main purpose of this design change was to allow for more volume which translates to easier paddling and wave catching while still accommodating a short rail for Kelly’s signature arcs… if you can pull ‘em off!

Put Dane in a blue room with a block of foam, throw out the measuring tools, freehand the outline, eyeball your fin placement, and you have the ingredients for something completely different from CI. While the “Sperm Whale” is not for everyone, those with some wave knowledge and a penchant for challenge can find an entirely different groove.