Once again, I loved it! A few sacred craft reflections for anyone who cares to read ‘em…

I spent a lot of time at my booth but when I did run around the hall I was pretty amazed and sometimes even amused. As an industry it seems we are in a bit of a schizophrenic mood… in a good way, if that’s possible.

 So if I had brought a camera I’d show you everything from Peruvian rafts and every shape of wooden replica to modern "tech" stuff and tomo twinfin airplane wings with physic equations written all over em. There’d be a picture of me listening to wingnut explain his love of the longboard and her peculiarities. A photo of me stuck in my booth as people repeatedly walked up and tried to sell me something like canvas grocery bags or tell me about their failed romantic situations. There would be photos of long haired kids with Halloween-like goodies bags and huge smiles, people eating fair food corn dogs and expensive budweisers.

There were wicked glass jobs and also the clear sleeper beauties. i saw spencer kellog and spoke with him while he was strolling with hands behind his back around searching for these sneakers…he told me the airbrush and tints take away from the shape and really bug him. classic.

Just seeing all the craftsman (vs. salesmen) there and getting to see what they do is what makes going so f-ing great. Moonlight glassing in bonzerville was amazing as usual. They really set the bar the past few years and we owe them a thanks. I was stoked to see old friends jack sykes, john wegener, fletcher chouinard all showing off the beautiful work in completely different ways. And I have made new friends by attending these events like michel junod, ward coffey, Ashley Lloyd and paul from primo beer! Good times. And the many after parties that spun off into the night…. Tequila hangovers and sleeping in my car by the railroad tracks next to the Patagonia house….thanks fletch, I think. Ha.

I shared a booth with ryk kluver who has been making the tom blake style boards for years and storing them across the beams of his living room. It was fun to see him get to show them off and finally feel part of a comraderie of builders instead of hiding his work hostage in the hills of Cayucos.

There were the odd far east made boards too…and I am just not sure what is so sacred about having boards made overseas and diesel-ing them across the pacific in cargo ships for maximum profit and, sometimes, minimum quality. Are they still sacred craft? Up to the customer to decide I guess…

In any case, this show represented a real surfboard diversity and the people trying to make in the business and I was stoked to be a prt of it. all in all, it was inspiring as hell. So a big thanks to scott for doing this. Where else can you have access to so many great craftsmen and design twiddlers and surf legends?