Tuesday, July 31, 2012

People Doing Their Job



There always seems to be a lot of talk in certain circles about what makes a real "surf shop."  Someone over there will say that some place is not a surf shop because they don't have enough boards.  Someone over here will say they have enough boards, but they're all the wrong boards.  That guy over there will point out all the t-shirts and handbags that place sells.  That other guy will swear that the guy behind the counter can't surf worth shit. Who knows. There is knowledge out there.  And there is need.  And wherever you get your board is where you got your board.  Wherever you buy your wax... same-o.  Frankly all you can do is walk into a place, be taken seriously and hope to be inspired by something up someone's sleeve.  I don't know anything about anything.  I surf on surfboards and sometimes with my body and every now and then on a mat and I've been doing all that not since I was a kid but at least since I was legally able to make my own decisions about how I spend my time.  There are a lot of people who know a boatload more than me about surfboards.  Best thing to do is to take the long view.  Know that while I'm alive I'll be in and out of the water and maybe by some point I'll have some idea about how it all works.  For now, I am happy to stumble around, relishing opportunities good people offer up.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Bit late to catch this - enjoy your blog by the by...
Seems you're contemplating a new board and possibly a Jim Phillips copy of "Da Cat".
Firstly, there's nothing more fun - when not surfing - than walking into a shop and seeing a new board that blows your dress up (except, of course, having a custom from someone you admire and actually got to talk to about what they are doing for you). But we're talking "off the rack" here.
Hold it under your arm - How's it feel? Still blowing the dress up? At least tingling your shorts? Lay it on the floor and take a look - walk around it. Pick it up by the tail, bottom up , and sight down the length and check the bottom out...some "V"?, concave?, single to double concave? Run your hand over it, down the rails...
Get my drift... Like surfing, it's a dance - and you're picking a partner for that dance that you don't want stepping on your toes.

Might add - Jim Phillips is a very good shaper - just ask him ( note the last minute or 2 of the vid. and any other vid/interview he's done) and he does great copies of other people's designs (never had an original himself). Seriously, he is a good shaper though.
The Noll/Dora "Da Cat" was, for the most part, a promo scam at the tail end of the longboard era to cash in on Dora's "mystique" and rumor was that Dora himself didn't like the ride but he got them free so he used them.
Ya pays ya money - ya takes ya chances...
Enjoy the dance...

EditorialBoard said...

Yeah, you know that Cat copy is a weird thing to want. obviously had it worked gangbusters it would have caught on or something. But I when I walked in and saw it, then held it and fondled it and did all that stuff, it just felt weird enough. It'll certainly work, and something about the outline, the feel and the inherent bizarre qualities of it just make it feel less standard. Like I'm buying an experiment. And that feels better than just buying a new board. I don't know how to explain it. It has that smell of a used board or something. But definitely a tactile decision. Or somewhere between tactile and pure fancy. Gotta have romance.

Anonymous said...

A little romance with your dance?
Somewhere between tactile and pure fancy?
When I worked in a shop years ago, you're at where I knew I had a sale - and I didn't have to do or say much at all. Just watched the dance...SOLD!
Good luck with it and post a ride report.
Anon 1
This reminds me of Little Feat's "Romance Dance" circa mid '70's - when Lowell George was still around.

Toddy said...

Um. Yeah. All that.

Being a sucker is the new Brooklyn, I guess.