Swedish Designer “Reinvents” The Surfboard
June 19, 2009 – 11:13 pm PT by MeTags: Abba, Ikea, Meyerhoffer, Volvo —
I like Swedish stuff: ABBA, Volvo, Swedish Fish candy, and the company that furnished my home, Ikea.
What’s not to like about ABBA? A lot of people bad mouth them but you know they secretly dance at home in their underwear to “Dancing Queen” Also, I don’t know a single person who doesn’t have at least one thing from Ikea in their home, not one. Plus, why wouldn’t you like delicious candy and safe cars?
Well a Swede living in the Bay Area has developed a new style of surfboard that is going to form a lot of people’s opinions about Swedish innovations:
The Swedish designer responsible for Apple’s first translucent laptop has gone outside the box again to deliver what he calls his best - and most personal - product to date: a makeover of the classic long board.
Meyerhoffer believes that his reinvention will give surfers a more intimate, versatile ride, as long as they get past that shape.
“Surfers, I would say half of them, are really conservative,” Meyerhoffer says on an overcast morning at Montara State Beach, a few blocks from his home and design studio. “You have to get to the ocean, paddle out, get to the right spot, then when you ride your wave, it’s like ‘1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7,’ and your wave is done.
“You don’t really want to miss a wave, so there’s a certain amount of people who are comfortable with what they ride and don’t really get to the point where they want to experiment.”
He’s worked for Bay Area companies Ideo and Apple and developed innovations in both sports and technology, from wraparound ski goggles to windsurfing sails to the eMate, an Apple product that was the first to use a translucent plastic case.
Many designers add. Meyerhoffer took away. He cut out the sides, creating a distinct waist and hip that extended the contours - and benefits - of a short board. He tapered the tail to increase speed, but kept its length to balance the weight up front. There, the width remains to make nose-riding possible.
The result is an unexpectedly fast and fun hybrid, according to some of the sport’s most-recognized names. It glides like a long board, turns like a short board. It is light and easy to paddle.
“I was pleasantly surprised,” said Maverick’s surfer Peter Mel. “I didn’t know how good it would feel for how odd it looks. It just had a real nice flow to it.”
One Response to “Swedish Designer “Reinvents” The Surfboard”
That gay photo is inspiration for my halloween costume
By Jimmy Woods on Jun 20, 2009