Nick

A sharp, entertaining board. There’s hardly any swallowtails in this Test, I suspect because the tail has gone a little out of the cut-down shortboard trend where a lot of designers are trying to keep area – and thus volume – right at the back end. But Jason has kept volume nicely under the chest here where it belongs and he knows how to get the swallow to feel more open-ended in turns, so it doesn’t just lock down into the same arc every time. It reacts fast and turns wherever you want. There’s something else here too, a real sturdiness in the rocker that you don’t fully notice until you’re riding the board. JS shapes for some real power surfers at the top end, so maybe that’s bleeding down into this little rocket.

Tai

When JS comes to Bali we go surfing every now and then. I’ve always wanted to get a magic little board off him. This one reminded me of the fast little boards he was shaping for Luke Egan as a kind of squashed-down, high-performance board. A bit thin for me, but very quick between turns, and having the planing width allowed you to get speed in flatter sections.

JS Industruies, Jason Stevenson

PH: (07) 5351 1742

WEB: www.surfshopsaustralia.com.au

EMAIL: coolumsurf@bigpond.net.au

Jason Stevenson
Gold Coast, QLD

JS’s call: “This was a 2009 small-wave innovation and since then it’s been our best-selling model worldwide. It came out of looking for a board that would ride in a high-performance style in surf that normally wouldn’t give you much of a chance. It has slightly fuller rails and low rocker through nose and tail to keep it gliding over flat spots in smaller conditions. You’d typically surf it in these expanded width measurements to preserve the floaty planing qualities, but maybe four inches shorter overall than your high-performance shortboard.”