Breaks Selection

2009-11-05T14:07:00.000-08:00

Chris and His Chocolate Bar
The second shape I've done for Chris. A good design process is iterative so I love to have the opportunity to work with customers more than once:

2009-11-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

It's Not Flat

2009-10-31T15:04:00.000-07:00

The Clairemont Horror
or alternatively, Dreams in the Witch Bay...

It's with the last vestige of will that I cling to coherence and recount that which on this day, All Saints Eve in the ninth year of the third millennium after Christ, has blasted my shaper sanity.

My ordeal began only hours ago. It was just mid day and I was feverishly at work in my study pouring over the arcane tomb of surfboard design lore known only as the Hydrodynamicon.

The parlor clock struck it's twelfth note. At first quite faintly, and seemingly from nowhere, an alien chorus of thin, monotone flutes and pulsing drums called to me. I was compelled out the back of the house in pursuit of these discordant timbres. The sound grew louder in my skull as it drew me up the canyon where the slopes rise wild and where thin brooklets trickle without having ever caught the glint of sunlight.

At an indeterminate point, the chaparral thinned and I reached the crest of an unknown mesa. All was then silent and before me in a blasted clearing lay the crumbling edifices of a dead society's shaping bay. Relics of their mad quest for the source lay cast aside in weeds and brambles.

What fervor drove this cult and what became of them? What path am I on with my own investigation into the wave riding occult and what fate awaits me on this shaping quest? The horror...

- All quotations from the writtings of H.P. Lovecraft -

"It is a mistake to fancy that horror is associated inextricably with darkness, silence, and solitude. I found it in the glare of mid-afternoon"

"Likewise are there dread survivals of things older and more potent than man; things that have blasphemously straggled down through the aeons to ages never meant for them; monstrous entities that have lain sleeping endlessly"

"Certainly, the terror of a deserted house swells in geometrical rather than arithmetical progression"

There were geometrical forms for which an Euclid could scarcely find a name"

"Non-Euclidean calculus and quantum physics are enough to stretch any brain; and when one mixes them with folklore, and tries to trace a strange background of multi-dimensional reality behind the ghoulish hints of the Gothic tales and the wild whispers of the chimney-corner, one can hardly expect to be wholly free from mental tension."

"And they say that the Terrible Old Man talks to these bottles, addressing them by such names as Jack, Scar-Face, Long Tom, Spanish Joe, Peters, and Mate Ellis"

"What tormented me most was my momentary inability to feel that my surroundings were a dream"

"Never was a sane man more dangerously close to the arcana of basic entity...

...never was an organic brain nearer to utter annihilation in the chaos that transcends form and force and symmetry."

"Even the sunlight assumed a supernal glamour, as if some special atmosphere or exhalation mantled the whole region."

"The Old Ones were, the Old Ones are, and the Old Ones shall be. Not in the spaces we know, but between them, They walk serene and primal, undimensioned and to us unseen."

"All these things, however, the Elder Ones only may decide; and meanwhile the morning mist still comes up by that lonely vertiginous peak with the steep ancient house"

"I now feel gnawing at my vitals that dark terror which will never leave me till I, too, am at rest; "accidentally" or otherwise."

2009-10-30T15:15:00.000-07:00

Knocking it Out
Finally getting around to putting the "barn doors" in on the shaping bay:

2009-10-29T11:51:00.000-07:00

5'11" Tern for Ken
The Tern is the Breaks Selection take on the San Diego classic fish design. This one is for my old buddy Ken:

2009-10-26T11:50:00.001-07:00

2009-10-25T15:28:00.000-07:00

Torrey Pines

2009-10-23T15:55:00.000-07:00

Footsteps in the Dark
I've had the Isley Brothers sample looping through my brain today. Quiet clear Autumn morning vibes and some surf to start things off. "It was a good day"...

2009-10-22T18:29:00.000-07:00

On Deck
Just needs the fins marked:

2009-10-21T08:38:00.000-07:00

Dynamic Entry
The combination of high tide and swell made it pretty exciting getting in and out of the water the last couple of mornings:

2009-10-20T10:33:00.000-07:00

Hunt's in Town
A few photos from Sunday. Slide into liquid:

I was impressed by the surfing Hunt did in less than stellar conditions. Making lemonade:

Hunt pulls into a mush-bomber, Lucy doggie-paddles on the inside:

Good to see you man! Hope we have a few more good sessions before you head out.

2009-10-19T08:47:00.000-07:00

The Kite
A Kite in action in one of the local canyons:

On the topic of looking to nature, earlier this year I was inspired by this rare bird of prey to create a new board design. The Kite is a hunter but smaller and more dynamic in its flight than a full on raptor. It's like a fusion of a swallow and a hawk and is totally breath taking to watch in flight.

With this concept in mind, I wanted to take a typical high performance shortboard blank (hawk analogy) and see what I could work out of it to bring some fish flavors (swallow analogy) to it:

I retained the blank's natural rocker but gave it a shorter length and squeezed in a wider and fuller template, particularly in the tail:

I've been testing the shape for the last couple of months and am really pleased with the design. It's my go-to board for high quality surf to just overhead in size. The extra planing surface in the tail gives it lots of speed along the lines of a more classic fish shape. The increased rocker and decreased volume up front makes it very responsive in quality surf. The extra width keeps in moving for less than optimal days.

I'm 5'11", 175lbs and with its dimensions (5'9" x 19.5" x 2.5") it goes really nicely for me. I'm jazzed on this design. Get in touch if you're interested in working with me on a shape for yourself like this.

2009-10-18T16:05:00.000-07:00

Lucy, Egg Hound
Cat got your tongue? What's that in your mouth Lucy?:

A real bird dog, she'd not even left a mark on the skin of the hardboiled egg. It's all yours now Luch. Mmmm.... yum:

Lucy turns three today. Still quite the puppy though! There's the idea that a year translates to seven dog years. We've also been told the first two years for a dog are worth twelve dog years and each year after is worth four. Either way, Lucy acts about like a hyper 9 year old kid, not a twenty-something. Happy birthday Lucy!

2009-10-16T10:16:00.000-07:00

"Those who look for the laws of Nature as a support for their new works collaborate with the creator."
-Gaudi

Drip Castle as Cathedral? Gaudi's La Sagrada Familia, Barcellona.

I'm not "collaborating" at Gaudi's level yet but I've always looked to nature for inspiration in my creative projects. As far as this master builder is concerned, I'm fascinated by his use of catenary arches to create natural, flowing curves:

Mrs. Breaks Selection under catenary arches at Gaudi's Park Guell, Barcellona

Gaudi would create inverse mock ups of his structures using networks of catenaries to help him visualize the final outcome:

I'm just using a single cord, but I've taken advantage of this catenary concept to create template curves. I'll do a seperate post about that once I shoot a few few photos.

2009-10-15T15:57:00.000-07:00

South Peak Lefts
There were a few good ones this AM:

2009-10-13T10:44:00.000-07:00

Howling
A wicked south wind was on it this morning:

2009-10-10T17:31:00.000-07:00

Wow... Big "Tings"...

Guess who's openning up shop?

2009-10-09T09:26:00.000-07:00

Sacred Craft

Looking forward to seeing all sorts of neat wave riding vehicles tomorrow. Who else is going? See you there...

2009-10-08T14:50:00.000-07:00

The Right
This inside wave was doing it's thing a couple weeks back:

2009-10-05T17:24:00.000-07:00

Fun Slopey Surf
The water's still real nice but the air was so chilly this morning that I felt like I had pneumonia after running home from the beach:

2009-10-01T20:58:00.000-07:00

Fightertown, USA
It's October and today's mild santa ana weather seemed to have brought the Blue Angeles with it. Crispy nights, warm dry days and the roar of high performance military aircraft. Pretty classic early Fall vibes for around here. Apparently Casa Breaks Selection is one of the way points the Blue Angeles are using on their routine cause #5 pulled this earsplitting turn directly overhead this this afternoon:

2009-09-29T20:01:00.000-07:00

Where's the Unicorn?
It's been so long since we've had rain, Lucy was confused by the big fat drops that fell for a few minutes this evening:

2009-09-28T14:11:00.000-07:00

Chronicle of the Ebb and Flow
Past, present and future all in your pocket:

2009-09-26T10:29:00.000-07:00

Back to the Future
I've really been enjoying the Board Collector blog and I was interested in getting in touch with Damion (aka the Board Collector himself) to get some ideas in regards to plan shape dimensions for boards from the "Innovation Period". Check out the insane post he put up in regard to my inquiry. Very stoked on his generosity with breaking out his 5'10.5" Lazer Zap dimensions in such a slick and detailed way as well as for sharing some insight on the design. Thanks Damion!

2009-09-22T08:15:00.000-07:00

Surfy Labor
Mrs. Breaks Selection has been enjoying her Surfy Surfy tee. You can get that special someone in your life their own right here.