Back in 2005 or so, after shaping a lot of my first designs and looking to branch out, I was looking for a San Diego specific, grovel-inspired shape, and I wanted to take it to the same high level of performance I always shoot for when crafting my designs. I knew I wanted a fuller round nose, more volume in the chest, A LOT of PIVOT and maneuverability, along with the ability to make really fat sections at a beachbreak reform or just high tide conditions in general.
Like any iterative process, the board’s evolution took a significant amount of time to become the craft that it is now. I wanted it to be a thruster setup; I wanted a chunky fish volume in the chest and tail pad area of the rail, but have it really sit up on the water in the fin area and respond to penetration, going rail to rail like a classic pro shape.
The question I needed to answer was: How do I make this thing a crowd beater, look different, and really perform for the younger generation that utilize high performance shapes, but want to expand their quiver as their needs change over time? The Double Bump Swallow is in my opinion (and other people have shared this): The fastest, most well-rounded thruster hybrid they ever surfed.
With a widepoint near center; a boxy, thinned out rail in the tail area; well-balanced hidden volume throughout; a classic California round tail; a slightly down rail, rounder pointed nose; and a steady, subtle, single to pronounced triple concave, with healthy V exit, this shape is for 3-8 foot faces at spots like OB jetty, New Break, PB Pier, Windansea, PB beach breaks at higher tides, small to medium Blacks, Scripps, and an assortment of North County spots like Ponto or Seaside. It oughta be called the San Diego but someone already did that!
This thing gains more and more lift and speed, and is the best backside roundhouse performing board I have ever felt and seems to go faster; getting on plane like there’s a motor in the fins. Flat sections? Don’t worry. It banks off white water and just glides to the next section without needing your feet shuffling around.
With a forward setpoint on the front fins, a shallow mild curved swallow tail, and a unique proprietary sharp double bump layout just behind the front fins, this slick curvy tail rocker kick and slight flat section just north of the hip area in the outline, works with the bottom curve simultaneously to deliver drive, responsiveness, and heaps of speed where other boards don’t on the waves around here; assuming you’re after this sort of concept – a true go-to all-around shortboard for most waves in San Diego in the 6-8 foot range.
And yes, it grovels if you want, with some extra foam left in it. But the perfect balance and pulled-in tail block, with the forgiving rail bevel, and contest-grade concave system I’ve incorporated into this shape have come together to form what I describe as a board with LAYERS to it – dynamic and almost limitless in ways that need to be experienced to understand.