Kneeboard Surfing USA Community Forum

I was watching 'know and Then' again last night the bit I realy enjoy is Peter Crawford doing the Pub squash advert, my question is what is the board he is riding it looks like a Stinger with a step in the bottom a bit like an Apia Stinger any info on size etc or if it still exists would be interestng as his surfing on it is amazing!
Stu.

Stu

This board wasn't the board Peter was riding in the advert..but it shows a typical Sydney Slab which PC designed and tested exclusively

No outline breaks (typical stinger) but he did experiment with eliptical tail steps (you can see it behind the finbox) which gave variable tail lift and was an evolutionary concept of the flextail

PC typically rode 5' 6" X 22" X 13" half-round tail (noses around 20" wide with 18" tails at 12" up and back respectively)

[albumimg]15495[/albumimg]

This board shaped by Chris Crozier

hart

Brucey-
You're a big guy like me... what size board where you riding back then? And did you need a "gun", or did you just slide the fin to and fro as the surf changed?

EEEEEEEQQQQQQQQQQQQ!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was a little lighter in the 70's (170lbs instead of 200 now) but still rode nothing longer than 5' 8" (no flippers)

In 1978 I had Chris shape me a new 5' 10" (outrageously long for the time) but with the straight tail rockers of the era..it went terribly straight

Modern kneeboard lengths (that some guys utilise today) are distinctly proportionate to curve (bottom, planshape and deckline curve)

Without curve, length in kneeboards is definitely limited



Guns? Peter was adament that his boards would surf from 2 foot to 10 (and they did)

But as you say..it was due to the amount of adjustment available in the PC 14" finbox and the fact Crawford had 100 different fins for each and every type and size of wave

hart

Many thanks Bruce
you are a mine of information
After reading some of the other posts on slabs and possibly the demise of them was contest related did the the slab in its original state reach its zenith before the untimly deaths of PC and Crozier as the style of surfing I much prefure as its all flow and glide and alot less hacking and slashing although some of the moves PC made where more than impresive!, also with new meterials being much lighter what if any improvments would this have made.
I hope this post only brings good memorys
Stu.

stu wrote:
After reading some of the other posts on slabs and possibly the demise of them was contest related did the the slab in its original state reach its zenith before the untimly deaths of PC and Crozier

Reach its zenith in my opinion (and many others) yes it did

PC was the ultimate contest surfer. His main rival of the time was Narrabeen's Steve Artis who not long ago on KSUSA mentioned Crawford was one of the most successful contest SURFERS ever..full stop

In my view, the butt-wiggling contest style that started to develop by the early-mid eighties was a direct result of other surfers trying to find ways to beat the drive and rail-foil style surfing of the slab (particularly in small, crap waves)..and hence the kneeboard half-turn, flat manouvre was born

Noteable exceptions being Novakov, Farrer and Gaynon who all originally cut their teeth on Crozier's shapes

I hope this post only brings good memorys
Stu.

Yes mate..it does, with thanks

hart

Hart, are the templates for these boards still around? If so, would you be interested in shaping a modern version but set up as a 5 fin Bonzer?

I dig Crawfords style of kneeboarding. Butt wagging not so much.

wino, yeah..they're still around. Russell Crozier (Chris' brother) gave them to me when Chris passed

I actually use modern replicas of them to shape the recent work of mine that you may have seen

So apart from contemporary noses (around 17" wide instead of 20") and tails that are tucked into pinnies or wings..modern surfers like Simon Farrer are actually riding Crozier-templated boards NOW

Just like guys like Mark Richards did during his 4 World Titles

regards

hart

Just to keep my sweep alive. Thanks Hart!

I will be contacting you via the proper channels in the future.

I like your taste in music Hart, my fav Floyd track

Len, You're right! Hart does have excellent taste in music. Time is epic, but very mainstream. I'm partial to "Echoes" myself. Even though it has no lyrics, it's instrumentals are perfect listening going for a surf session!

WHAT NOT A TROWT

MB

Whatever negative energy you got..save it for another thread, huh

This is about PC..don't corrupt it



hart

VERY TRUE BRUCE
THIS THREAD IS ABOUT PC AND WAS GETTING SIDE TRACKED.
NOT MUSICAL TASTES AND BLOWING SMOKE.
WAS'NT BEING NEGATIVE WITH MY COMMENT.

In Line with that, PC, Music and Pink Floyd and blowing smoke....
The first time I heard Dark side of the Moon was at PC's I'd just picked up an import copy direct off the plane (It hadn't been released in Oz) and was on way back to Newc but dropped in to the DY flat.
clearest memory of the rest of that night, had something to do with staggering around the rocks on the point trying to locate a sense of equilibrium.

On topic
Having seen PC ride waves from 2-10ft, beach slops to Forresters Banzai, I'd have to say that it was not just the board.
The combination of his light frame, courage or attitude, innovative style, radical boards ( historically) put him just that step in front of other surfers of the time.
Most slab riders built a fin collection to try and emulate that flexibility; from anchors to flex fingers, combined with the 14" fin box it gave the slab immense adaptability.