Workshop Wednesdays Continue: Building my First Surfboard
I’m borrowing Nick’s respirator and IT’S PINK. (c) Sara Dyer
Workshop Wednesday’s at Maddie’s continue this week. It’s been a journey to get here but fuck am I glad I’m here.
We’d started out on surfboard making journey together, hashed out at a Surfrider NH event in the fall. We’d hit up Dale from Surfrider for his wisdom and taken a trip to his “shop” as he liked to call it. “Foam is your FRIEND,” he repeated, over and over again. I’d spun through Steph F’s collection of longboards, becoming completely and utterly confused, and going back to the drawing board with what board to make.
That phase took quite some time: Maddie and I’d hemmed and hawed [read: agonized] over what type of board to make, pulling out possibly every single board on the racks at Cinnamon Rainbows [bless your hearts], and, upon deciding, hit Book and Bar in Portsmouth one cold winter’s night to order our blanks from Green Light Surf Comp over cups of savory teas.
Then COVID hit. And, stemming from an abundance of caution, I’d decided I’d put my project on hold, nervous at the thought of the two of us working in the poorly ventilated basement together.
Maddie persevered and after seeing her complete her periwinkle purple surfboard, the FOMO set in big time.
With a few months under my belt of weirdo Twilight Zone, and one another being within our inner social circles, I started the project back up.
This week, I used Scott’s orbital sander [thanks Scott!] to try to get close enough to the outline of the board so I can start handshaping. The foam was starting to separate from the stringer at both ends so I added some glue and smushed one end as I only had one “smusher”type thing in my car.
I’d forgotten to pick up a weight or a bungee that would allow me to get close with the sander to the sides so it kept bucking like a bronco.
I think the process is teaching me to just find yourself in the middle of the process. Do the thing and you will have the power. And don’t overthink it:
I found myself in front of 20 different varieties / levels of grit at the hardware store prior to getting to Maddie’s. My head started turning to combust and I was just like “No. I’m just going to grab a couple pieces and see how it goes.” Each sheet of sandpaper cost a buck. I think I can spare myself the agony of a 45-minute brain-melting Google search for a buck.
Having a space to go and be quiet and turn off my phone except for the music and just zone out is truly heavan on earth. Thankyouthankyouthankyou.