- Akila aipa surfboards how to#
- Akila aipa surfboards update#
- Akila aipa surfboards pro#
- Akila aipa surfboards plus#
So each new board, each new design is a new equation using math and science. As a designer I don't just stop at night.
Akila aipa surfboards how to#
Then I can articulate how to refine that feel. So, I pay a lot of attention to math and science, which ultimately equates into feel. I don't know what the f-k everyone else is doing, but I know what I'm trying achieve. I'm worried about my bottom foil and what it's doing under high and low pressure. As a designer, I'm not just worried about my art form. How to take your art form and apply that to somebody that's so analytical and demanding of their equipment like Kelly? You talk about making surfboards as your art form, but it seems to me it's also a craft and a science. That's where my mind is at and what challenges me.
Akila aipa surfboards update#
I'm trying to stay true to the classic designs, but also update them and bring them forward. The idea is to bring out the best of all the designs and modernize them. And you see what's happening in the market and there's almost this renaissance of boards where they're able to blend these fun characteristics with the ability to perform and surf at the highest level.
Akila aipa surfboards pro#
Look at what happens when a pro surfer gets off their normal shortboard and onto a good twin-fin. Different color coordinated boards helped Kelly Slater And Akila Aipa refine the design of the new Flat Earth model just released this month by Slater Designs. This gives you this wonderful sensation of high-line, down-the-line speed, but the moment you want to change direction and go vertical in the pocket it kind of hinders that, so we're taking these retro designs and modernizing them through different curves, concaves, fin placements, that sort of thing. If you look at a lot of fishes on the market, the fins are pretty far back and set out wide. You've spent a lot of time in your career building and refining twin-fins, what are some of the fundamentals of a good twin? You can't make a slow board fast just by changing the fins, but you can take a fast board and add stability by altering the fin package.
Think of it like a skateboarder with loose trucks, it's that freedom and ability to control the sensation that we're trying to replicate. My philosophy is that none of those fin packages will slow the board down because we have such a stable platform.
Akila aipa surfboards plus#
And in terms of performance sensibilities, we can control that through what fin package we choose, whether that's as a twin, twin plus trailer or thruster. This design is really fast, loose and fun. We wanted to make something fun for the everyday surfers. Kelly and I are both very sensitive to micro changes in volume, so we wanted to eliminate those sensitivities and make something more stable for a wider ranger of surfers. And then we discussed what we wanted to share with the general public in terms of more user-friendly dimensions. I'll build things, he'll try them out, then we basically start refining from there based on on what he's looking for. How does the design process with Kelly work? I asked him if there were any holes in his quiver and that's what got us looking at twin-fins concepts.Įvolving the twin-fin design, the new offering from Slater Designs is fast, loose and looks like a whole lot of fun. And now, with a little more time, we've been able to explore some of those ideas together. He's traveling the world and chasing titles and is looking for specific things. And I've been really respectful of his relationship with Al.īut with his new endeavor it's all on him and what he wants to explore. For a long time that was Al, and as close as we were, he never really had to ask me for boards. We've been friends for a long time, and he's always had relationships with the shapers he chooses to work with. You and Kelly have known each other since you were kids and you've been making some boards for him lately, how did this latest collaboration for the Flat Earth model come about? The WSL just caught up with Akila to talk about the new model, the art of the twin-fin and what shaping surfboards means to him today: The thing's a rocket ship, and early surf shop sales would indicate it's prepared for liftoff. The chat took place a couple of years ago now, and after much work in the water and the shaping bay, Akila Aipa and Kelly Slater have just released the new Flat Earth model with Slater Designs.
Kelly noted that he was looking for that fast, loose, twin-fin feel he remembered from his Florida grom days. "Are there any holes in your quiver right now?" asked Akila.
It started with a simple conversation about surfboards between two friends.
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