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  Thousands of surfers gather at

Press release:

Surfers of all ages celebrated the art of surfboard design and construction during The Boardroom surfboard show, which took place October 5-6 at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, California. Hundreds of surfboards of every conceivable type and dimension were on display from dozens of master shapers. Surfers from throughout California had a chance to talk to shapers one-on-one while checking out shaping competitions, museum-quality exhibitions, surf films, live music, new products and art from an array of surf-focused exhibitors.

“Shapers provide the foundation of the entire surf industry,” says Show Founder Scott Bass, “and it was an honor to once again feature an incredible group of craftsmen and their iconic creations. It was especially humbling to help honor the memory of Terry Martin during the Icons of Foam Shape Off presented by US Blanks.”

Martin, a beloved shaper who produced thousands of boards over his 40-year shaping career, passed away last year. Six shapers — Gary Larson, Ricky Carroll, Matt Calvani, Mickey Munoz, Donald Brink, and Tyler Warren — each had the honor of replicating a classic Terry Martin design in the US Blanks shaping bay.

The replica by Matt Calvani, who shapes for Bing Surfboards, got an immediate nod from the panel of expert judges and was deemed a clear winner. Calvani took home the $1,000 prize and his name will be etched on the Mike Marshall Perpetual Trophy.

“I am so stoked to win this shaping tribute honoring Terry Martin,” said Calvani. “I worked very hard to get every nuance of the board and more importantly to convey Terry’s overall spirit. He was a great shaper and an even greater man. This is truly a special moment for me.”

Another crowd favorite was the Chunk Of Foam Challenge, where four top-echelon shapers each attempted to replicate a surfboard out of an 8′ x 2′ x 1′ chunk of foam. Making the event more challenging — and poignant — was the board they had to build: a six-channel Byrning Spears thruster from Allan Byrne, who was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident in Bali in August.

This event was tough: each shaper had only 90 seconds to hold the board and dwell on its intricacies. He was then sent into the shaping bay with hand tools and a single power tool of his choice. No other templates, rocker bars or measuring devices were allowed. A strict three-hour time limit took each shaper to the limit — as did the physical effort needed to hew the chunk of foam into a useable blank. Each of the shapers — Stu Kenson, Brian Hilbers, Marc Andreini, and Wayne Rich — gave a heroic effort, but Kenson’s mastery of the intricate channel-bottom design brought home the win and the $1,000 prize.

With more than 90 exhibiting companies, The Boardroom was also the place to learn about new shaping techniques and materials. Pure Glass kept the bleachers full with its series of epoxy glassing demos throughout the day. Ecovative Design debuted surfboard blanks grown from eco-friendly agricultural waste and mycelium. Vulcan Surfboards, in conjunction with Hydroflex, unveiled a lightweight monocoque construction and took home the “Best Shortboard” Best of Show ribbon for its efforts.

Other “Best of Show” winners included a G&S Hot Curl shaped by Steve Seebold (Best Longboard), Renny Yater’s Old California Wine Vat Redwood Gun (Best Wooden Surfboard), Donald Brink’s “flip over” asymmetric (Best Alternative), and Mike Rumsey and Wood Surfboard Supply’s unique twisted wood layup (Best Artistic).

The Boardroom was sponsored by US Blanks, C20 Coconut Water, Earthpack, Arctic Foam, Pure Glass, Audi and Surf Expo. For more information on The Boardroom, visit boardroomshow.com.