3 peat
Intro
The original thruster with a modern twist this board has a story to how it got under my feet. There was a big lead up into ordering this board. It was in the Bells carpark where the 3 peat first caught my eye. Toby Martin was showing it off to everyone in the marshalling area. The outline intrigued me especially the flyer to wider squash tail. Time went by and one turned up in the shop, it was for team rider Adam Robertson. It was ordered in memory of the original board that Simon surfed in the 81 Bells contest, Adam's dad surfed a lot of boards similar to this also so this board had sentimental value for Adam. The tip off the edge of the cliff to order this board however was when I was in Bali and the late great Al Byrne passed away the 'god father' of the channel bottom surfboard. I ordered this board in memory of him. Channel bottoms are now few and far between but once you have one you will not let it go.
How it goes
With the 80's style surfboard I was wary of the amount of volume that would be in it. It has a very boxy rail on it that runs from nose to tail. So the dimensions I went with was 5'11 x 19 3/4 x 2 3/8 just to watch how thick the rail would be as I personally don't like a super boxy rail on my boards. Having channels in it I haven't been able to surf this board much because I believe channels should only be surfed in good waves. However I did get to give it a good run before the summer slop arrived. I received the board just before the last good swell in October. The board did exactly what I wanted it to do chase the barrel and fly down the line. It was so fast down the line but I found it quite difficult to break my line as channels make a board very stiff so I decided to put a smaller fin it and it brought it to life. Fast down the line, nice in the barrel but easy to break the line on. The hip just above the front fins gives you a nice pivot point to be able to go straight up into the lip when you want to and break the already stiff bottom shape of the due to the belly channels. Just like did it did in the 80's this board goes really well at Bells and Winki with its speed down the line being vital in being able to get round sections but the channels give you the grip you need to use that speed through your turns. I am really excited to take it overseas to places like Uluwatu and the right hand points of Mexico where I can see this board really excelling.
Whose it for
This is a specialty board, I would not recommend it for just anyone and I wouldn't just give it to someone as a every day short board. It's the type of board that you throw in the quiver if you want to jump on something a little bit different from time to time, its like surfing something a little bit more traditional without surfing a twin fin or a single fin. It's a good wave board and I like to jump on it after I have surfed my traditional short board for a few weeks in good waves. It's a great board to jump on when you want to challenge yourself by mixing up the lines that you already take out places like Winki and Bells (if your from around here that is). If you are a little bit sick of your short board and want to know how it feels to ride a channel bottom, this is a good board to jump on without giving away to much performance.
Ideal fin set up
SA3 fins slightly smaller than my usual AM2 fin set up. Go a touch smaller than your usual fin set up.
Rating
7.5
Ideal wave size
2 to 4 foot
Conditions
Glassy clean conditions with nice shape
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