"All the way to the stairs...

Photo shows Cove a low tide with sand from summer SW swells

My local break is known for its long, peeling winter waves which, with the right conditions, can offer leg-burning rides down almost the entire length of the point (see photo below). That is, of course, only if three or four of your "closest friends" don't drop in on you somewhere along the way. Like many California point breaks, the wave ends in a cove. At my break, there is stairway access to the Cove beach, and the goal becomes one of riding a wave until you get "...all the way to the stairs." The larger the swell, the further up the point you can take off and still make it to the stairs. Today was my turn. I was surfing my 7-3 Widget, with low expectations, jockeying between the shortboarders and the longboarders, and settling for leftovers. I caught a couple of fun ones, but nothing to write home about, you know, 2-3 turns and a close-out. Then a big set had everyone paddling for the horizon, myself included. After the 3-4 wave set passed, I found myself pretty much alone on the outside, lined-up with the public restroom and with lots of bobbing heads on the inside. Without much of a lull, a second set appeared, and at head-high, almost as large as the first. I paddled for the first wave, but missed...too far out. I let the second wave pass and was now in perfect position for the last wave. Three or four strokes, and I was up and riding.

To my pleasant surprise, everyone else had either been washed in or had caught one of the previous waves. Looking down the line, I had no one in front of me for a hundred yards. I put the Widget through its paces, making long, carving turns, dodging paddlers and  pumping through sections as necessary. While there was certainly no danger of me being mistaken for Kellly or Dane, I was surfing at my humble best, and enjoying every second. The Widget was flying down the wave, and it wasn't until I entered the cove that I realized how far I had come. By then, the wave was down to chest-high, but still lined up. My plan was to pump all the way to the stairs, but the wave took me past the stairs before closing out. After wading in and walking back up the point, I decided to call it a day. Always better to leave the water on a high, I always say. Later, using Google maps, I calculated the distance traveled  to be 1,650ft or over 500yds!!

Here's the board I was riding. The Widget Quad, 7'3"  15-1/2" x 22-3/4" x 16"  2-3/4" 52L. Low rocker for speed, quad fins for hold and bump-wing tail for qucik turning. The full outline offers plenty of paddling speed and gets the board up and planing. If you're ready to step-down from that longboard, don't waste your time with an oversized "fish". Get a Widget and watch your surfing performance progress to higher levels. The Widget is available form 7'0" to 8'0".

As good as anywhere in the world...

Surfer's Point, Ventura, CA Late Fall, 2014

Photo by Matt Wyatt website

“Your local break often turns out to be your favorite break. No matter where you go, you remember those two or three days when your local break is as good as anywhere in the world. You live for that.” -Yvon Chouinard, Surfer’s Path Magazine, 12/04

Whooohooo!! Hope you're getting some...

It's been more than a year since we've had a run of swell like this. Its been pretty much HH or better since Thanksgiving. And, it looks like the WNW swells will continue through Xmas Day! Today was pretty much as good as it gets. Mild offshore breeze, waves 6'-8', glassy, well-shaped and relatively uncrowded. With waves peeling 150 yds or more down the point, the long paddle back up the point after each wave took its toll, and I was completely done after 2hr.

I surfed my 9-8 Nova with a 2+1 setup and scored some great waves. The Nova is the perfect longboard for these type of conditions. Its quick rail-to-rail, with a short turn-radius and plenty of speed. The dimensions of my Nova are 9-8 x 23" x 3-1/8" giving this 190lb "Grandpa" all the float he needs, without sacrificing performance. Younger/lighter surfers will find something suitable in the 9-0 to 9-6 range. Call/text/email me to chat about your new Nova.

            

Bennett's new Widget...

I met Bennett last summer, when he came out to California for a visit and some surf. He was looking for a board to replace his 7-10 CI M-13, which he considered too corky, He took my 7-3 Widget demo board for a test drive. Liking the performance of the 7-3, he went home and over the next few months we exchanged emails, nailing down his requirements. Two days before Thanksgiving, he was back in Ventura to pick his new board.

Final dimensions were 7'8" 15-1/4" x 22-3/4" x 15-7/8" 3" 60.6L. The board is eps/epoxy contruction, and with a triple-4oz bottom and double-4oz deck, the board is both light and strong.

Gloss & polish finish over resin-tint abstract and black pinline give this board the personal look of a true custom.

Chris and his Speedster....

Last December I built NorCal surfer, Chris, this 9-6 Nova Speedster for Ocean Beach in San Francisco. Chris found his way down south during the last swell, and sent me this photo

Chris wrote, "Love this Board!! This was at T street on 10-5-2014. I rode this on double OH at San O earlier in the week when the locals were pulling out their guns.Thanks so much for a killer board."

Need a longboard to ride "steep and deep"? Feeling a "need for speed"? The Nova Speedster has what you're looking for. Contact me now, winter is just around the corner...

Introducing the V-Pig...

In 1966 Nat Young won the World Surfing Championship on a 9-2 longboard, which was almost a foot shorter than the other competitors. Surfers around the world took notice, and immediately began to shorten their equipment. In 1968, an Australian shaper names Bob McTavish added an extreme V-tail to his already shortened (8'10") board, and was able to greatly reduce the radius of his turns. This shortened turning radius led to more across-trimline surfing and eventually to the vertical surfing style we see today. This board is an exploration of those early design features, and is inspired by other modern examples of this shape, such as the Gene Cooper's V-2, Ryan Lovelace's V-Bowls and Steve Boehne's Aussie '68. When my customer, Kirt, saw a couple of these, he immediately recognized the potential and just had to have one.

The main goal of this design was to build a small-wave noserider, that turns on a dime, feels lively under foot, but still offers good noseriding. Starting with the basic wide-point behind center Pig outline, I shrunk the length to 8-10 and added some width in the tail and nose. The rails are slightly pinched, 50/50 with just a touch of down rail in the last 6". I started the extreme V  about 39" from the tail and maintained it all the way out the tail. This V adds almost an inch of rocker at the rail, and is the key to quick, flowing turns. A 2/3-length concave on the bottom enhances noseriding.

And here is the V-Pig in the eager hands of its owner (and co-conspirator) Kirt.

This is a good shot showing the extreme "V"

All V-Bottoms need a thin, flexy fin. Kirt chose a True Ames Velzy Classic

Purple Nova...

This 9-4 Nova 2+1 is nearing completion.

I've been pretty occupied with belly boards over the past month. Here are a couple of recent builds.

Follow this link if your interested in the story behind these incredibly fun shapes.













I've been working on a new longboard design that I call the "V-Pig". This is a pig-shaped, single-fin LB, with exaggerated tail-V. Ordered typically 12" shorter than your standard log, its a great change-up from your daily driver. Pig shapes have the wide point several inches behind center, which makes them very easy to turn. Add to that almost 3/4" of tail-v and you have a responsive log, that will go anywhere on the wave and offer noserides as well,

Pick-up day for Nick...

Here's Nick with his new custom 9-4 Nova...

Couple of new additions...

Here are a couple of boards near completion. The first is a 43" T-Belly G2 waiting to have its gloss coat sanded.

Next is a 9-4 Nova for Nick which is waiting for a light sanding and some polishing.

Summer crunch is in full swing, with delivery times pushed out to 5 weeks. Still time to get that summer board before Labor Day.  Call today!

A new Widget for the shop...

The Widget is a great shape for those wanting to drop down in board size, or as a first shortboard. It features a full outline to maximize planing surface, with a double-bump tail to enhance turning.

6'10"  15-1/2" x 22" x 16-5/8"  2-3/4" 46L

The bottom varies according to length and personal preference, with the longer shapes having a flat-to-V bottom, and the shorter shapes having a single-to-double concave, with slight tail-V.

A 5-fin configuration is standard, allowing the surfer to chose between quad, tri- or twin-fin set-ups. Size ranges from 7-8 to 6-8, with most Widgets falling in the 7-2 to 6-10 range.

Using EPS/epoxy construction to maximize float, every Widget is custom fit to the intended rider's size. The end result is a board that will take your surfing to new levels, regardless of your size or age.

Available as a demo by appointment, you owe it to yourself to take this Widget for a test drive.

Summer salvation...

I'm calling this 10-0 Classic the "White Knight" because it's white and its going to save me from the summer-time dragons. Made of 2-lb EPS with a solid 4oz+4oz+4oz S-glass deck and 4oz+4oz S-cloth bottom, this board is light (only 17.5lbs!!) and strong.

This 10'0" Classic is 18" x 23-1/4" x 15-1/2"  3-1/4" 83.4L Blank was sealed with epoxy and micro-balloons, and then laminated with a whisper of white resin tint, giving the board a slightly opaque look. The board also sports the new "Thomas Patrick" logo on the rails, with little pointy pinline gizmos just to spice things up. 

Finally, I added my old, trusty red TA Velzy Noserider Fin. 

Took it out this weekend at Mondo's which is the acid test for small-wave, summertime LBs. Had no trouble paddling into weak, waist-high peelers, or making slalom turns through the surf-class foamies.  If, like me, you're tired of loosing set waves to SUPers on barges and groms on 9-6 logs, order up a 10-0 to 10-6 White Knight and slay those summer-time dragons.. 

A couple of Mini-Widgets join the loaner pool...

I try to keep at least one sample of every shape I do in stock, as a loaner. I realize that people like to "try before they buy", and this is especially true with alternative shapes like my Mini-Widget. So, here's a couple of "demos" for you to try if you're looking for an alternative to your shortboard.

The tall one is 5-10 x 23"-x2-3/4" 40.5L and was built for the bigger surfer up to 190lbs. The shorter one is 5-6 x 22-3/8" x 2-3/8" 30.4L and would be a good fit for someone less than 170lbs. Both boards are FCS 5-fin set-ups, with quad fins. Both boards are PE/PU construction, with 4oz E-cloth on the bottom and one 4oz E-cloth + 7.5oz Volan deck patch. Weight with fins is 9lbs and 8lb4oz respectively. You're invited to check one out for a couple of days. Call or email me for more info on loaners.

A Classic for Eddie...

Eddie from Santa Barbara picked up his new 9-6 Classic today.

Board's a beauty with light-grey resin tint bottom and rails, poppy-gold resin-tint tail-dip, and two-tone, black/orange deck pinline. Double, 1/8" Cedar stringers adds a real "classic" touch.

Eddie can't wait to recover from that broken-ankle....

Kingfish finds a new rider...

This Thomas patrick 7-8 Kingfish has been passed around some. I even owned it for a while. But now, it has a new owner...

Smile on his face tells the whole story. Surfboards have a way of "finding" their rightful owner...

T-Belly Gen2 X 2...

Here's a couple of T-Belly G2s

This one is going to Customer Daryl in Oregon

And this one has already seen some testing at my local point...

Pick up day for Brandon...

Brandon picked up this new 9-6 Nova today, with the magenta resin tint nose dip.

The Nova is my personal favorite LB shape. It turns well, has good speed and noserides with the best. If your looking for a good one-board quiver, you owe to yourself to check-out the Nova.

Another busy month for TPS. Four more LBs being glassed, and one new T-Belly G2 headed to Oregon. I have a 10-0 Classic done in EPS/Epoxy in the works. Just waiting for the blank...is my board ready yet? This will be followed by a 6-10 Widget and a couple of Mini-Widgets for shop demos. More to come...

New Logo...

I've been meaning to get this logo reproduced for over 18-mos, and finally got around to it.

You'll be seeing this new logo on stickers, t-shirts and boards, of course!

Talk with your shaper, surf with your shaper...

The better your shaper knows you and your surfing, the better the boards he shapes will work for you. It's that simple. Phil ( on the right, above) met me for a surf this morning at C St. He first called me about one of my used boardsback  in 2008. Over the past several years, we have had many conversations, and shared more than a few waves. And, we've collaborated on four different boards, each one custom fit for Phil's surfing style and ability. It's the relationships I build with my customers that keeps my surfboard shaping from becoming nothing but "millwork". Sharing the stoke is what it's about...

T-Belly Gen 2 Build...

This is the second post on the T-Belly G2 build. The blank was given a sealer coat of epoxy resin and cabosil. The sealer coat helps to fill in the tiny pock marks left in the EPS foam after shaping, helps to prevent air from escaping the core and causing delamination after glassing, and generally provides a good adhesive layer for the lamination. After sealing, the blank was air-sprayed a light grey color. At this point the blank weighs 2lbs 4oz. Since the blank is stringer-less, I decided to use a layer of "VectorNet" between the blank and the 6oz cloth on the bottom. VectorNet is Kevlar netting woven into some very fine nylon mesh.

I'm hoping that the netting will provide torsional strength without the stiffness that you  get with carbon fiber. Here's the VectorNet draped over the blank prior to trimming.

And now, trimmed, with a layer of 6oz E-cloth. Normally, I would use 4oz cloth, but the VectorNet causes ridges beneath the fine, 4oz cloth, which can lead to sand-throughs during the sanding process.

And, finally, laminated with epoxy resin and "pulled dry"...sexy, eh?

The deck will also get a layer of VectorNet, but only in the back half of the board where the rider will be. I'm hoping this lamination process will yield a board that is strong and resilient, but also has a little flex.

Summer is just around the corner....

A quick check of the local surf conditions confirms that Winter is over and that it's time to break out the small-wave gear. Here's a few ideas for maximizing your fun quotient in small waves.


         


                48" T-Belly

5-4 Mini-Widget, 5-fin set-up

5-1 Mini-Widget, 5-fin set-up.

7-3 Widget 5-Fin Set-up

7-8 Kingfish with Gephart Marine-ply  Keel Fins




And, of course an irreplaceable 9-6 Single-fin Classic

Summer orders are starting to build, but current wait time is only 6-weeks. Wait a minute, in 6 weeks it will be mid-June!? Better hurry!

A couple of Classics....

   Hot, breezy days have people lining up to get their next custom summer board. Here's a pair of Classics on the lamination rack.

Both boards are resin tint, with resin tint deck inlay. Traditional lap-line, pinline will be added after hot-coat.  Old school lamination to match the feel of old school 50/50 rails and single-fin glide. A couple of more Classics in the wings, including a triple-stringer and one for yours truly...errr, the shop, I mean. Don't get caught without a log for the summer, order your Classic today.