Make or break for board shapers? We meet Luke Young.

Luke Young adding finishing touches to a custom board

Over the years plenty of attempts have been made to churn out generic machine made surfboards; epoxy, plastic BIC boards, foamies and other pop out surfboard shaped objects but if you’re looking at a pro surfer in action from any time in history, including now, then it’s still pretty likely this surfer is riding a board that was made, to some extent, by someone’s hand. Since the early 2000s brands have really pushed hard on the machine shaped board to the point that the majority of boards now sold are shaped by machine. But when you see your favourite pro surfer piling it in deep on your dream board, know this - that isn't the board you are buying online. Just like Maccie Ds and Peparami they sell like hot cakes but here at Glory Days we prefer our meat to be non processed, made by hand and ready for a joyful guilt free consumption.

Now for those that don’t really know a great deal about surfing here’s a very quick history lesson. Surfing started in Polynesia somewhere back in the dawn of time, even Captain Cook wrote about it in the 1700s but it wasn’t really until Hawaiian Olympic swimmer and surfer Duke Kahanamoku took surfing on tour that is started to gain any traction in the western world.

By the early 60s surfing started to bust out in the US, UK and Australia, competitions began and boards started to evolve from massive planks of wood to a more refined shaped fibre glass board that was still massive. Surf culture exploded with music, cars, fashion and movies - all eyes on the beach.

The late 70s and 80s saw shorter more progressive surfboards with Australian surfers like Nat Young and Mark Richards driving excitement in shorter, faster boards. From this time onwards surfers would have a choice of boards to suit the waves, longboards for a more mellow ride in smaller waves, shorter boards for more high intensity surfing in larger or steeper waves. Both forms have their fans, the poise and grace of the longboarder or the high energy of the short board.

The board shaper's shop is full of rustic charm

Down here in the proper South West we have some of the UK’s best surf beaches, there’s a decent array of surf stores, surf schools and board hire places but in amongst it all is the very pinnacle of the surf industry - the board shaper.

Luke Young has been shaping boards in Plymouth for the past 20 years and testament to the fact that he’s not rolling around like Boss Hog, shaping boards isn’t getting anyone rich. From a little room in an industrial complex out in the sticks he’s carving white magic from inside his little snow globe.

As Luke explained, times are a changing and whilst it may have once been the only option to go see a board shaper and get a custom board these days you can order your quiver online and an awkward brown box can be at your door the next morning. Is this quicker? 100% yes. Is this better? Unless you’re desperate to look like the guys on the last episode of Make or Break then we’re going to say NO. Luke has a few boards on the go when we arrive and he’s happy to admit that these days not every day is spent shaping boards, he’s picking up other work on the side or doing work on his house and it’s a shame as he’s chucking his heart and soul into each board.

Luke shaping a specialist board for a surfer that's unable to stand on the board

So what’s the big deal about a custom board? Ok so imagine you’re ordering trousers online and you’re either a 32” or a 34” waist and that’s annoying as actually you’re a 33” so you have to go bigger and wear a belt but then it sticks into you all day every day. Then your leg length on the 34 is too long so you have to get them taken up and then they’re fine to wear to work but for everything else they’re no good so you have to have three pairs and none of them are really right - if you could have one pair that fit perfectly and in the right fabric so they’re great for all occasions you’d be buzzing.

It’s kind of the same with boards, except you have your personal size, weight, surfing style, preferred wave sizes, maybe odd bio-mechanical issues, maybe you don’t want it white and would like it yellow with a massive Trump on it. Personalisation down to the nth degree is possible and apart from waiting a bit longer the cost is basically the same as an off the shelf board. The money saved on marketing goes into the product, it's not very capitalist but then if you take a look around maybe capitalism really didn't work for Surfing.

Voted best young shaper back in the day in Carve Mag

Luke’s optimistic that the tide will turn (and we’re happy for the opportunity to use a sea based pun in this feature). Maybe the next generation just don’t understand that a custom board is an option? Maybe right now the bigger board brands are pushing so hard to get people on boards but in time people will see that these boards are never completely right and as people progress their surfing, so their requirements get more specialist and more refined and they seek a custom board.

Maybe the reality is that all eyes are not on the beach right now and we need to work a bit harder to turn them back, maybe surfing needs to be more fun, less hardcore, more inclusive and less about buying more stuff - then we’ll see more surfers in general, some riding their first board bought online but many more ordering their first custom board. Surfing is not what you see on the WSL, it’s down the beach with your mates, or with your kids - just having a laugh.

To order a custom board board head to Luke Young Shapes or DM in Instagram