Dean Snow (LSD) is not one to follow trends and looks at board design in a different way than most of us.. The nose fin on his 20'er is a good example of this.
Dean is also one of the best SUP'ers that I've ever seen and I used to think that 'the guys got talent' and his board probably doesn't have much to do with it.
Looking at his recent boards I see that he's doing something no one else is doing.. In fact his boards look a bit boring.. and very flat looking from the top view IMO.. They look a pretty eggie.. with fat rails that don't have a hard or sharp edge anywhere.. and also a big (huge) single fin.
Flipping his boards over and it's a different kettle of fish.. There is nice smooth lines.. Nice rocker curves.. a decent amount of v just before the fin and also a single concave in the nose area.. The outline is a classic shape with a rounded pin tail.
Dean's own current board is 8'2" x 30" and has just made a board for his friend Dale. Because Dale is heavier that Dean he made Dale's board 9' x 32".. It's just a scaled up version of his own board.
I've been thinking alot about Dean's designs and like what he's doing.. I'm sure there's a lot of people who think Dean's barking up the wrong tree with his ideas. It is still early days with SUP board design.. but I like what Dean's doing enough to order one myself.
I've asked Dean to make me one just like Dale's.. Here's some pictures of Dale's new board that I took today when I took it for a test paddle. (thanks Dale)
Anyone coming to the Mambo is welcome to take mine for a spin and see what you think..
Well.....their a bit like an oil painting....the closer you look, the......you know what I mean
I've developed them with one aim, to be easy to make & easy to use in all respects. They are not ment to be a thing of beauty, but simply a functional board.
Just put some stick-on woodgrain paper on it and run over it a couple of times in your Suzuki and it'll look perfect.
The boards do look very "boxy" from the top but the bottom has beautiful curves. I wonder if the boxy tops give extra volume that make them good to paddle, and if other designers don't do it because they are stuck on surfboard looking curves. It would not be the first time the surf industry overlooked something that worked because it was different to what they did in the past.
How much is one of those puppies going to set me back? thinking of a new stick for indo next year... looking at the Naish 9'5x32 as that will float me as well!...
Flipping his boards over and it's a different kettle of fish.. There is nice smooth lines.. Nice rocker curves.. a decent amount of v just before the fin and also a single concave in the nose area.. The outline is a classic shape with a rounded pin tail.