Board Collector

Paul Naude was a South African Team Bolt rider in the 70's and 80's who went on to become President of the Americas Operations at Billabong International Limited. It was in this role that he also became one of the pre-emient surfboard collectors in North America.

The bulk of his collection is held at the Billabong head office in Irvine. 

It was here that I was summoned to a meeting to discuss the current state of the surf wear market.

I can tell you little of what was talked about in the meeting as I was completely trans fixed by the presence of some of the most valuable and beautiful boards from the entire span of surf history.

Deeply aware I was doing the wrong thing, snapped off a few poor quality phone-cam pics to share with you.

A collection of 5 early wooden surfboards from a point in time when there was maybe 50 active surfers in the whole world.

Paul's particular fetish appears to be pin tails.

pin tails and wood.

RIP AI

Paul in Fiji last year.

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 9.

Amper's Californian find.

A U.S McCoy team board circa 1982.

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 8.

Phil wrote:

I found this indulgent photo of myself back from 1983,

taken by my mum before my school formal (prom).

 

I could kick myself really hard for selling this jem of a board.

It went like a rocket,

Cheyne actually helped me order the board, I asked for a version like his,

but he advised not to get the fiull 18 inch tail width,

which am glad I took his advice.

 

all the best!

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 7. "Happy 21st Birthday Cheyne!"

Randy Rarrick has shared with us a true surf board collectors fairy tail story of a board found in a garbage can in the back streets of Bondi:

This is a classic example of when you SHOULD restore a board!  

It was a significant board, because it was built by Geoff McCoy for Cheyne's 21st birthday and it was Cheyne's personal board.  

The collector who commissioned the restoration found the board in really bad condition and in the condition that it was in, it was not something you could be really proud of hanging on a wall or trying to ride.  Thus, he gave it to me for a complete restoration.  

It had the nose broken, a giant chunk missing from the rail, caved in deck, and missing baby swallow.  Colors were faded, stickers delaminated and all in all, in terrible condition.

I contacted Geoff McCoy to get new McCoy laminates and since there were none of the winged "Cheyne" logo's left, I had to carefully re-use the original.  

The same applied to the big RIP CURL logo on the bottom, as even Rip Curl didn't have any of those, so I had to carefully once again, re-use the original.  

The board was dinged, crushed and caved in and it took a lot of work to rebuild it to original specs, then reapply the color scheme to hide the repairs and then reglass it with the correct logo placement.  We didn't want to loose the personalized writing on the bottom, as this was a unique "Lazor Zap" with Geoff McCoy's script written into the blank on the bottom and personalized specifically for Cheyne.

All in all, an important board brought back from the dead and the fact that it's a Geoff McCoy, make's it all that more significant!

Full restoration by Randy Rarick, June of 2012

Cheyne's 21st birthday party in Newport Beach

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 6

photo by Flame of 20 year old Cheyne from 1980

Check out Matt's recent Craigslist score!

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 5

photo by jervisbayimages.com.au

I have continued experimenting with the Lazor Zap design.

The board worked great on the beach breaks and at the 3ft point break. 

I performed some of the fasted and losest cut backs and top turns of my life, although it did seem to struggle a little in the pocket on my back hand. Which made me wonder. 
How would it perform in the barrel? 

I've seen footage of Cheyne surfing Burleigh on a Lazor Zap and tube riding in Indo in Wizards of the Water. But would an average 'Joe' be able to get a 21" wide tail into a barrel?

I decided to forgo my pin tail thruster and took the Lazor Zap out for a run at a well know reef break.

The answer for me is 'yes and no'.

The extra foam and short lenght helped me get into some wedging peaks nice and early on some sets, even beating out a bunch of young body boarders accustomed to doing free fall drops. But when I got  to the bottom and the water started draining off the reef it was a different story. I had to the nurse the board through some long drawn out bottom turns and it still side slipped on me once or twice, which resulted in me getting bounced off the reef and a tear in my wetsuit. But when the thing got in the pocket it went like a rocket. I even pulled off a couple of top turns at speeds which my normal equipment could never deliver.

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 4

Randy Rarrick has shared these photos of this incredibly beautiful inlayed wood laminate LZ2 Lazor Zap by Geoff McCoy

THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN ICON- from McCoy Surfboards    

In 1978 I began a design revolution with the introduction of my Lazor Zap concept; with its wide area, thick tail and extremely pointed low resistant nose area this Lazor Zap design revolutionised surfboard design.

At that time it was so unusual to what people were familiar with that it challenged the ideas and beliefs of the industry. In turn the Industry reacted with fear and rejected the design as it meant that the Powers that be of Surfing would lose the control that they were beginning to have over the direction in which surfing was heading. By rejecting the Lazor Zap they were able to wrestle control of the surfing industry and gain a hold on the Sales Market which was their only real interest.

Cheyn Horan rode the Lazor Zap to 4 second places in the World Surfing Titles proving that this design concept was exceptional. Those second places are still highly questionable and controversial. Then and now many believe that it was the establishments way of discrediting me and my design so that they could Control Surfing and Sales. It would be fare to say that in those early days of the revolutionary concept I was still feeling my way; low on real knowledge and still running on revelation, even though the boards worked much better than the boards of that time.

The concept of the Lazor Zap is based on my Energy Theory, how that Energy turns into Wave Formation and how Objects react with those Formations. The Original Lazor Zap was designed with Short Arc, Reactive High Powered Surfing in mind. The Surfer was able to stand in 1 position, not having to move their feet to perform their manouvers and this is exactly how the boards performed. The Pulled Nose allowed the board to Elevate very quickly as it reduced the Length of Rail being used when the board is turning. In turn this allowed for more manouvers to be performed while the Surfer was Standing in a Fixed Position on the Wide Thick Supportive Tail which generates Greater Pressure and Easier Reaction. The advantages were many, easier to paddle, stand in one position to ride the wave, quicker reaction from the extra volume, easier turning from less resistance, and ability to Surf at a Faster Speed; in effect everything required of them the Lazor Zap Designs Delivered at all levels of performance.

Unfortunately these Futuristic New Designs were discredited, not judged Truly on their Design and Performance Capabilities but used instead to malign and discredit me and the hold that I had on surfing at that time; due to my superior understanding of design and my ability to transmute that into my Surfboard Creations. This was evident in the Team of High Standard Surfers that I had at that time.

The result of this has been years of surfers struggling to ride inferior badly designed equipment; equipment which only Professional Surfers of the highest ability were able to ride.

Over the past several years, surfers have begun to realise that they have been sold a myth, an untruth, this equipment which they have been conned into buying is not suitable for the average ability recreational surfer; for this reason many people have come to me with renewed interest in my 30 year old Lazor Zap Design; as a result of this interest I have redesigned the board now including all my latest design performance advantages. This upgrade in Design has given the Lazor Zap new life and advantages as an All Round Performer.

Some of the upgrades I have included are:

• More Balanced Bottom Rocker and Thickness Distribution

• More Forgiving Rails with More Hold

• Better Location of the Loaded Dome Curves

These changes have made the design more user friendly and a Better Performer in waves up to 6’.

The results of these changes can also be seen in the capabilities in a much broader range of conditions allowing the Surfer of less ability than a Pro to ride and enjoy them.My Upgraded Lazor Zaps are available in either the Original Single Fin of with 3 Fins.If you are looking for a Great Performing Board that also represents the Pinnacle of Design in the Golden Era, have a look at the 2011 Lazor Zap. You could say that they are Everything the Modern Short Board Should Be.

Geoff McCoy

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 3.

Geoff McCoy is one of surf histories most interesting and controversial shapers. 

His designs feature as a highlight light of the innovation period. 

The Lazor Zap, in particular,  was developed at a time when professional contest surfing was done in often poor conditions and the design was developed with the aim of giving Cheyne Horan an edge in tiny, weak, contest conditions. I've read that Cheyne could rip on a a plank of wood with a nail in it, so it is not surprising that he could surf such a unique design so well. 

It is my aim is to explore the design from the point of view of a novice and share my observations with you. 

With that in mind I had McCoy team rider James Lewelan take me for a surf on a replica model of the 1981 Lazor Zap design to give me an understanding of how the original shape performs under the feet of an average surfer.

We found some nice clean waves at a south coast point break and I did my best to rip it up. 

At first it wasn't easy for me to adjust to the new shape as I mainly ride twin fins, which are best surfed off your from foot and rail almost like a snowboard. The Lazor Zap is the opposite. Everything is done off your back foot and your front food serves almost as a guide. For example, due to the super wide tail area, if you want to go fast down the line, instead of putting weight on your front foot, you apply pressure to the wide point, under your back foot. If you want to turn, the loose fin set up allows it all to come from the tail, right under your back foot.

photo by Belle

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 2

Another example of a pre-Lazor Zap Geoff McCoy single fin.

The sprays on these boards were as innovative and influential as the shapes.

They became extremely detailed and decorative with complex geometry and color fades right through the early 80's.

McCoy Lazor Zap. Part 1

I'm stoked to be able to share with you of the three examples of one the most interesting and important surfboard designs of the T2 / innovation period. 

• A McCoy tear drop design custom made to be given as a prize at the O.M Bali Pro in 1981.

• A Geoff McCoy shaped, Cheyne Horan comp board, predecessor to the Lazor Zap that bears the inscription "this is it".

• A Geoff Mc Coy shaped, Mark Warren comp board.

The middle board can be seen ridden in a number of comps and in a number of overseas locations in the video above. A testament to Geoff's skills as a shaper and a quality board builder that the board has latest so well after such an eventful life.

the same board in, this time in California, in 1982.