A Super El Niño Big Wave Gun Build-Off Is Coming to Del Mar
If you've been following the drumbeat of Super El Niño forecasts, here is a fun way to look at it: this winter might be one of the North Pacific's best in years, and the Boardroom Surfboard Show in Del Mar is turning that into a shaping challenge. This weekend, October 10 and 11, its Best in Show Board Build-Off has a theme that fits the season perfectly, the Super El Niño Big Wave Gun.
The rules are refreshingly open. Entry is free, any board builder in the world can join, and the winner takes home $5,000 in cash. The brief is simple: build a big wave gun, whatever that means to you. It could be aimed at Blacks, Todos, Rincon, Jaws, Nazaré, Swamis or Ocean Beach, and the judges want to see design ideas that push big wave surfing forward.
What I like most is how the judging works. Scores mix votes from expert board builders, the public and the exhibitors, and boards are judged on function, creative and forward-thinking design, and construction quality. Function comes first, but craftsmanship gets checked from nose to tail: shape, lamination, artwork, sanding and finish. It isn't an art contest, though great artwork won't hurt.
The prizes are also a nice nudge for small builders. First place gets the cash plus a free 10' x 10' booth at the 2027 show, valued with the cash at about $6,000 in total, and second place gets a free booth worth $1,000. Entries had to be dropped off on Friday, October 9, with a stand and a short write-up of the board and build process, and the winner is announced Sunday at 3 p.m.
Personally, I'd love to see how different shapers interpret a gun for a winter like this one. Whoever wins, it's a great excuse to look closely at what goes into a board built for serious waves.
Source: SURFER
The rules are refreshingly open. Entry is free, any board builder in the world can join, and the winner takes home $5,000 in cash. The brief is simple: build a big wave gun, whatever that means to you. It could be aimed at Blacks, Todos, Rincon, Jaws, Nazaré, Swamis or Ocean Beach, and the judges want to see design ideas that push big wave surfing forward.
What I like most is how the judging works. Scores mix votes from expert board builders, the public and the exhibitors, and boards are judged on function, creative and forward-thinking design, and construction quality. Function comes first, but craftsmanship gets checked from nose to tail: shape, lamination, artwork, sanding and finish. It isn't an art contest, though great artwork won't hurt.
The prizes are also a nice nudge for small builders. First place gets the cash plus a free 10' x 10' booth at the 2027 show, valued with the cash at about $6,000 in total, and second place gets a free booth worth $1,000. Entries had to be dropped off on Friday, October 9, with a stand and a short write-up of the board and build process, and the winner is announced Sunday at 3 p.m.
Personally, I'd love to see how different shapers interpret a gun for a winter like this one. Whoever wins, it's a great excuse to look closely at what goes into a board built for serious waves.
Source: SURFER
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