The result is a greener surfboard with superior performance. His resin formula doesn’t include any toxic solvents, and XTR extruded closed cell foam is impervious to water absorption and very resistant to impact and compression. Javier’s epoxy resin has optimal characteristics for lightness, strength, flexibility, and clarity. He also developed an ingenious ThermoVent process (patent pending) to prevent delamination. Javier spent twenty years developing a proprietary custom epoxy resin formulation specifically for use on his trademarked XTR extruded closed cell foam. He has been on the cutting edge of perfecting extruded closed cell/epoxy surfboard construction since 1986.Ĭlosed cell foam has excellent flex characteristics as does epoxy lamination. Javier is a lifelong surfer and board builder with a degree in industrial engineering. The Golden Mean Machine features an XTR extruded closed cell foam core with epoxy lamination done by the expert team at Javier Huarcaya’s Epoxy Pro facility in San Diego. Another versatile high performance modern planing hull made with state of the art XTR materials. Concepts explored by naval architect Lindsay Lord, Bob Simmons, and Fibonacci inspired it. We’ll look back on Stuart Kennedy’s Snapper performance as the touch paper, and, as always, we’ll look at Kelly Slater through narrowed eyes and wonder what on earth he might do next.Hydrodynamica test pilots Daniel Thomson and Richard Kenvin designed the GMM II in 2010. It’s probable that it will also be voted Surfboard Of The Year, or whatever accolades are available for pretty pieces of foam. I predict that by this time next year the Slater Designs Sci-Fi will be the biggest selling surfboard model worldwide. I just think that this is another example of things falling into place for Kelly Slater, albeit in a roundabout way. And I don’t intend to do a disservice to Stuart Kennedy’s world-class performance at Snapper. ![]() I’m not really suggesting that Kelly would be so unprofessional as to lose on purpose (I don’t think it’s in his make-up, anyway). You can put your pitchforks down, though. Slater has no interest in churning out a few half-baked board designs he wants to be the biggest surfboard manufacturer in the world. If we know anything about Kelly Slater, we know he has a burning desire to be number one, no matter what the challenge may be. Stuart Kennedy is the perfect torchbearer to push product. Hello Sci-Fi, goodbye money worries and work stress. He’s an icon for the frustrated gardener or construction worker young men who live to tear the lips of the local beachy a new arsehole. Kennedy is the poster boy for the everyday surfer. Only Kelly knows, and perhaps he also knows that the Stuart Kennedy x Sci-Fi partnership might just be as symbiotic as Ando and the Hypto. The Hypto Krypto continues to smash board sales records largely on the strength of a few well-publicized waves. Had anyone outside of Australia heard of Haydenshapes before the perfect marriage of Craig Anderson and the Hypto and a few choice edits and images that soon became ubiquitous? The shape intuitively coincided with the launch of Craig Anderson as a brand – the perfect fusion of unorthodox design and aspirational surfing. Such is the case with the Daniel Thompson-designed Sci-Fi model for Slater Designs. The Hypto Krypto was disruptive board design, but it’s also accessible. Ask the Haydenshapes team about their Hypto Krypto. It’s a tried and true blueprint to sell a shit load of surfboards. The board allowed Stuart Kennedy to surf faster than everyone else, turn harder than anyone else, and make it look like the primary variable that separated him from the top pros in the world was simply equipment choice.Ĭan you imagine a better advert for a fledgling board brand with a radical new design concept? This design is unlike any other in the field, and as much of a departure from the status-quo as we’ve ever seen in competition. Ironically (or perhaps not so), he is riding the champ’s soon-to-be-released board design. ![]() En-route to the semi final, he demolishes the veteran field, including the 11-time World Champ. The world watches as a relatively unknown surfer, heralded as a salt-of-the-earth, blue collar hero, a ‘QS grinder, turns up and blows up at the first CT of the year. Here’s a wild and unfounded conspiracy theory for you: Kelly Slater lost his heat against Stu Kennedy at Snapper on purpose.
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