Surfer Mag, the full interview with Todd Proctor
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Surfboard Label:
a. Head shaper(s):
Todd Proctor
b. History of surfboard label:
(Year founded, home base, any claims to fame.)
I started Proctor Surfboards in 1992 with the primary focus on the custom approach to surfboard design. The use of innovation in construction methods and materials has also played a major role.
If I had to choose one thing as my greatest claim to fame it is that
at Proctor Surfboards every surfer is treated with the same level of respect and attention whether you are a grom getting your first board, a pipeline specialist, a WCT elite, or a weekend warrior.
Attention to the individual surfer, which is a two-fold process, begins with asking the right questions and listening, then building the board that is going to best take them in the direction they want to go with their surfing.
Also, putting in the necessary time with each board is key….you never want to sacrifice by rushing through a board; every surfer/ every board is as important as the next; as well, never cutting corners on what materials to use or the best methods of construction….
I do not believe in engineered obsolescence.
Use premium materials and be a craftsman with impeccable technique – These are simple principles and the trademarks that have seen my company grow exponentially, mostly by word of mouth, not based on a conjured image marketed to appeal as the “next cool thing”, but as something real that has been forged through many years of hard work and dedication to core principles.
There are so many different types of surfers from locations all over the world ordering boards from us; and to be able to make each board unique, special and dialed to the particular waves they are surfing, their experience, and to help them push on to the next level they want to go with their surfing….man, it’s what gets me pumped….
makes me feel like I’m doing what is right and good in a world that just wants to increase output and profit while decreasing quality and variety.
This type of thing can never be done by offering A,B and C models of boards and telling surfers, “Well these are the sizes they come in; find one that’s a close fit.”…..you don’t find your magic board by plugging in to a height and weight chart either; it’s not like getting a new pair of socks….
I find that surfers are realizing more and more the importance of customization, the surfer/ shaper relationship and innovation with construction methods.
c. Early shaping influences:
(schooled with or under: where does this shaper or label belong on the shaper’s tree.)
I shaped my first 100 or so boards in a woodshed behind my grandfather’s house in the early 90’s. The first four boards I shaped, I brought to McCrystal Surfboards (then in Oxnard) to get glassed. Not knowing what to expect from the crew there, I was pretty timid thinking I might be the butt of some jokes. Instead, Casey (McCrystal – the owner and head shaper) said that if these are the first four boards you’ve ever shaped then “I had it”. That people either have it as a shaper or you don’t, and that he thought this was my gift and that I could make a living out of shaping boards. It was probably the single most encouraging thing anyone has ever told me that I took to heart as far as life’s work goes.
Casey offered me a job there at his factory, I took it and learned many things there at that factory. Some time after that, I met Matt Biolos at a trade show in Florida, he was also very encouraging and we had a really cool connection talking about boards. Matt offered me a job working with him in San Clemente….. moved there and that is where I first really cut my teeth getting to handshape custom boards.
I believe hand shaping boards plays an incredibly valuable role in learning to break down the dynamics of board design.
Much like an architect, draftsman, an illustrater, or cartoonist, or even an automobile car body designer will work by hand to develop the skill of their eye and their technique before ever moving on to computer modeling programs…..
So for shapers coming into the industry back then anyway, that is just how it was. I don’t know if that really exists the same way for shapers getting into it now.
Matt was very kind to me letting me stay at his little apartment until I could get on my feet and setting me up with a shaping room in what felt like the heart of the shaping world for me at that time….San Clemente’s ’shapers alley’. It was a neat time in my life shaping-wise and Matt served up on a silver platter many pros for me to work with; sending over guys like a young Bruce Irons, Shea Lopez, Casey Curtis, Dino Andino, and a bunch of up and comers whose names I didn’t recognize back then… Aaron Cormican, Kalani Chapman, Otto Flores, etc. ended up on my contractor’s slip….there was a lot of Mayhem going on back then.
As there are season’s in life, eventually I felt my heartstrings pulling for Ventura where in my youth I had fallen in love with Rinconand the right points there, the beauty of the open coast and the breath of the farmfields that stretched on for miles. I also had a vision for a state of the art factory there dedicated to building highest quality, custom surfboards.
Your notable test pilots:
a. Most important feedback of late regarding the immediate future of boards?
My feedback is gathered from many different types of surfers…..and here is one reason why:
Typically, year after year it seems to me you have the same type of thing going when this question is asked. And the answer from shaper’s usually goes something like this, “Well, my teamrider so and so just won such and such contest and has this and that ratings which has placed them in the very special category of position in surfing’s ranking system of high esteem….they really like this type of board and have done well….they’re feedback has been very positive.” – (insert shaper name).
I am not bashing that; in fact I think it’s pretty sick for a surfer and shaper to accomplish success together; each at what they do best. I feel I’ve been called to judge a more varied and wider array of feedback from more of a cross-section of today’s surfers…than to draw all my ideas and inspiration from a narrow percentage of just one small group of surfers.
So, for me my most important feedback comes from surfers that envision themselves as on a journey with their surfing where they want to get to that next level; to go the places they dream of going on a wave.
They are not the type of surfers that feel they have “arrived” with their surfing and that order their shaper around like a slave. Mutual respect is equally as important as a surfer’s raw talent.
So, the best feedback I receive comes from surfers who have a good, positive attitude, desire to better their surfing, and can communicate well.
Most of these surfers have names that the surfing world at large does not know; guys like Greg Strugach, a goofie-foot powerhouse from the rippable lined-up points of Malibu; Jay Rice from the Trestles wave gamut of San Clemente, Forrest Troxell from the right cylinder reefs of Maui, Ted Takai from Oahu’s town and country wave variety; Vincent Tourtoulou from France’s punchy green beachbreaks; stoked Niall Carlin from Ireland; James Robertson from the UK; Craig Potsep from Spain, Fillippo Togno from Italy’s Mediterranean surf community, and core, travelin’, surfin’ dad – Mauricio Paredes from Miami; Bryan Andersen from Canada, Nancy Masters, a new mom from Ventura; prime-of-lifer Tony Beck from South Africa; mellow on land, on fire in the water Larry Ugale who rides a longboard like 90% of shortboarders wish they could ride their little boards; Guillaume Fontaine from the Netherlands; Andrew Greene, a Balinese transplant from Australia; Yuki Kurita from Japan; Petey Mussio from Lompoc’s sharky, thumping beachbreaks; Rob Kenworthy, an Arnold’s Road barrel stategist; Michael Bailey with style to burn inside Pt. Mugu heavers; Dean Faris – middle age bucket thrower and Dad to four in Oceanside; Rob Bent, Pitas Point Rascal ripper and Indo adventurer; Chargin’ Stephen Carson, my brother on a mission in San Diego…..and many others, I wish I could name them all and describe them because to me it’s like a big family. These are real people/ real names and faces…..they are the fabric that the larger tapestry of the true cross-section that represents the worldwide surfing community. These surfers come in all shapes, sizes and skill levels just like the custom boards they ride.
And equally important are surfers whose names you do recognize….guys like Jarrah Tutton a RVCA ripper and insane barrel rider from Australia, Danny Estes, a Texas turned Florida turned Ventura local who knows how to combine the railwork of an old school power base with the new era tail whip thing. There’s Tamayo Perry, a CHARGER of the scariest pits on tap; and Mick Fanning, whose feedback on some boards from more than a year ago is still revolutionizing my heavy gouging design concepts. There’s the original Coolie kid Jay Phillips, whose Gold Coast-meets-a-modern-day-Tom Curren style pushed the design envelope of multiple different board models. Those are a few surfers whose unique styles and approaches represent a much larger group which I gain feedback from….the larger group being each person I design boards with.
b. Most of my top guys are riding _______.
When it comes to a new design, or for testing new concepts, I make all my prototype boards out of polyester/ polyurethane. I do use a unique iso/ ortho blended polyester resin that is the strongest combination you can have for polyester resin. It is also light cured so the boards are fully cured and ready go the same day they come through production. Combined with the higher strength-to-weight ratio fiberglass that we use i.e. Direct Size cloth and S-glass, you get a polyester board that is significantly stronger than any other polyester board out there….and it has reached its full cure strength the day its ready for pickup; really good when you want to get on a board straight away and plan to ride the heck out of it. Once a prototype has been deemed “magic”, then we take the computer file that the magic board was designed from and we make another one, but this time we make it out of our unique custom Proxy (Proctor flexible epoxy v.2). This is the premium board I make for both performance and strength.
The Proxy’s are 2-3 times stronger so the life span of the board is 2-3 times longer than a standard polyester board. As well, the materials keep their flex life/ memory 2-3 times longer than a polyester board; so they stay springy and lively under your feet much longer. They also have recyclable components and the resin is much better for the environment. All of the materials involved in the construction of the Proxy are higher grade so the cost is a bit more, but it is definitely worth it.
What’s the best way to identify the gap between a customer’s wants and true needs?
By asking the appropriate questions, listening carefully to their answers, then making an accurate assessment of where they are at with their surfing and what design is going to best take them in the direction they want to go.
I don’t expect surfers to know all the technical design stuff and the nuances regarding outline, rocker, bottom contours, rail shape, tail shape, thickness flow, foil, etc…
If I have never worked with a person before and they are ordering their first board from me, I usually start by asking the basics like what is your height, weight, age, how long have you been surfing? How often do you get to surf? What would you say your experience level is? What are the waves like where you surf; or what type of waves do you need this board for? What are the basic dimensions of the boards you are coming off of? Describe how you surf/ your typical approach to a wave/ how you like to surf (everyone is different here so it is important to really listen); and finally I ask them the direction they want to go with their surfing/ what they dream of doing on a wave.
I find it is very important when analyzing this information, to not come into a consultation like this with preconceived notions, or an agenda to make a certain type of board because it happens to be the design trip you are on at the moment.
Sometimes you happen to be honing a new design with great results and it perfectly suits what that surfer needs….that’s cool, but as a shaper you always want to make sure to apply the right board design to what is going to be best for the surfer. And as a surfer looking for the magic board, you also don’t want to come into a consultation with a shaper with preformed ideas that are set in concrete with no budge room for your new board. Over the years I’ve heard people say, “the customer is always right.” In surfboards that is not always the case, it is the job of the shaper to be the professional in their field, and to bring the surfer along, to educate and explain why a certain design is going to work better for them then another.
At the end of the day, customization is the most important quality to have in your surfboard. Here’s why…
A well thought out board design made by a professional who takes the time to make the board that is going to be the best for you will take your surfing to the next level.
Nothing can take the place of that.
Customization affects not only the physical form and shape of the board, but it also delves design into the use of new materials and new processes for building that board; this in turn tunes in the flex characteristics, the memory and spring of the materials through turns and out of maneuvers. It is the glue that bonds a longer lasting, environmentally friendlier surfboard to a responsible culture and a greener environment.
Customization is the key to pushing the limits forward in a positive direction for surfing and how surfers ride waves into the future.
If I had only three boards that had to last me through the entire recession I’d choose the following: ________ Explain the logic behind each.
That is a very hard question….kind of like asking you which of your children to give life jackets to when the ship is going down. I love them all; they each have their own unique personalities with the waves they are made for, but if I could only choose three it would be
The second would be an
and it does not let you down whether it is knee high or overhead, mushy or hollow; it is a really fast board that generates it’s own speed in small waves, yet will surf real quick and tight in the pocket on pushback days; turns on a dime too.
with a round tail,an inch or two bigger than the Accelerator. This board has a little more rocker throughout;
this would be for the really good,
performance days….
there is nothing like this board when the waves are on – super fast, super smooth, drivey down the line, loose in the pocket…the perfect good waves board.
The most exciting thing about surfboard technology right now is?
Variety and options available to surfers like never before. Never have I seen a wider variety of surfboard shapes and technologies available to surfers. Surfers are finding out what works best for them and that is technology benefiting surfers…..I think that’s exciting.
If [ _________ ] went away I think the future of design would be much better.
If needy egos and attitudes of entitlement went away I think the future of design would be much better.
I have been blessed with clients that are really stoked, enthusiastic, and supportive of the way we go about board building. The niche I have in this industry is a relatively small one comparatively….I am happy with that and do not desire to grow to the point where I am twice removed from the actual people I am making boards for.
I enjoy the personal side of it.
So, I guess you could say I am sheltered in a way from what goes on out there in the dog-eat-dog world of who’s who; and the energies that are spent on striving how to make your indelible mark as a member of the inner circle.
But, I do see what goes on out there and there are some things that concern me for the future of board design. Sure, I guess you could say, “let’s take away cheap Chinese labor, or get rid of molded board technology … or let’s not allow another Clark Foam to sweep in and monopolize any area of the surfboard world.”, but that doesn’t really strike at the heart of the issue.
I think it is always good to take a look at our motivations; why do we do what we do? I see a cycle that has gone on for some time that is detrimental to the progression of surfboard design. I see it as a two-fold issue: the first being that there is a mentality out there with many surfers (including those that own many a surf shop) that shapers ought to work for next to nothing and give bro deals to anyone who surfs halfway decently well or knows so and so. I have seen more shapers than I care to mention that have skipped out on paying taxes, run a factory way under code, skimped on materials quality, held out on paying their employees what they ought, put in long hours year after year resulting in their wives leaving them…..and for what? So surfers can have a board made for them for so cheap that they can say to other people yea, I’m that good….I get my board for such and such a price.
This ain’t cool….and it stems from an entitlement mindset which is very sad to me. The other side of this is the shapers. More often than not, I believe shapers want so bad to see their boards out and about that they are willing to play into what I call the
“more more cheaper cheaper” death cycle
of board building…..
this is an over needy ego that thinks it’s going to be satisfied by catering to people that will, in the end leave for the next cheaper or cooler image driven thing.
This whole ugly cycle hinders good boards from being built.
It results in less hours for the shaper to spend on dialing boards in and it breeds poor quality work in employees that build the boards, and it drives the use of quality materials and innovation out the door.
I believe that this is the reason we have all this China talk going on. Because the margins have been pushed to breaking in many cases and so a foolish alternative has been found in Chinese industry for the simple fact that board manufacturers won’t have to pay them as much to build the boards, and because pollution regulations/ requirements are low to nil there.
Surfboard innovation comes from surfboard shapers/ designers innovating with the surfers they make boards for and have a good relationship with.
The ideal Rascal II dimensions for you would be 6’3” x 21” x 2 ¾” with a flat deck and full, boxy rails.
howdy todd and charissa,
Holy Shakas Todd! The Rascal II is absolutely insane. I’ve surfed it
Hi Michael,
It looks like the Accelerator is exactly
The most versatile performance shortboard I make is the G-4.e.
Since there is a pretty wide range of conditions you described…
the Lil Rascal and is the fastest
This board is called the G-4.E
Hi guys!
Aloha Todd,