Southernman

When i was in my late teens and early 20's I used to cruise around garage sales chasing old boards. I didn't keep it up as it rarely bore much fruit for me. I know other people used to have success with this method but it hardly ever worked for me...
Anyway, one day when i was about 20 I asked some people at a garage sale if there were any old boards there and they said there weren't but another older lady overheard and said she had one. She said it was her grandson's and that he didn't use it and she'd sell it to me for $20. I was pretty stoked and arranged to meet her that afternoon.
Later that afternoon i arrived at her house and she showed me the board. To be honest i was a bit deflated when i saw it. I had been getting right into s-decks at the time and loved riding them. i was hoping for something like that but i bought it from her nonetheless. it also turned out i went to high school with her grandson...
this board has become an interesting part of our life. I have long joked about this board with my brother and our friends sarcastically speaking of how much we love and are attached to this board. despite all this, my wife and I had it standing in the corner of our sunroom for quite a while which was quite a prominent position.
It's a 6'8 Southernman and i don't know too much about it although on a trip south once i spoke to some guys at Southernman surfshop in Ulladulla and they claimed it had nothing to do with them. It has a set of flyers and almost a rainbow fin (only 2 colours).
i've only ridden it a couple of times and I didn't like it (but i guess i was riding s-decks predominantly back then) at the time. I wonder what conditions it would prefer???

a tail wound

i had this board on ebay in 2008. shortly after this very picture appeared on surfresearch website along with 3 other logo shots i had taken for boards i put on ebay (Pilgrim, Sam Egan by Neal Purchase and i forgot the other...)

it says 6'8 x 19" with the initials KM down near the tail

An interesting nose job...

sometimes i just can't help myself

The problem with picking up old boards is that they usually have injuries that need attention. this takes time and it can be really difficult to see a great shaped board just sitting in the shed awaiting repair when you know it will go off in the water.
in the second half of last year i picked up this board from a guy on the Central Coast. I was immediately stoked with the shape and design but the bottom was in really bad condition. it's an old Sam Egan from about 1969 and is about 7'10. it's a great transitional board - a bit of a double-ender but pulled in a bit gunnier. i have seen some incredible boards from Sam Egan over the years (being around the Newcastle area) and this is definitely one of them.
So, as the title suggests, i couldn't help myself. with a few open wounds and a bit of bubbling and delam, i paddled it out at Nobbys Reef one day. it took a little while to get a wave or two but eventually i found a few great lefts and realised straight away i had made a mistake...how would i be able to keep off this board long enough to repair the damage now? it has the most beautiful and smooth take-off and just glides right through the sweetest bottom turns. once you are found out wide it feels so amazing just to lean back and feel it drawing right around in a big arc to the chasing foam.
i've had it out there twice now and each time has been so enjoyable. it doesn't have adequate provision for a legrope and suits bigger waves so there's usually a risk of some long swims but i don't know if i'll be able to keep this one dry for long...

classic logo

the damaged bottom

beautiful fin

 

preferential differences

everyone is different really. sometimes i like a board that my brother doesn't. sometimes he likes a board and i don't. I have several boards that i have picked up along the way that i don't like riding and therefore they don't get used. sometimes they don't receive the care and repair that they need either...

this post is to mention a few boards i have around that i don't use. these are the kind of boards i hang onto in case anyone is prepared to swap for something they have but don't like which i might like. i think you get my drift...

i'm hoping to make some more blog entries in the near future about each of these boards and where they came from. they are all available for swaps too if anyone is interested???

Southernman, Neil Marsh, Sky (Gary Timperley), McGrigor, No Name.

seedy green shorts

i have this old pair of bright green 70's style boardies - Platts Surfriders. they have a lovely gold stripe down the side of them and bright white velcro in the fly. this means that when the pants are tight the white velcro is highly visible. very flattering.
Andrew gave me these boardies years ago. i'm not sure why he had them, why he gave them to me, nor why i accepted them. either way, they are sporadically mentioned within our family and friends and we share a laugh.
one night when i was about 24 i decided i would shave my beard off. i have often enjoyed drawing out this process and keeping bits of facial hair for humour's sake. i was at my parents' house and left a dirty moustache with a soul patch or lip goatie or whatever you want to call it. i thought it looked a bit 70's so i grabbed the green boardies and an old Kevin Williams single for a quick photo to show my brother. 
Trent loved it.

would probably have looked better if i was actually outside...