Thank you for always providing a unique organic experience that cant
be bought from a rack.
Just before summer, I picked up my latest addition to the ever
expanding quiver. Darcy’s Abomb. Designed to put the fun back into
small waves. I had given the Darcy team a few images and colors I
wanted the spray to be based on, but told them, Kye can go nuts with
his own interpretation. The curiosity and anticipation of that alone
was enough to induce many ocean related day dreams during the hours
of 9-5 leading up to pick up day.
So add to this the desperate desire to learn the way the unborn
member of my surf family feels in the water and what do you get? A
concoction so brutal, that in the week leading up to pick up day, I
learnt new numbers while counting sheep. Friday afternoon the day
before, I got a text from Darcy and Michelle separately, asking if I
wanted to see the spray. I said I wanted to keep it a surprise, kind
of like Christmas eve. So they sent me a link to the blog, where
they had posted it... Just to dangle the carrot in my face. Then
sent an email of some pictures with the subject “open if you dare”.
That night, as the above mentioned cocktail of excitement hit full
effect, sleep evaded me completely, leaving only in its absence a
tangled web of bed sheets and some bloodshot eyes. I arrived at the
factory and couldn’t get the smile off my face. Darcy welcomed me in
and presented me with my new board. The spray was exactly what I’d
hoped it would be and I affectionately welcomed ‘The Robot’ into my
family.
I had to wait a week to let it cure a little more before I surfed it
Michelle and Darc both made me promise). It felt like the longest
week of my life but at least I could lay eyes upon it, wax it and
slap a pad on it. When I finally got to surf it, the swell offered
up almost a whole foot to play on, leaving a lot to be desired. That
trend continued for the next month. I checked every swell chart and
whether observation website known to man in the hopes that they had
got it wrong.. But alas, the dreaded November slum was well and
truly here.
I caught a glimpse of what just might be the first signs of swell at
the end of the week. I made all the arrangements necessary and put
in some extra hours at work so I could have some late starts.
Thursday and Friday morning, the 2-3 foot playground was Fingal back
beach. The absence of about 4 inches of glass and foam in length
compared to what I was used to, caused me to enter into a kook-athon
for the first few waves. Then it clicked.
With the last of the swell looking like it was dying off, I trekked
up to Double island point to try my luck and luck was on my side.
2-3 foot of clean offshore peelers greeted me and my myriad of
weather wearied salt junkies. ‘The Robot’ must have been under the
impression I was in surf rehab and that he was my last hope, leaving
on his shoulders some heavy responsibilities. He pumped right
through my veins, the strongest reminder of all the reasons why I
was late to school, am late to work and am always “busy with
errands” on Saturday and Sunday mornings as if I’d never known.
The A bomb met all expectations of what was promised and performed
above what I could conceive to be possible in a short board. The
thin rails tuck nicely into pockets and pitts, the extra width and
volume allow me to maintain and gain speed to get through the fat
and sloppy sections or boost off the lip and my turns have never
been so fast and critical. I felt like i’d improved my surfing by
about 2 years. In short, mind = blown. The most fun I’ve had on a
stick since my June July, Indo hiatus. Definitely an ESSENTIAL shape
to have in the quiver. My regular shorty had a brief moment to
shine thanks to the Christmas present mother nature kindly offered
the east coast. However since then, has gone back to collecting dust
as the A-bomb continues to introduce new maneuvers to my arsenal.
The whole experience was unique and organic and for me that is the
ONLY way I want it to be. That’s why I was extremely saddened at the
news of the closure of factory Darcy. Certainly not the end of Darcy
surfboards by any stretch but the end of an era and home to many
memories and parties. A new board shouldn’t be about walking into a
shop and finding one you kind of like, that’s similar to your old
board. It shouldn’t be about saving a few bucks. It shouldn’t be
about grabbing a board from a rack that has been made for a carbon
copy of a man by a carbon copy cut out of a board that was maybe
once hand shaped. Unlike Darcy, questions like ‘where do you surf?’
and ‘wheres your surfing at?’ weren’t considered when shaping those
cheaper mass produced boards. The factories behind them, aren’t
interested in what area of your surfing you’d like to improve. It
shouldn’t be a sterile lifeless errand you need to do like, get the
milk, buy some socks and pick up a new board. It should be about the
whole experience and journey that I’ve ever so briefly touched upon.
The first sit down discussion with your shaper, the sleepless nights
as you imagine what fun your going to have. The phone call that says
“your board is ready”. You should be able to put a face to your
shaper and be able to look at the dimensions and see your name next
to them. Ever since my first Darcy almost 8 years ago, he has always
delivered on his word “your next board should always be better than
your last.”
Unfortunately, the future of the shaping industry is going to look
differently whether we like it or not. I just hope that when I have
real children, I dont have to try and illustrate to them with words,
but that they too can experience the unique journey as I know it,
and enjoy being a part of the creation of such a beautiful craft.
Thanks for the boards and the Journeys Darcy
Regards
Benjamin
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| Benjamin checking his new stick |
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| Already in Love... |
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| The Robot |
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| Tubed for life... |
Thanks Benjamin......it was a pleasure...!!! Enjoy - The D'Arcy Team
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