MEET THE RIDER

This 6’6” Squash Tail was shaped for a surfer I first met during a surf trip to New Caledonia.

He is 175 cm tall and weighs 70 kg.

His first custom board from me was in 2009.
Seventeen years later, this is his fifth T-REEF custom surfboard.

The first four boards I shaped for him were all shortboards between 5’8” and 5’10”.

• 2009 — 5’10” / Squash Tail / Quad Fin

• 2010 — 5’8” / Squash Tail / Tri Fin

• 2012 — 5’10” / Diamond Tail / Tri Fin

• 2016 — 5’10” / Round Pin Tail / Single Fin

In 2026, what he wanted from his fifth board was something different.

A board with more flotation, something he could enjoy in smaller waves, with a natural sense of glide.

Just because I am shaping for the same surfer does not mean I should keep making the same board.

Experience changes. Our bodies change. The waves we surf and what we look for in surfing can change over time.

I believe custom surfboard design should evolve with the surfer.

This 6’6” is the result of that relationship, built over 17 years.

WHAT WE BUILT

THE DESIGN STORY

Creating Glide in Small Waves with 6’6” of Length

For this board, the goal was to have enough flotation to catch smaller waves with ease, and to keep gliding even through weaker sections.

So I increased the length from his previous 5’8”–5’10” shortboards to 6’6”, with a width of 20 7/8”.

I also kept enough area toward the nose and tail, with a nose width of 15 1/2” and a tail width of 15 3/8”.

Length helps create glide.
Width provides the planing area to carry that glide.
But I did not simply make the board bigger or thicker.

What mattered to me was creating more flotation and glide without losing the connection between the surfer, the board and the wave.

Rather than forcing speed out of a small wave, I wanted the board to receive the wave's energy and move forward naturally.

That is why I chose 6’6”.

Round Wet Deck × Down Rail: Flotation Without Losing Feel

For this 6’6”, I combined a Round Wet Deck with a Down Rail.

I kept the volume needed around the center of the board, allowing the rounded deck to flow smoothly into the rails.

I also used a Fine Foil to carefully distribute the thickness from nose to tail.

The balance I was looking for was simple:

Float without losing feel.
Enough flotation to paddle comfortably.
Enough glide to move naturally through smaller waves.

But when the surfer puts the rail into the wave, the board should still engage the face and respond to his movements.

More flotation should not mean losing the feeling of the board beneath your feet.
That was an important part of this design.

Water Flow, More Than Just the Bottom

The bottom design follows a simple progression:

Nose → Flat → Slide V

Water enters from the nose and moves along the flat section, which extends through approximately two-thirds of the board.

This allows the 6’6” length to carry the water and create glide.

Toward the tail, the Slide V directs the water outward, allowing it to release naturally.

Catch → Carry → Glide → Release

That is the water flow along the bottom.
But when I think about water flow, I do not look at the bottom alone.

When the surfer engages the rail, water also moves around the rail and along the side of the board.

That is why I shaped the transition from the Round Wet Deck into the Down Rail as smoothly as possible, allowing water to move naturally along the rail toward the tail.

Bottom Water Flow + Rail Water Flow

The board receives the water, carries it through the entire shape and releases it at the tail.

I think of water flow from nose to tail as one complete system.

Squash Tail × Multi Fin: Planing Area and Freedom of Choice

For the tail, I chose a Squash Tail with a width of 15 3/8”.

Keeping enough width through the tail provides planing area for smaller waves, while the corners of the Squash Tail allow the surfer to engage the water and maintain hold through turns.

The fin setup is a 5 Plugs Multi Fin.

This gives the surfer the freedom to change the fin configuration depending on the waves and the feeling he wants from the board.

Over the past 17 years, he has ridden boards I shaped with Quad, Tri and Single Fin setups.

For his fifth board, I wanted to leave him with more options.

The fundamental design remains the same, but different fin configurations allow him to explore different ways of riding it.

That flexibility is also part of this custom design.

SAME SURFER. NEW DESIGN.

From 2009 to 2026.

Seventeen years.
Five custom surfboards shaped for the same surfer, each with a different design.

The first four were shortboards between 5’8” and 5’10”.
The fifth is this 6’6” Squash Tail.

But I was not simply trying to make a board that would go faster in small waves.
I wanted enough flotation to catch the wave.
Enough length and width to create a natural glide.
Rails that engage the face of the wave.
And a tail that allows the water to release.

All of these elements should work together as one continuous movement.

Float → Glide → Response → Natural Motion

The surfer should not have to force the board to move.

The board should work with the wave and the flow of water, allowing the movement to happen naturally.

That is what Natural Motion means to me.

I do not believe custom surfboard design is about repeating a board that worked in the past.

It is about understanding where the surfer is today.

The waves they ride.
The feeling they are looking for.
And the kind of surfing they want to enjoy next.

Then shaping a board that reflects those changes.

The same surfer does not always need the same board.

This 6’6” is another chapter in a relationship that began 17 years ago.

More Float. More Glide. Same Connection.

A surfboard is not just foam and resin.
It is a reflection of a surfer’s life, time, and future.

— Tadao Tominaga / T-REEF Surfboard

WANT TO ORDER YOUR BOARD?

Every T-REEF Surfboard is fully hand-shaped.

Each board is designed from scratch around your:

✔️ Surfing style
✔️ Body type
✔️ The way you want to surf

→ Learn more about our custom surfboards