K.I.S.S.

Keep it simple.

Don’t bring a bunch of boards to the beach. Big words, I know, from a shaper. Grab a board at home and go use it. Have you ever paddled out on a nose rider in twenty foot surf? Talk about exciting! How about a fish in triple overhead? Or a semi gun in two foot slop?

Good for you and good fun all.

Lars and the 42 Crew

Don't do what I do....

Don’t talk. Just surf.

There is nothing more annoying than someone that stands there talking about surfing and then paddles out and just gapes.

I know, I did exactly this just the other day. Stood there talking about how awesome this new fish was, paddled out, and went over the falls on the first two waves I went for.

I'll be quiet now....

Lars and the 42 Crew

California

"There is science, logic, reason; there is thought verified by experience. And then there is California."

Edward Abbey

Come in out of the channel!

Tip of the day:

Don’t just sit in the channel. Get in there and catch some waves. Or paddle over to a peak where you can catch some waves.

It's true that you are going to catch a couple on the head. But you aren't going to get any better sitting there like a channel marker!

Lars and the 42 Crew

More from USA Today

Autodesk Inventor helps 42 Surfboards increase performance AND remain sustainable!

"Check out the latest blog entry on USA Today’s Technology LIVE, “Stoked On A Wooden Surfboard” featuring 42 Surfboards—the June Inventor of the Month —and Autodesk Inventor. Not only did Inventor help the surfing designers create lighter wood surfboards, (older, traditional woodies weighed over 70 pounds!), they were able to create a non-toxic board lasting 20 times longer than modern surfing materials."

From Connect Press

Autodesk Names 42 Surfboards Inventor of the Month for June
By Lauren Browne, ConnectPress Editor

Surfing dates back thousands of years, and yet many things are still the same in the sport. Its simplicity is appreciated in that it only takes a few things to be able to surf: a board, some waves, and a gutsy surfer. But the surfboard design company 42 Surfboards is taking this simplistic sport and adding an element of complexity to their designs.

By using Autodesk Inventor, the company makes precise boards that are also environmentally friendly. Their designs are so innovative that out of the 700,000 users of Inventor, Autodesk has named 42 Surfboards the Inventor of the Month for June, 2008.

Based out of Oregon, 42 Surfboards’ owner and self-proclaimed “floor-sweeper-in-chief” Lars Bergström said “solid modeling lets us iron out all of the kinks in a design before we ever make a woodchip. It lets us analyze various designs from every angle and greatly decreases the time between concept and creation.”

Even better, Bergström focuses on making his carbon footprint as little as possible. The boards are made out of local, sustainably harvested wood and abalone, they compost the sawdust, and the board will last a lifetime with the right tender loving care.

42 Surfboards makes many different models of surfboards. An important aspect to making a good surfboard is to get the density to strength ratio correct. Most modern-day surfboards achieve that ratio, but are made out of foam or balsa wood, which are products that increase a carbon footprint. Foam is a petroleum-based product and balsa wood must be imported all the way from South America.

However, boards made out of solid wood don’t have the lightness and performance as boards made with foam or balsa wood. But that’s where Inventor makes it possible through solid modeling for Bergström to design a board with the lightness of a foam board and combine it with the sturdiness and longevity of a wooden board. With the program, Bergström can digitally create a surfboard as thin or as thick as he wants, while being able to test the strength of the board. In this way, Bergström reduces the amount of unnecessary wood to create a light, yet durable wooden surfboard.

Bergström’s college background helped him develop his surfboard design. “I am an environmental scientist. I have a Ph.D. in Environmental Science and have taught at several Universities around the world.” He started the company in 2005, and has been shaping surfboards for family and friends since he was a child. “The combination of these two backgrounds led to the inception of 42 Surfboards,” said Bergström.

42 Surfboards has been using Inventor for over a year. Bergström was using another type of software when a friend told him about Inventor. “It did not take long before we made the switch.” They also use Board Cad, a Scandinavian-based free software.

42 Surfboards uses sustainably harvested wood as much as possible. They have it milled, then glue and chamber their own blanks.

It takes Bergström about 30 hours in a week-long time span to take a design from the concept to the manufacture of the surfboard, and Inventor makes this process smoother. “A surfboard is not your typical mechanical shape. Instead, it is a thoroughly organic shape. Still, if it is to be manufactured, the idea needs to be transferred to a digital file. Inventor makes this easy,” said Bergström.

Unfortunately not all of 42 Surfboards’ secrets are revealed. When asked what design techniques are used in the process, Bergström said, “That, I am afraid, is all top secret and happens behind a door marked with a skull and crossbones.” Regardless of not knowing all Bergström’s secrets, one thing is certain: thanks to Inventor’s digital prototyping capabilities, 42 Surfboards is able to make the dream of creating an environmentally friendly surfboard into a reality.

Every month, Autodesk awards a new Inventor of the Month to a user who exhibits extremely innovative uses of the software. Stay tuned for next month’s feature on the July Inventor of the Month.

From Experiencemanufacturing.com

42 Surfboards, the innovative manufacturer of classic surfboards has been named as Autodesk Inventor of the Month for June 2008.

The Oregon-based company uses Autodesk Inventor software to create its line of high-performance surfboards that are shaped entirely from sustainably harvested local woods. By avoiding materials like foam and balsa wood, which have a large carbon footprint, 42 Surfboards provides surf enthusiasts with a green alternative that reduces the environmental impact of the sport. In the past, foam and balsa wood have been the only materials that manufacturers could use to achieve the proper density ratios for their boards. But neither of these materials is very strong: foam and balsa wood boards often break within the first few months of use and need to be replaced. Additionally, both materials raise environmental concerns. Foam is petroleum-based, with a highly toxic manufacturing process, while balsa wood needs to be transported from South America to other parts of the world, making it prohibitive from a carbon-impact standpoint. Hardwoods have offered a greener alternative, but their weight adversely affect the speed and maneuverability of the boards.

Now, using Autodesk Inventor, 42 Surfboards has created a new generation of wooden surfboards by taking the strength of woods like spruce and poplar and giving them the lightness and performance of materials like foam and balsa wood. The key has been Inventor software's solid modelling functionality, which offers the ability to digitally shape a piece of hardwood and create a wooden surface exactly as thick or thin as needed. By precisely shaping the wood, 42 Surfboards minimizes the total weight while maximizing strength, creating a sturdy board that is very fast and highly maneuverable.

"Inventor is the difference between being able to do what we do, and only being able to imagine it", said Lars Bergstrom, president of 42 Surfboards. "With Inventor's solid modelling capabilities, we are able to be precise on the order of thousandths of an inch in designing our boards, and build them to exact specifications. We would not be able to get anywhere near the tolerance levels we require, and we would not be able to use locally grown and sustainably harvested wood for our surfboards, without solid modelling."Digital Prototyping enables 42 Surfboards to rapidly explore new product ideas and designs without the time and expense of creating physical prototypes. As a result, the company now offers seven different 100% wood surfboard models, designed to last a lifetime, helping to reverse the "disposable board" culture brought about by decades of inexpensive but fragile foam and balsa wood boards.
www.42surfboards.com/.

Each month, Autodesk selects an Inventor of the Month from the more than 700,000 users of Inventor. Winners are chosen for engineering excellence and groundbreaking innovation. For more information contact Autodesk at IOM@autodesk.com.

From Manufacturing Community Update

"Oregon-based 42 Surfboards is a manufacturer of classic American surfboards. By hand shaping local wood into beautiful high-performance surfboards, the company aims to change the very paradigm of choosing a surfboard."

Wow! That sounds really serious.....

Lars and the 42 Crew

From Valley of The Sun

"Valley of the Sun Sponsor 42 Surfboards was named Inventor of the Month by Autodesk for June 2008. 42 Surfboards uses Autodesk Inventor software to create its line of high-performance surfboards that are shaped entirely from sustainably harvested local woods. By avoiding materials like foam and balsa wood-which have a large carbon footprint-42 Surfboards provides surf enthusiasts with a green alternative that reduces the environmental impact of the sport. Nice work 42! ->"

Check out Valley of The Sun at Sponsorvalley.blogspot.com. Valley of The Sun is a movie you are not going to want to miss!

From 360 Guide

42 surfboards is one of the rare surfboard creators that make surfboards out of wood. Hollow, retro wooden beauties that can last a lifetime. Wood was the choice material for surfboards for a long long time and in recent times it looks like it has made a comeback.

The guy behind wooden surfboards from 42 surfboards is Lars Bergström. You can catch an interview with him at Phoresia.org or you can go straight to his blog where he follows the making of many of the wooden surfboards they make.

Taken from the Lars Bergström interview: "I have no clue what the volumes of our boards are. Our shapes are typically a little thicker with a little fuller rail than many of the other boards that you see in the water. This has less to do with the fact that we shape in wood and more to do with the idea that I like to build cheaters. Cheaters are boards that ride so well and so easy and grab you so many waves, that you feel like you are cheating. The rest of the world can feel like they are “progressing” by sitting neck deep in the lineup on their quad-fin skimboard. Don’t think I am not stoked to have them out there – I use that poor guy as my bouy marker so I know where to sit when I come back from my 50th wave of the session. "

How much? This might not be the first question from the wood surfboard buyer because for sure price can't be his motivation :) but right now you can get one for $4500.

As one might expect, people building wood surfboards care about their environment so another cool thing we found on their blog is the fact that besides giving money to both Sea Shepherd and Surfrider, they plant hundreds of trees for surfboard they build. In the coming year they plan on planting between 5000 and 7000 trees on the Oregon Coast. Good luck!

From Besportier.com

“... disposable boards just aren't going to cut it anymore. Nor are toxic boards made from the same old poisonous soup that has been used since the early ‘60s. By hand-shaping local wood into beautiful high performance surfboards, our goal is to change the very paradigm of choosing a surfboard. Instead of choosing the quick and easy, the cheap and sleazy, the pop-out molded spray-painted cookie cutter foam toy, we want you to think a little. Think about the long-term cost. The environmental cost. The aesthetic cost. The social cost. And then go with the choice that is simply better by nature.” So says Lars Bergström, who has a PhD in Environmental Science and is the founder of 42 Surfboards.

The makers of 42 Surfboards stand by their words and use sustainably harvested wood and abalone with the waste sawdust composted at a local nursery.

42 Surfboards believe that making the most durable boards possible is the best first step towards taking care of our environment. Even their offices use wind power and they are members of both Sea Shepherd and The Surfrider Foundation. 42 Surfboards.

Inventor of the month

Autodesk Names 42 Surfboards as Inventor of the Month for June 2008

Innovative Manufacturer Uses Autodesk Inventor Digital Prototyping Software to Develop Environmentally Friendly, High-Performance Wooden Surfboards

SAN RAFAEL, Calif., June 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Autodesk, Inc. has named 42 Surfboards, an Oregon-based manufacturer of classic surfboards, the Autodesk Inventor of the Month for June 2008. 42 Surfboards uses Autodesk Inventor software to create its line of high-performance surfboards that are shaped entirely from sustainably harvested local woods. By avoiding materials like foam and balsa wood-which have a large carbon footprint-42 Surfboards provides surf enthusiasts with a green alternative that reduces the environmental impact of the sport.

The Inventor of the Month program recognizes the most innovative design and engineering advancements made by the extensive community using products from the Autodesk Inventor software product family -- the foundation of the Autodesk solution for Digital Prototyping. A digital prototype is a realistic 3D model of the entire end product, used to virtually optimize and validate a product before it is built to reduce the necessity of constructing physical prototypes.
Historically, foam and balsa wood have been the only materials that major surfboard manufacturers could use to achieve the proper density ratios for their boards. Unfortunately, neither of these materials is very strong: foam and balsa wood boards often break within the first few months of use and need to be replaced.

What's more, both materials raise environmental concerns. Foam -- which is a petroleum-based product -- has a highly toxic manufacturing process, while balsa wood needs to be transported from South America to other parts of the world, making it prohibitive from a carbon-impact standpoint. Hardwood is much stronger than these materials -- and has been used by individuals for centuries to fashion surfboards -- but it has the disadvantage of being very heavy, which affects the speed and maneuverability of the board and its surfer.

Solid Modeling Leads to Innovation
Autodesk Inventor enables 42 Surfboards to create a new generation of wooden surfboards by taking the strength of woods like spruce and poplar and giving it the lightness and performance of lighter materials like foam and balsa wood.

The key is Inventor software's solid modeling functionality, which enables 42 Surfboards to digitally shape a piece of hardwood and create a wooden surface exactly as thick or thin as needed. By precisely shaping the wood, 42 Surfboards minimizes the total weight while maximizing strength, creating a sturdy board that is very fast and highly maneuverable.
"Inventor is the difference between being able to do what we do, and only being able to imagine it," said Lars Bergstrom, president of 42 Surfboards. "With Inventor's solid modeling capabilities, we are able to be precise on the order of thousandths of an inch in designing our boards, and build them to exact specifications. We would not be able to get anywhere near the tolerance levels we require, and we would not be able to use locally grown and sustainably harvested wood for our surfboards, without solid modeling."

Digital Prototyping enables 42 Surfboards to rapidly explore new product ideas and designs without the time and expense of creating physical prototypes. As a result, the company now offers seven different 100% wood surfboard models within its product lineup. Each model is designed to last a lifetime, helping to reverse the "disposable board" culture brought about by decades of inexpensive but fragile foam and balsa wood boards.

"42 Surfboards saw a market need for an environmentally friendly surfboard, and Inventor gave them the technology to make that vision a reality," said Robert "Buzz" Kross, senior vice president of Autodesk Manufacturing Solutions. "It is a pleasure to name 42 Surfboards as our Inventor of the Month."

About the Autodesk Inventor of the Month Program
Each month, Autodesk selects an Inventor of the Month from the more than 700,000 users of Autodesk Inventor software, the foundation for Digital Prototyping. Winners are chosen for engineering excellence and groundbreaking innovation. For more information about the Autodesk Inventor of the Month program, contact us at IOM@autodesk.com.
About 42 Surfboards

Oregon-based 42 Surfboards is a manufacturer of classic American surfboards. By hand shaping local wood into beautiful high-performance surfboards, the company aims to change the very paradigm of choosing a surfboard. For additional information about 42 Surfboards, visit http://www.42surfboards.com/.

From USA Today

"Stoked on a wooden surfboard"

For me -- an old school soul surfer who writes about technology -- it doesn't get any cooler than this.

Portland, Ore.-based surfboard maker Lars Bergstrom, of 42 surfboards, has used Autodesk Inventor software to create a line of seven high-performance surfboards shaped entirely from local woods. Bergstrom's boards could help "reverse the disposable board culture brought about by decades of inexpensive but fragile foam and balsa wood boards,” says Autodesk Senior Vice President Buzz Kross.

(Confession: I'm guilty of discarding a few pintailed guns in my time. Wish I had those back.)
Autodesk's prototype designing program enabled Bergstrom to digitally pre-shape a piece of wood exactly as thick or thin as needed. No trees killed wastefully. "Without this technology, we would not be able to get anywhere near the tolerance levels we require," Bergstom told me. "We would not have been able to use locally grown, sustainably-harvested wood that not only give soul to our boards, but give soul back to the earth.” Righteous!

By Byron

Posted at 05:30 AM/ET, July 21, 2008