"Britt Merrick is the 43-year-old son of shaping guru, Al Merrick. No prizes for guessing who his biggest shaping influence is. He’s been shaping for 25 years and the craft he made for Stab in the Dark was a tweaked version of popular Channel Islands model, the Fred Rubble. “The only major change was I tweaked the rocker between his feet, especially in front of the front fins. I straightened that area to get it going a little faster. I’d love to see this board ridden on a pointbreak, like Snapper, with a good, steep wall, and down-the-line surfing.”
Britt Merrick breaks down our
all-time most popular design, The Flyer... In 1999 Al was searching for a
solution to team riders’ dilemma of needing more speed and flow in lesser waves
while maintaining high performance, world tour level surfing. The answer was a
board that departed from the then overly narrow designs and set the stage for
the modern performance shortboard that is now wider and shorter. The Flyer is
easily the most ridden and enjoyed all around board in our history.Best as an everyday board in everyday conditions, The Flyer has a single
concave entry to double through the middle and a vee exit, Al’s signature bump
squash, slight down rail, and a subtle nose beak. To be ridden approximately
the same length as you are tall.
"Here we capture a couple of the first team sessions on the EPS and carbon fiber CJ Nelson Designs x Dead Kooks collaboration board, the Guerrero. Pushing our longboard surfing to our personal limits through new building materials and design is the goal. Evolving our sport with an open mind, respect and love. Soak up the good times vibes -cj"