The Meyerhoffer Surfboard has gained world recognition since it’s launch, and is now being honored with one of the most prestigious design awards, the Gold International Design Excellence Award (IDEA).
This program, a premier international competition honoring design excellence, has acknowledged the Meyerhoffer Surfboard as one of the most radical design innovations that longboarding has seen in a generation.
Manufactured by Global Surf Industries (GSI), this ultra-modern take on the traditional Longboard was created by world-renowned industrial designer, Thomas Meyerhoffer. By incorporating elements of a long board and a short board, the Meyerhoffer offers surfers a more evolved experience.
Interview with Thomas Meyerhoffer By John Bradley
Why the radically unique shapes of these boards?
Thomas Meyeroffer : The first question people always ask is “what makes them better? Are they faster?” I want to say, “It depends on whether or not you had a burrito before you went surfing.” Because it really does. It’s your own perception of that experience that matters more than anything, and your experience is about a lot more than just the board you’re on.
Performance still matters though, right?
Thomas Meyeroffer : Of course. Obviously there are new categories and innovations all the time. There’s always a kind of design movement, which is good i guess. But within that context, you still have to design a product that really works. Shaped skis took a while to catch on, but they performed so much better. Now everybody needs them.
What’s the ultimate goal with this project, then?
The same as with any sporting project: A product that gives the user a better experience within his or her abilities. Designing to their abilities is super important, and that’s what I want to get across with these shapes. Stop thinking about how a piece of equipment is supposed to look or how it’s supposed to perform for someone else, and focus instead on your own experience.
If a beginner tried to surf Kelly Slater’s board, he might give up surfing.Even a lot of pros can’t ride his boards. He has a very strange entry rocker. It works for him, but not really for anyone else. So, do you want Kelly Slater’s board, or do you want a good experience while you’re surfing?
So if something looks like more it will be fun, it will be?
That’s what this project is about: Open your mind and feel your experience. Don’t search for something that doesn’t exist. Don’t search for performance, because performance is only perceived by yourself. These boards started out as an experiment, and they’ve taught me to be more patient in everything, to always search for that higher experience. It might come from an unexpected area or an unexpected angle.
Or an unexpected shape.
Exactly. It’s so important that you don’t follow the tracks that were laid so many years before. When you are tasked with creating the next generation of something, it’s hard to take a big step forward. I feel like 98 percent of design is just refinement of what has existed before. So objects become more complex, diluted versions of the initial clear concept...There’s no need to do anything in this day and age unless it makes a change.
For more on Thomas Meyerhoffer products : http://meyerhoffer.com/
Photography By : Nick Allen
