Samaniego Designs

Here's the craftsman, Chris Samaniego, hard at work mowing foam. This photo was back in the old days when he was cranking out boards.

As many in the surf industry know shapers are one of the most underpaid jobs. This is a skill that takes years to master, hand shaping every minute detail. Certainly a labor of love as there is hardly any financial reward.

These days Chris has cut back to just shaping as a hobby. Now he has a little more time for his jazz singing, trumpet playing and landscaping jobs.

Here's Chris (circa 1995) with one of his rare longboards. Unfortunately there is not much room in the shaping bay for anything over nine feet!

Chris is one of the few shapers who will shape, glass, sand and finish a board (if you twist his arm a little and supply him with a few beers). If you are after quality, from start to finish, this is the way to go - how many times has a great shape turned into an average board because the glass-shop or the sander had a bad day?

Personnally I feel Chris's specialty is in the 7 - 8 foot length of board. Over the years he has developed designs that work for me in anything from 2' slop to 10' suck-out. (In case your wondering I am a mediocre goofyfoot weighing around 200 lbs and 6' tall and have surfed for about 10 years).

Chris starts with a blank that is thick, wide and has lots of rocker. Using hard rails, tri-fin set up and contoured bottoms finished off with an sturdy glass job he has produced boards that have worked in all conditions.

These surfboards have been tested in the winter extremes of Northern Scotland and North Shore Kauai, to the summertime tropics of Costa Rica and desert coastline of Baja.

Chris, mahalo for all the good times and the great boards.

Samaniego Designs

www.silcom.com/~peat/samaniego.html

Back to the Front Page <---------------> Back to Peats Surf Page

email peat