USA: Surfers deal with shortage of "Endless Summer" after closing of legendary California surfboard foam factory.

The surf may be up, but the mood at many southern California beaches has been anything but upbeat lately. In early December, Clark Foam, the company that for years has been the pre-eminent supplier of blanks -- large blocks of foam -- used to make surfboards, suddenly closed its doors. That news left the normally laid back surfing community in a state of shock. "There are not going to be surfboards," worried surfer Chase Carlston of San Clemente, California. "I have a lot of friends that shape and there are going to be a lot of jobless people. A lot of people will be without surfboards. It will be a surfboard depression." Old timers like surfer Mike "Frosty" Shanahan, while not as despondent as Carlston, were also concerned. "I have a few (surfboards made from Clark foam) left," explained "Frosty. "But, it is disturbing. We might have to go back to the old days where we strip the glass off, reshape them and glass them over again." Others were justifiably upset about rising prices. "Prices are going up. I heard Stewart prices are up 200 dollars (USD) and Becker up 150 (USD). So I can expect what is going to happen in the future." What's in the past now is Clark Foam, which shut down production after 44 years. In a seven page letter to suppliers, Gordon "Grubby" Clark, who along with Hobie Alter invented the modern surfboard, said he just got tired of fighting with environmental regulators. The 73-year-old surf pioneer explained that after years of legal battles, both state and local agencies were cracking down hard on the use of a toxic chemical at his Laguna Niguel factory. The suddenness of the closing though still caught many by surprise. "The product is real good because the moulds and rockers, everyone has put a lot of work into his moulds," said custom boardmaker Pierre "Fly" Van Swae. "Everyone that is a good shaper has a made a plug and out of that plug Clark has made a mould. So, you have all these different people, famous shaper's, who've made plugs and Clark Foam has made beautiful moulds from that and it's a shame they're getting broken up." There are alternatives though like the cheaper, mass produced boards from Asia. But many surfers say there is just no comparison to the U.S.-produced models, which can sell for up to 900 U.S. dollars. In the meantime, demand has already soared with stores reporting prices rising by between 30 and 50 percent because of the expected supply shortage.

ITN Source | December 17, 2005

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