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LeBoss Surfboards

By: Jeff Shapiro

By KAVU

November 23^rd, 2021

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When my family and I first moved to the coast, Hayden Peters (one of our dearest friends on the planet) had been living there for many years and, lucky for us.... introduced us to an amazing group of creative and solid human beings; most of whom have now become the people we love to share time with most.

One of those people is Ryan LeBoss.

Because of my psyche for surfing, I'm sure our paths would have crossed anyway but, when I'd come visit my friend Hayden, and we'd get on the subject of boards, shapes and all that goes into picking the right craft for a particular day's waves, Ryan and his shapes always ended up being part of those conversations.

Ryan is an interesting dude. He's super smart, hyper talented and a skilled pro at all he does. But, although he's been shaping surfboards for a long while now, he's recently given up other financially driven work to pursue shaping and glassing surf-craft full time, simply because it makes him happy.

I find that to be not only interesting but also, super inspiring. It seems like most of us spend most of our time working at a job that's not super satisfying so that we'll have the money to hopefully, do what we love most. Problem is.... living now for better days later is bullshit (in my humble opinion).

So, to see someone who's a good father, and could literally do anything he put his mind to choose happiness and fulfillment over security and a singular focus on financial stability is a good example for me. It's certainly the kind of life I want to continue living.

And, lucky for us, his "work" results in surfboards of various shapes and sizes that bring some serious joy to life!

I've discovered over the years that, on top of having the right board for "the day" anywhere I might find myself surfing in the world..... specific boards in a surfer's "quiver" can also be designed for particular places and the type of waves most commonly found there. In Oregon, like a lot of the West Coast, the waves have a very distinct character at most breaks. All types can be found for certain, but at most of the consistent breaks on this raw and rugged coast line, certain boards work REALLY well and others.... not so much.

Ryan's shapes are fantastic for many places but, definitely ideal for the waves on the west coast of the U.S. in particular. I've always been more of a "short board" guy, but any surfer without a "log" in their quiver is a surfer using the WRONG board on many days. I especially noticed this fact after watching Ryan and other friends having way too much fun walking up and down their nose-riders, catching pretty much every wave they want and styling their way to the beach while those of us on short boards were flailing.

So, one day after getting out of the water, I asked Ryan about it. He told me that his favorite board to shape was a 9'6", classic nose-rider log (long board).... a model that he affectionately calls the "Kenny Loggins". I'd seen him ripping on his "Kenny" and know that his stoke and passion is injected into any board he shapes and glasses.

Right then and there, I ordered one and the journey began;-)

After sharing some time and waves with Ryan, it was cool to also watch him work a bit. He likely wouldn't agree with me but the word "mastery" comes to mind. Each step in the process was done with love and care..... in a way that only someone who truly understands what surfing can mean in someone's life. A surfboard made for a surfer, by a surfer.

Useable Art

The finished board is a thing of beauty.

If you're looking to put a magic board in your quiver, from a twin fin Fish to a Kenny Loggins, shoot Ryan a message. You most definitely won't be sorry!

KAVU days ahead!!

Jeff Shapiro

Footnotes

For Jeff, surfing has been a life long passion that he's only recently been able to fully immerse in. Follow on his wave riding adventures "local worldwide"

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FootNotes

For Jeff, surfing has been a life long passion that he's only recently been able to fully immerse in. Follow on his wave riding adventures "local worldwide"

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