Watch: Kelly Slater on the Cymatic
Late last year Slater had what he called "the most profound experience of my life" at a spiritual resort, now he's designing a board "that fits the vibration of a wave in our minds".
Slater designed the board with Daniel Thomson who's always come at board design from a different direction, one where the Golden Ratio and fractals light the metaphysical path, yet for most of Slater's career he was a student at Al Merrick's school of practical design. Now, however, the eleven-time world champ is transcending Al's empiricism. Levitating high above it.
The latest Tomo/Slater collab is called the Cymatic, and it continues the round nose, short rail line concept Slater began a decade ago with his Wizard Sleeve.
The Wizard Sleeve, and various other Slater incarnations, influenced shortboard design and for a few years the average length of the pro shortboard reduced. However, that moment has passed, boards have increased both in length and volume, especially in the wake of John John's world title performance.
The marketing spiel tells us the Cymatic is a hybrid of the Sci-Fi rear end and the Omni nose, and it's for surfers who love that "barely out of control in a fun way" feeling.
As always KS is more frank on Instagram:
"Cymatics is the study of wave phenomena, esp sound, and their visual representations. YouTube it to see the shapes that sounds of differing frequencies will create in sand on a metal plate (if you find the @slaterdesigns logo let me know the Hz frequency)."
"Tomo and I had this idea to make a board that fits the ‘vibration’ of a wave in our minds. The minimal amount of board to do the maximum amount of surfing. We chopped the nose off ahead of the rail line you need and went with a pretty wide battail (like the SciFi model). With the added bite of the channels the tail still holds while giving plenty of lift."
"This edit is from one session at Haleiwa in January. I actually took the board there as a joke that day cause it was too big for what I thought it could handle. I got my best rides earlier that session but this edit gives you an idea."
"This is a four fin 5’3” X 18-5/8 X 2-5/16” X 25.5L. I don’t want to ride anything else right now and everyone who rides it wants to take it off my hands."
How do you reckon it'll go at three foot, high tide Bells?
Comments
Great surfing, but lets face it KS would make an ironing board look easy to surf. I'd love to see Average Joe take one of these out to see how it compares to the standard board
exactly my thoughts as well.
I am happy to sacrifice myself... Can you please send me one :)
Not sure that's true here - this looks like sunset beach - which is really hard to surf (well) on a tiny board and also it's always been a thorn in KS' side (never done well here competitively). He is looking LOOSE here..sic
Gotta say that was some of the best Slater footage I have seen for a while. Loose and seeming to be having a blast. Unreal. If that's what the board does for him, great fun, well it is good for us as viewers of surfing. Who'd have thought...
Of all the different experimental boards from Kelly we've seen since the wizard sleeve, I think that looked the best so far. Obviously a touch too small, but that's a 5'3" at Haleiwa! Looked ridiculously fast and drivey in places where the board would be under extreme pressure to slide or let go, even looked like he was trying to spin it out. I'm not a huge SD fan but that was pretty impressive to me.
Yeah got me frothing, looks super super fun!
Unreal..ol baldy boy shredding.
Agree. Pro's also made the minimal volume banana boards of the 90's look good as well. Dont remember that turning out well for the average surfer.
I thought he looked sharper and somehow more interested than in a long time. Board looked great, but heck another 4-6" wouldn't go astray, would they?
Extra 4-6" b for visuals only ?
Nah, just a bit of extra rail for those waves.
Bloody hell. How old is this guy again?
I have a 5'6" Evo and a 5'8" Sci Fi. Also had a 5'8" Omni. Here's my rankings of these boards.
Evo - 1,000,000,000,000,000
Sci Fi - 1,000 (but haven't really had great waves to fully test ride it in yet)
Omni - 0
Found the Omni a right pig unless you were 100% in the pocket surfing. Just bogged down out of the pocket and had no speed in the turns.
Sci Fi - Jury still out and will wait to fully test ride it in Indo in August
Evo - Fck me what can I say....one of the most amazing boards ever ridden for me. The speed of this board is insane and especially through the turns. Unlike nothing I've ever ridden.
Don hired a SciFi in Portugal which was a tad bit floaty for me but it was insane in 3 foot mushy stuff, fast, loose and super easy to paddle. I am around 5'6" and 65k and the board was a 5'9" 29.2 lt. Very impressed I am saving to buy one unless anybody wants to sell me a second hand 5'8"?
No question KS is shredding, but is it just me or does the footage look like it's sped up just a tad?
Yep. I mean, it's Kelly, you could make a case that's how fast he surfs and most people would believe you, but watch the whitewater. It doesn't move like that in real time.
I've heard it said an old surf movie trick is to speed footage up by 10 per cent, but that could just be a rumour. Being charitable, maybe folks speed up footage for Instagram so they can fit more waves into the time limit.
Yep. I mean, it's Kelly, you could make a case that's how fast he surfs and most people would believe you, but watch the whitewater. It doesn't move like that in real time.
I've heard it said an old surf movie trick is to speed footage up by 10 per cent, but that could just be a rumour. Being charitable, maybe folks speed up footage for Instagram so they can fit more waves into the time limit.
Yep. I mean, it's Kelly, you could make a case that's how fast he surfs and most people would believe you, but watch the whitewater. It doesn't move like that in real time.
I've heard it said an old surf movie trick is to speed footage up by 10 per cent, but that could just be a rumour. Being charitable, maybe folks speed up footage for Instagram so they can fit more waves into the time limit.
Ahem. Apologies for the spam.
I just cannot believe how much speed he generates and quickly he's able to go from bottom turn to light speed......... amaaaaazzzzing!
Well so much for the broken toe excuse ,cough, but he is certainly ripping the bag.........
Ha ha...I think the recent 'excuse' was because he had pins removed - i.e cut him open to unscrew the metal bits.
"The minimal amount of board to do the maximum amount of surfing.
We chopped the nose off ahead of the rail line you need and went with a pretty wide battail.
With the added bite of the channels the tail still holds while giving plenty of lift."
Everyone should chop off sharp & thin noses, in fact they should be banned.
I was there that day and believe me he tore it to bits but
to be fare a few days later he was riding a longer board
(one of his designs) and surfed every bit as well.
Lets face it he is Kelly Slater he probably could ride one
of my boards and make it look just as good.
Was that Haleiwa ?
Looks like so much fun. Slater was belting it.
Doubt he'll ride that in comps because with the very short rail line the board struggles to carve through the second part of the turn.
The board goes flat, or loses the rail......when you compare to how hard JJF is carving through the second half of the turn, I think judges would really lowball Kelly on that.
Seen Dan Thompson absolutely shralping on a board slightly more double ended and pulled in at the tail, quad setup.
But you know what, that little Cymatic might go pretty good at 3 foot high tide Rincon......he'd be all over it.
“Barely out of control feeling in kook way”
Mia culpa
He could surf any board and still look great....and I,m far
more interested in his ayahuasca experience if that was the ceremony he undertook at the resort
Here here
That's crazy surfing as good as ever.
Bloody hell! Great surfing and the board turns on a dime without losing speed. Love watching how he surfs. What an inspiration!
Here's some very old footage of Cheyne surfing similar concept: in-and-around the pocket on a short rail length board - check how vert he can get the forehand bottom turn to lip hit:
There is some 3ft Rincon at the end I think.
Yeah that's Rincon at the end from Bells about 87-88 where he is the Blue wetty i remember the exact same footage/wave as a grommet i taped it on video from the news, i think he won that year and was in the sport report..also had him talking about the keel fin and how ben lexicon designed or inspired it.
1984 Bells win
Love seeing the best pushing the boundaries...4 fins and mini 5th?
Body & mind together...
Salamat سلامات
Umm. Is that not the quickest surfing ever caught on camera. Pros look good on camera. Even better in real life. But wasnt that a level beyond next?
Assuming it was real time and not 1.5x or some shit
Noob here.....but is there a way to slow down the clip ?
Sore foot my ass, when was this shot ?
January
Geoff McCoy was right eh .... seems like a lot of modern boards are heading where he thought they would. Just not as extreme.
Yesterday was (apparently) the anniversary of the Mini-Simmons a board which had a huge influence on Tomo via Richard Kenvin and the Hydrodynamica project. The board Kelly is riding is largely a result of that research into planing hulls and the like.It has little to do with the aims of pro surfing but is about riding waves for optimum experience and speed.This is (for me) much more interesting than the air game or the wallet drop or the two hands behind hack or "getting your feet in the wax" or "building a house" mentality of the tour....Looks like fun though.
watched the link of the video of Kelly Slater describing his experience . it. looks good he can't get the smirk of his face
watched the link of the video of Kelly Slater describing his experience . it. looks good he can't get the smirk of his face
watched the link of the video of Kelly Slater describing his experience . it. looks good he can't get the smirk of his face
I would love to see him surfing that board in those conditions on his backhand... me thinks it wont look very good
looks fast and fun on forehand tho
Personally i find these type of boards on my backhand even better especially quads.
Now that the vid is on utube give it a few watches at 1/2 or 1/4 speed..
Unreal!
Beachgrit : Freerides 5'6" Cymatic Review
Sharkman you mention Carcass Thomson suing son Dan over design infringement...is it over this Board do you know ?
"Carcass Thomson suing son Dan over design infringement"
Where's this, Udo? BG thread...?
Which one?
Comment from Brutus on Stab - Surf Mat Rage story.
thats not what is happening.
Nothing to it thats good.
It's not there now, however on a second read I've just joined a few dots that I missed first time around. Intriguing shit. Someone better watch themselves.
Still on there.
So if the cymatic is so good why was Kelly riding a Dan Mann shape at the ranch?
https://www.instagram.com/dan__mann/
the ding king insta simba......a tomo 'oh no'
The vibration of a wave? The beauty of a wave is its movement an ever changing vibration. Like the truth it is never static. Good on him for getting spiritual our quest as physical beings is to evolve our souls. Our earth is like our class room. I know that our final exams draw near. Most of us won't graduate.
Yes, there are ‘signs’?!$$$$$. Of miracles even!!! Once walking on the drink was considered a sign... and rightly so. Yet only recently even greater deeds, greater miracles... signs... were unleashed on the unsuspecting. An elite ‘thlete actually bent down and picked something up... off the ground even!!!! These are the...
Times have changed. Again. God is much older, it’s been a tough gig, inflation and all that stuff stops for no man... or God even. Once, sure, it made fiscal sense...
‘Gather round!!! No entry fee, come one come all!!! Free for all!!!’
‘Hungry you say... fish sanger’s on the house!!! Want more... easy, here, all you can eat, then some!!!’
‘It’s a miracle!!!’
‘Kill the cunt!!!’
Nothing against the odd snort of ayahuasca... God bless them!!?? But these days, in the ayahooscin’ age, even Gods feel the pinch!!??
‘Gather round!!! Again!!! Look inflation and all that, plus I’m getting on... book early... limited seats!!! *Fish sanger’s only $49.99... well, $49.95... no once only sale (benny... stoop), get in quick $49.89!!$$ Never to be repeated!!! Guaranteed miracle to be performed!!! Aliens on parade!!!
*Fish sangers limited to first 100 punters... mayo extra.
*Entry fee $2000... plans available...
*Mandatory ayahooscin salad extra $1000 pay when booking.
*Aliens dependant on availability and season.
‘It’s a miracle... stoop seen it aaayyee... but!!! The light wuz gleamin’ off ‘is scone and he fuck’n bent down an’ picked shite up an’ shit... eeleete fuck’n shite... even all the injarees couldn’t stop ‘im!!!$$?? Aye... wots that... nar, not farkin’ bennie yar farkin idiuts...
Slater on another 5'3" quad Tomo Cymatic at Haleiwa - same as the clip above.
Its amazing what an ayahuasca trip will help you visualise ...no wonder it was profound
although after listening to him on the Joe Rogan podcast he seemed a bit egotistically desperate..
maybe he should have had an iboga trip instead
Spiritual I thought that KS was a clean living character now I know hes on LSD.
Has anyone else noticed that those Tommos go yellow after just a few weeks
mine did in winter as well very disappointing. Its a SKX goes alright thou.
Ive had about ten plus EPS/Epoxy boards, it's weird some have gone yellow and some haven't not just FW's either had a EPS/Epoxy chilli go extremely yellow.
I think its the actual epoxy resin that yellows and i think its a batch thing maybe the mix or something
Ive seen a lot for sale secondhand but all still very white, so surprised to hear this i thought they might have somehow started preventing the yellowing thing but guess not.