Surftech has generated a lot of publicity over the past few years. Reading through online forums I have discovered the wrath of the old school and purists stands strong against change, whilst a large number of people swear by innovation regardless of its possible impact on the shaping industry. I'll say straight up that I'm not going to argue the point of surftech versus conventional boards - I'm going to tell you how this particular board performed over 3 months of intensive use in a range of countries and conditions.

Board Dimensions

The model tested: 5'11 Ratboy
N: 11 1/2"
M: 18 1/2"
T: 14 1/2"
Th: 2 1/8"
Tail: Squash
Colour: Grey (Gray if you're in the USA)

About the shaper (as detailed on the Surftech Site):

At just 33 years old, M10 Surfboards founder/shaper Geoff Rashe finds himself at the helm of one of the world's hottest new shortboard labels. He is one of the first shapers in the USA to use in-house CNC technology for both design and production. As a contributing designer to the Surftech program, Rashe feels he brings modern precision to traditional art of his elder colleagues.

He shaped his first board in 1989 while a student at U.C. San Diego. "It was a 6' 4" roundpin that I shaped for myself, but I sold it for $120. Back in Santa Cruz, Rashe worked at Arrow Surfboards from 1994 to 1996 and claims Bob Pearson as his biggest influence. Halfway through 1996 he started his own surfboard company, naming it M10 in honor of Mach 10. "I started under my mom's deck here at her house on the Westside," Rashe said. "Then for a short time I was in Watsonville and then we moved to the factory where we are now on the Westside of Santa Cruz.

About the Reviewer

Surfing for 17 years, with a focus on performance shortboard riding. By no means a pro but one of the guys who is out there on days big and small, throwing a bit of spray, pulling in and going for some of the manoeuvres he read about in Taj Burrows Book of Hot Surfing. He weighs in at a whopping 72kgs and measures a monster 175cms in height (look it up in Google if you want conversions). So, he may be a lightweight but in the words of Taj - "small guys surf with finesse" (or something like that).