IT'S OFFICIAL! We are the best fish shaper in Britain and Ireland. That's right, the best, and we haven't just decided that and thought we would tell you, it was decided by you and the rest of the country.
Those lovely chaps at Carve decided it was about time we found out who could do what in the board manufacturing industry thorughout Britain and Ireland, and it turns out the fishes that we have been drooling over for the last fews years are the best a man can get.
I know I speak for Jools and the whole company when i say thank you for every shaper and every surfer who voted for us, it means a great deal to us all.
So whether it be a Quad, thruster, or Twin fin set up get yourselves over to us, or on our soon to be live online shop and find that perfect one for you.
Al and cotty are set to do the Nelscott big wave competition this Thursday 22nd October! Looks like it could be a great day fot it too. Dont forget its a tow in comp and also features a paddle in competition for an overall winner.
Check the swell here. It's gonna be HUGE if a little cloudy!
For a video of a previous contest check this!
Good luck boys!
Matt Hawkeshaw our resident glasser is really coming into his own lately. His cuts are perfect, his colours deep and drawing, his techniques are flawless. Infact he is so good he is now finding time in his amazingly packed schedule to play around with complex 3 tone tints on stock boards!
So i thought i would let you see a few just so you can see what I mean.
If you think they look good on here you should come in the shop and have a look when they are all polished and buffed up!
We look forward to seeing you!!
Andrew and Al have just accepted their invitation back to Nelscott Reef for The Tow in Classic! This contest alone is a true achievement, and being their second time round I'm sure they are very happy to go back.
This year they have changed the format too which will make things interesting! In 2008 they introduced a 'paddle in' heat to a 'tow in' only contest, with this heat proving to be popular with both fans and contestants thay have decided to let the top eight preliminary surfers have a one hour paddle in heat. The contestant with the highest combined total from both disciplines will be crowned '2009 Kingfish'
This is the very first contest to combine both disciplines in one day at one location and should be a really good big wave event!
I know that everyone at Gulf Stream wishes Cotty and Al the best of luck!
The event has a 3 month waiting period starting on the 1st October and dont worry we shall keep you updated!!! Good Luck boys.
See Nelscott Reef
With thanks to Richard Hallman for this photograph.
Over the last few years Andrew Cotton has teamed up with Alistair Meanie to try their hand at the world of tow surfing. They Have become quite a partnership being invited to events such as the XXL and are still working together chasing big swells.
This year they are hoping to get nominated for more awards and are always aiming to better themselves. As these videos show they are really pushing themselves and their equipment, we are so happy to make these boards for Cotty. He really pushes his boards to the limit and it shows that Julian can shape any board needed, whether it be a 10ft log for Saunton of a 5'11 quad with lead strips for weight and foot straps to surf Aileens!
Check out these videos for the good and bad sides of Al and Cotty's adventures!
I had a great phone call 4 weeks ago, from a man called Alex Stanley. He had a really good idea for a board. It started with a simple idea of a 6'2'' x 19'' x 2'' 1/2, fixed fin resin tint. Together we came up with a great Bluey menthol colour, add that to some lovely Fins from RFC and we really had a great board in the pipeline.Ê
After the tint came the logo ideas! First of all Alex decided he did not want the standard shortboards decals, so we discussed the painted on one designs. He went for these in white and we think the finished product is truely excellent, the colours, the shape all of it put together has been a real eye catching conversation started!
To be honest we are sad to see it go!
Yes its finally here, after years of talk and months of discussion our new site is live! We hope you find it easier to use and that it truely shows Gulf Stream at it best. Simple, Stylish and fully commited to making the finest Hand made surfboards.
The site is not quite finished and will be constantly updated with new sections, including artwork pages, more gallery photos of the guys at work, more boards and maybe even a members club and hopefully by the end of the summer an online shop! So do really keep you eyes on the site because it is going to get better and better.
If any of you lovely customers have photos of yourself or loved ones riding our creations we always like to see them even if it is just a cheeky photo of you on the beach! Feel free to e-mail any comments or photos to us at
Go enjoy the wonderful weather we are having lately! More news coming soon!
We are working very closely with Andrew Cotton (Gulf Stream Team Rider), and Richard Gregory of Wavedreamer to capture the inner world of low tide Croyde! We are not using a GOPRO camera. We use a sony HDVA1E with a century optics 180 degree super fish eye in a ewa marine dive bag adapted with velcro, aluminuim, closed cell foam and an Ikelite port. Its set on SDV as the HD compression can't handle the detailed movement of white water.
All of these precise specifications added to Andrew's great surfing ability have given us this first little clip...
To view the clip click here. Keep checking back for further updates to the video.
