Mike Whisnant, Derek Jackson and Ryan Lovelace Bring Trimcraft Surfboards to Florida

Photo courtesy: Ryan Lovelace

A self described “collaborative family of shapers,” Trimcraft Surfboards boasts a craftsman’s roster made up of familiar names such as Rich Pavel and Gerry Lopez, in addition to Ryan Lovelace. Supported by a team of trusted shapers, Trimcraft has been turning out 100% hand shaped boards since 2016.

While their crew of shapers helps support distribution across California, Oregon and New Jersey, the recently announced partnership between Derek Jackson of Useless Toys Glassing and Mike Whisnant of Whisnant Surfboards helps expand Trimcraft’s footprint to the southeast by way of Florida.

“I met Ryan a couple years ago at the Boardroom show through a friend of mine, Derek,” recalls Mike. “Derek was glassing his boards in California at Jeff Hull Fiberglass… [he] ended up moving back to Florida and taking over my glass shop (@uselesstoysglassing).”

While Derek and Ryan had been discussing bringing Trimcraft to the southeast for some time, it was when Mike showed interest in shaping for them that the idea really took off.

Whisnant is a fixture of the Jacksonville, FL surfing community, and one of the most respected board builders on the Atlantic Coast. He’s earned top honors at Surf Expo - winning the Florida Shape Off in 2011 and 2015, as well as the Masters of Masters title in 2016. Since launching the Whisnant Surfboards label over 30 years ago, Mike has shaped every kind of short board, long board, mid-length and alternative that has graced the waters of Atlantic Beach and the surrounding areas. That experience made the partnership with Mike an easy one for Ryan.

“Someone recently commented on a post of mine that they’d rather have a perfect CNC shaped board than a lumpy hand shape - and I agree,” Lovelace commented on a recent Instagram post. “But what about a perfect hand shape? Now that, my friends, is something special and something worth sharing. Mike has the skill in excess and I’m STOKED to share and learn with him as we open up the TC doors in Florida in the coming weeks!”

It’s collaborations such as these that have the ability to expose local surfers and shapers alike to new board designs and possibilities of what a well rounded quiver can look like.

While no formal announcements have yet been made, you can follow @trimcraft_surfboards, @ryanlovelace and @whisnant_surfboards to stay up to speed on the news.

For more information, visit Whisnant Surfboards and Trimcraft Surfboards