Scott Czerwonka // Czerwonka Surfboards
Scott Czerwonka
Czerwonka Surfboards
Photos by: Quinn Diamond / @quinnstgram
Words by: Scott Czerwonka
Glen Kennedy taught me everything I know about shaping.
I used to watch Glen make all my surfboards. Twenty-something boards later, I asked if we could shape one together. It was a pretty rough start, but he always stressed the fundamentals. The way he adjusted his rockers, how he set up his blanks, and his approach to bottom contours still sticks with me to this day. I was blown away by how much of the board he shaped, before he even cut the outline.
Glen always told me that after 2,000 boards, you start to get the hang of it. That number has always stuck with me and every year I strive to do a few more than the year before. My mid-lengths and fish shapes are strongly Kennedy influenced still to this day.
As time went on, I started to develop my own style of shaping and board design, while pulling from history for inspiration.
I found myself attracted to the curves and complex outline of Greg Noll’s Da Cat model. I can’t pinpoint exactly why, but the way the hip and the tail curve flow, I was just into it more than the Nuuhiwa noserider or the standard dimension longboards of the 1960’s.
My Sleeper longboard model was heavily influenced by the Yater Spoon; I took everything that I liked about that outline, and then widened it and adjusted the curve in the tail to make it a more noseride-able piggy longboard. I also made some rocker adjustments, changed the foil design completely, and then shaped a slightly different rail to allow for ease of use while accommodating different noseriding styles and ability.
Another shape I had been working on over the summer of 2019 was my Ocean Drive model. This outline always gets me excited to shape; it’s along the same lines as a Sleeper, but it’s more for the laid back surfer that’s maybe not as demanding on the rail and not quite noseridng as deep in the pocket as the Sleeper demands. But without hesitation, you can rail turn either design.
“The Sleeper is fast, whippy and aggressive… it’s been my go-to and favorite shape for many years.”
- Scott Czerwonka
My premier mid length model called the Hip Pin is truly a quiver killer. I can make them almost any size and they really can do a lot from just putting around and learning in waist high surf, to opening up and excelling in bigger surf for a more advanced rider. I would say I have made more of these than any other board the last few years. They sport low rocker, subtle single to double concave, with a touch of Vee out the tail. We can do any fin configuration you ask for on these as it’s truly the most versatile design I shape.
I grew up in the valley surfing Malibu all summer and the point breaks of LA county, but my heart belongs to Topanga. You can find me surfing there most days of the week; it’s the place I learned as a kid and the wave that consistently challenges me, even after all these years. I never get used to it or bored of it, the whole beach will always hold a special place in my heart. While I find myself at the points more often then the beach breaks, I do enjoy getting thrown over a ledge at Zuma…but not often, haha! I’ve fine tuned all of my board designs across LA county beaches, but I’m constantly dreaming of new lines and designs.
-Scott
For more information, visit Czerwonka Surfboards