Mike Marshall (R)

Mike Marshall (R), famous surfboard builder and surf historian died Saturday in Costa Mesa Ca. I was blessed to know Mike, and spoke with him last at Sacred Craft in San Diego. He really spread the aloha ! Rest in Peace Mike!

A rare stringerless Rapier made its way into our hands here at Harbour Surfboards this weekend! The whole Stringerless surfboard era began out of the quest to build lighter longboards. This quest in surfboard design began just before the longboard went out of fashion and the short board made made its way into popular surfboard culture. Consequently, these stringerless surfboards of the late 60’s are rare indeed. Needless to say, these things were amazing out in the water. During the summer of 1967, the Harbour crew discovered Cuatro Casas and the one stringerless surfboard brought was the only board in their traveling quiver that was fought over.
This stringerless Rapier,#5985, was built in 1968. These were much more difficult to shape because the absence of a stringer leaves no center line mark for the shaper. The talented Mike Marshall was Harbour’s expert stringerless board shaper at the time. Rumor has it Harbour has another stringerless design in the works….