Newport Paipo Boards ad copy, SURFER Magazine, September 1970

For the past month and a half, Larry Sheflo, surfer; Mike Ballard, surfer-designer; and Ron Romanosky, kneerider-shaper of Newport Paipo, have been deeply involved in a revolutionary new concept.

It all started when someone suggested we build a board that had the best features of both a short surfboard and a kneeboard. Well, now the testing is over and we have just that vehicle. We call it the Shoe . . . here’s how it moves.

First, the take-off is a lot easier than on an ordinary kneeboard. We added some length (5'1") and displacement so paddling is no hassle. You don’t even need fins.

Taking the drop is a whole new thing. The idea is to gain stability and lower your wind resistance by staying on your knees or prone. If wave-curl involvement is what it’s all about, the Shoe is a natural. You can even duck in under the lip for added push.

The bottom turn is probably the most outstanding feature of the surf-kneeboard synthesis. As you hit the bottom of the wave, you can push all the way up from your knees. Be ready for an unbelievable burst of speed. Just choose your direction, the Shoe will get you there.

We haven’t even started to explore all the possibilities. We’ve found that by repeating the drop and push maneuvers, we can make unbelievably fast waves and create a whole new rhythm at the same time.

We put a neoprene deck patch on the Shoe. (Better living through research.) It’s easy on the knees and slip-proof too.

You can surf it, you can ride on your knees. It’s easier than riding a surfboard and more fun than a shorter kneeboard. You can combine and create with the Shoe, the newest child of the speed generation.

Order direct from Newport Paipo. Just send $95.00 ($6.00 extra for neoprene deckpatch).

"More New Directions: the Knee-Surfboard," Peter Dixon, SURFER, November 1970

With surfboards moving down in length to the six-foot range, and belly-kneeboards moving up in length to the five-foot range, the combining of these two styles of boards and riding seems like a natural progression for surfing. These new short but buoyant vehicles afford surfers the stability and speed of the prone and knee positions, while at the same time letting the surfer stand to make full use of his height for added leverage on drawn-out turns.

The shape of these new boards reflects the flat-bottom, low-edge trend now popular for speed and edge control. The outlines are generally full, to offer as much planing surface as possible. Many of these stand-or-kneel designs are thick for flotation, and feature a scooped-out concave deck allowing the rider an even lower center of gravity.

Surfers Ron Romanosky, Mike Ballard and Larry Sheflo got their heads together recently and tested the knee-surfboards.

Romanosky: “I’m not a stand-up surfer, never really liked anything but kneeriding. But on the knee-surfboard, you can stand once you’re stabilized. The takeoff comes easily, since there’s more planing surface, and with a few strokes it moves right out. I’m fourteen inches longer than the board, and it still took off with a single stroke.”

Ballard: “After a few trips on these new boards I learned to stay down on my stomach or knees for more speed until I was stable and in front of the break, then I got up. The board was so steady I could even ride the nose.”

Sheflo: “I’ve ridden this knee-surfboard more than the other guys. I’m used to it. I ride it fast, right to the bottom for speed, and then I come up to my feet. After that, it’s like riding a regular board, and I’ve made really fast-sectioning waves on it. Some waves are just too quick, so I stay down to lower my wind resistance and get out of trouble faster. It’s so short you can ride Huntington standing after surfing hours [during blackball], and the lifeguards won’t even hassle you.”

Ballard: “I ride as far forward as I can because these things don’t seem to want to pearl. If I feel like I’m stalling out, I'll reach forward, push the nose down with my hand, and pick up speed.”

Romanosky: “Since I’m tall and heavy, the knee-surfboard doesn’t glide well for me, and I have to stay in the steepest part of the wave or lose it—but that’s okay, ’cause that’s where I ride it anyway.”

Sheflo: “You’ve got to stay where the wave is steep, but it turns so fast you’re right back in it before the stall comes.”

Ballard: “I think my fin was too deep. I had a little trouble sideslipping. When I cut it down, the board should slip better. Maybe I’ll try surfing it without one.”

Each of these surfers had a distinctively unique style and technique which they applied to their supershort wave sticks. Romanosky didn’t bother to try standing; he was having too much fun doing his own knee brand of surfing. Larry Sheflo surfed both ways, and Mike Ballard came to his feet on every wave. They had a choice and made it, depending on how they felt and what the wave was doing.

This new, free direction in design and riding is not only advantageous to the experienced surfer but is also a breakthrough for the beginner. The knee-surfboards are perfect vehicles on which to experience the first sensations of sliding in a prone position, edging into a turn, and getting to one’s knees. Small enough to carry on a bus, bike, or hitchhike to the beach, the new boards allow a beginner to start out, not on an obsolete 9' 4", but on a progressive shortboard. As his ability and confidence grows, the board will match his needs.

NOTE: Con Surfboards produced the Shoe for Newport Paipo Boards. Con, in turn, made a near-identical model under their own label called the Deuce.

SHOE

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