Despite the deep connection to Earth that can be found through surfing waves around the world, the process of creating a typical surfboard is anything but earth-friendly; among other materials used in the traditional surfboard manufacturing process include polyurethane blocks and various glassing chemicals whose waste gets tossed into waste bins once the finished board is ready to go.
While surfboard shapers and material manufacturers have been experimented with more sustainable materials within the past few years, few designs are actually fully sustainable and on-par with the original surfboard designs that were made from 100% natural materials. Now, tequila brand Jose Cuervo and renowned surfboard shaper Gary Linden have partnered up to develop a surfboard design that is 100% agave, which they believe is the most sustainable surfboard design ever made.
To create the board, Linden himself harvested the agave which was used for fabricating all parts of the board including the stalk for the board’s blank, pulp in place of cloth, mashed leaves for reinforcement and finally, sap for sealant:
“Most shapers keep their innovations a secret, but I feel strongly that this is where our industry needs to go,” says Linden. “I’m happy to lead by example, and share what I’ve learned. Jose Cuervo and I will continue to work together to improve and perfect this process so that other shapers can adopt it.”
While the partnership with Jose Cuervo was certainly a nice touch for the tequila brand’s marketing department, Linden said that the company gave him full access to their agave facilities during the duration of the project to help perfect materials and experiment with different parts of the agave. Additionally, the partnership allowed Linden access to Mexican jimadors (agave farmers), scientists and local artisans for research purposes before the project began.
You can find out more about the process by heading over to the 100% Agave Project Tumblr page.
