FCS IGNITION
I have collaborated with FCS recently to develop a single fin. The idea was to design a fin with maximum drive and minimum drag. The series come in three sizes and are called the IGNITION; they are high aspect flex fins. Ignition Fins feature a narrow base width and sharp leading edge foil to minimize drag for fast down the line and start up speed. A more vertical appearance from reduced rake makes for easy tight arc turns, which allows you to surf the waves pocket, not just the shoulder. Also having felt the memory of surfboard fins has somewhat been forgotten about (e.g. the best Volan fins had a slow cushy flex, but were used in old, slow, heavy boards. And these days most longboard fins have no flex at all). So Ignition Fins are designed with 90 degree glass orientation for maximum tip flex, giving the upright template more control to perform with, fast, responsive, modern boards.
My Fin History
My interest in FCS started from the car park at Nth Avalon Beach, when Bill McCausland and Gary Mountford showed me a prototype of a fin system they were developing with Inventor Brian Whitty. I was a kid who enjoyed riding a broad range of surfboard designs. The shapes, foils and function of surfboard fins fascinated me from an early age, so FCS just seemed to make sense. FCS being my local fin System Company and Bill encouraging me to try different, sometimes-dysfunctional fin designs gave me a better idea of what didn’t work for me and what did.
The more developed and refined my boards become, the more l believe that the design of a surfboard should in fact start with the fin/fins. How can a surfboard design function at its full potential without the proper fin? Recently l have put most of my focus on fin design and function, and with this allow the rest of the design qualities of the board to flow from there.
I watch Derek Hynd surfing his finless boards, and l am inspired by the speed he can reach. The only problem with this is when he makes a direction change at high speed, all his boards seem to be capable of are spinning out, but resulting in the most technically stylish 360 you’ll ever see!
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The perfect balance between fin and board design working in unison should allow you to surf any part of the wave, without any limitation between the two designs.
Photo Gallery
Pictured Carlos Gonsalves
Photos by Nathan Oldfield
As seen in Insight catalogue
