Firewire Teamrider Update

[Wandi]

I think Taj has been the best in the world in 2/3 ft fun rights for years regardless of what's under his feet

[soggy]

Must have been nothing but a coincidence

[Wandi]

Not sure what your point is Soggy
I used to live in Yallingup before I relocated to the east coast and have seen a lot of Taj's surfing at close quarters
What he does in fun rights is amazing
When he's on and confident he's unstoppable regardless of what's under his feet
It's obvious the boards he's riding now gives him that confidence
And I'm sure when he won pipe a few years ago he had the same feeling of confidence
Yeah it's a shame for the FW guys but I'd be stoked to see him get a world title even if he's shaping his own boards

[soggy]

My point is, you cant accept the fact that P/U boards could work better for Taj. I never said Firewires are sh*t, I thought Taj looked better on his P/U boards. His surfing and result obviously showed it. At their level it does matter what board is under their feet. Clearly if it didnt matter Taj would still be on firewires.

[buzzy]

People said much the same thing when he went on to Firewires in the first place soggy (faster, more fluent etc). I personally think it's more about a change up than "better". That's what Taj said, it's what Johnny Gannon has said and it's what Firewire say. From what I know Taj had been on pretty much the same shape for an eon - Firewire pretty much replicated his Greg Webber board in a different tech. Now he's gone a bit flatter and wider. Maybe he'd like that new shape better in Firewire tech? Who knows. Taj made two or three finals last year on his Firewire so they can't be all bad. Mick Fanning surfs Mayhems too and that doesn't mean DHD suddenly can't shape. Steoh Gilmore surfed a SA in her semi and a DHD in the final. It doesn't mean SA suddenly made a crap board.

I'd love to see Taj win a world title. Mind you. I'd prefer to see Joel win one. Ideally I'd like to see both win one before they pack it in. They both deserve it.

I just wonder though whether Firewire might consider engineering some more mass into the boards for onshore conditions? The "story" is Slater opted for those conditions last year believing his PU board was better than Taj's lighter firewire in those conditions.

[Wandi]

I think I accept the fact that his PU boards work better at this point in time just fine
As Buzzy explained it has invigorated his surfing
I still personally believe professional athletes perform better with a higher level of confidence and with Taj he has combined the elements that work for him This time on PU next time maybe on a FW, the time after that maybe on an ironing board
At the same time I'm sure the PU boards won't work well in the middle of a heat when it's in 2 pieces

[Chris]

soggy, wandi lets keep in mind its one event in pretty average conditions. Its entirely impossible for either side to make overarching statements about what work better for Taj.

Keep in mind, Taj wanted to experiment with things OTHER than just tech. Matt is the best Tour shaper right now and its absolutely understandable that one of the best surfers wanted to try the shapes of one of the best shapers. I can guarantee Taj will still reach for Firewires at some point this year, think slightly bigger, hollower surf. We may even get to build him the Mayhem shapes in his favorite FW tech. In the end, the freedom Taj now has to experiment may lead to BETTER Firewires.

Cheers

[buzzy]

Woohoo!

[iggy]

soggy, wandi lets keep in mind its one event in pretty average conditions. Its entirely impossible for either side to make overarching statements about what work better for Taj.

Keep in mind, Taj wanted to experiment with things OTHER than just tech. Matt is the best Tour shaper right now and its absolutely understandable that one of the best surfers wanted to try the shapes of one of the best shapers. I can guarantee Taj will still reach for Firewires at some point this year, think slightly bigger, hollower surf. We may even get to build him the Mayhem shapes in his favorite FW tech. In the end, the freedom Taj now has to experiment may lead to BETTER Firewires.

Cheers

;)
Agreed

[Chris]

Woo!