When someone says they are influenced by aerospace and boat engineering in their work, surfboard shaper is not the first profession that comes to mind.
However when surfboard shaper turned global businessman Hayden Cox designs his surfboards, these are the industries he draws influence from these industries using phrases like parabolic carbon fiber frame and displacement hull to describe his board designs.
Thinking about it, it makes perfect sense. With surfing skills increasing at amazing pace, and flight (or airs) the key area in which boundaries are being broken, drawing on these multi-billion dollar industries is an obvious step. While surfboard construction is not quite up there with aerospace or boating in terms of financial backing, the rise of names like Kelly Slater has helped an industry explode internationally.