What’s a Log?
A Log is a type of Longboard. The Log is where it all began. Surfing started on an unrefined piece of redwood with one fin and no rocker. It’s the granddaddy of surfing and with good reason.
Your Log is a piece of equipment that you will not forget you have brought to the beach. It is not a light piece of equipment. I am about 90kgs and of average build yet I feel no shame in asking for a hand to carry my Log.
Normally a Log has a single fin set up and is designed to be ridden with out a leash (often referred to as kook cords amongst loggers), they are usually heavier, thicker and wider than a classic Longboard template. The rails are soft and, while there are many variations, Logs are generally thought to be for riding smaller to medium sized waves.
Let me be clear. I can’t really be objective about this as I love my Log. My wife lives in dread of the day that something happens to the Log as it would have a catastrophic impact on everyone around me in a kind of nuclear blast radius.
Joking aside I think that Logs are great if you are looking to surf in a particular style and if you are really a patient wave thinker. I would like to point out that there are those who are talented and can ride a Log with a more urgent way, as demonstrated below by the talented Mr Alex Knost.
The myth that they are for beginners or are easier to ride, I would have to dispel right here and now, learning how to ride one takes a great deal of patience and can be quite painful. And then you have to carry the thing to the beach. Not a board for a beginner.
Let me leave you with a good example of why I love Logs and love the lines they draw on waves. Oh and yes, you should buy a log, just make sure its for the right reasons.
Cover photo credit goes to the very talented up-and-coming water photographer Julia Ochs. Interview article coming soon to Surf Bunker.