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Jacobs balsawood pintail 9’6 longboard shaped by the late Hap Jacobs (1930-2021) in the early 2000s. Featuring a six stringer pintail shape design with stunning 14-piece balsa/redwood fin and triangle shape nose/tail blocks. Signed twice by Hap Jacobs. Ride or display this incredible balsa longboard!

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History of Hap Jacobs Surfboards

Hap Jacobs was born in‭ ‬1930,‭ ‬in Los Angeles,‭ ‬California.‭ ‬He moved to Hermosa Beach‭ ‬with his parents as a kid,‭ ‬where he picked up riding canvas surf mats filled with air.‭ ‬Hap remembers every kid was surfing back then-‭ ‬that was until high school.‭ ‬He‭ ‬got his first job working at a surf mat shop.‭ ‬Hap was‭ ‬15‭ ‬at that time and the shop was called California Surfrider.‭ ‬After a day of hard work,‭ ‬he enjoyed the entertainment of riding the boards himself.‭ ‬Next,‭ ‬he caught waves on hollow plywood surfboards.‭ ‬However,‭ ‬these were very inconvenient to ride,‭ ‬as they would fill up with water.‭ ‬After that,‭ ‬he got a balsa redwood board by Pacific Homes.‭ ‬Hap would often surf the board at Palos Verdes Cove with guys from the surfing club.‭ ‬Later in his teenage years he tried to spend more time playing football,‭ ‬but surfing was his true calling.‭ ‬He would skip summer practices to go to the beach.‭ ‬When there was a calling for the army,‭ ‬he volunteered to be stationed in Hawaii (it wasn’t a popular choice).‭ ‬He bought another balsa board,‭ ‬that belonged to Peter Lawford,‭ ‬to surf there,‭ ‬and got it reshaped.‭ ‬Hap mentions that he learned more about surfing and shaping in Hawaii than ever before.

‭After an episode as a carpenter‭’‬s apprentice at UCLA,‭ ‬he knew very well that the job that his father got him wasn‭’‬t what he wanted to do with his life.‭ Instead, ‬Hap partnered with the legendary surfer Dale Velzy and together,‭ ‬in‭ ‬1953,‭ ‬they opened surf shops in Venice and San Clemente.‭ ‬In‭ ‬1955‭ ‬he started a shop on Redondo Beach,‭ ‬called Dive‭ ‬N‭’‬ Surf together with Bev Morgan.‭ ‬Hap was making surfboards,‭ ‬and Bev‭ (‬who was an excellent diver‭) ‬focused on the wetsuits.‭ ‬Because of working in the late‭ ‬1950s and early‭ ‬1960s,‭ ‬Jacobs was the last working of the four great Hermosa Beach shapers‭ (‬along with Greg Noll,‭ ‬Bing Copeland,‭ ‬and Dewey Weber‭) ‬from the Golden Age of Surfing.‭ ‬Jacobs opened his store in‭ ‬1960‭ ‬along Pacific Coast Highway in Hermosa Beach.‭ ‬He developed the iconic red-diamond logo.‭ ‬It‭’‬s still used by his son,‭ ‬Kent,‭ ‬a shaper in Hawaii.‭ ‬Jacobs stopped shaping in‭ ‬1971.‭ ‬It was because the shortboards of the day gained instant popularity and there was no demand for the longboards that he was shaping.‭ ‬Instead of putting his skillful crafter longboards on sale,‭ ‬Jacobs carried them out back from his Pacific Coast Highway showroom and sawed them in half.‭ ‬After his career as a shaper ended,‭ ‬Hap made his living running the King Harbor fuel dock and catching swordfish from aboard his boat‭ ‬“Patricia J‭”‬-‭ ‬named after his wife Patty.‭ ‬He went back to shaping boards during the early‭ ‬1990s.‭ ‬It was when longboards were having their revival,‭ ‬but it was only on a small scale,‭ ‬mainly for Hap‭’‬s friends and team riders.

‭‬Hap Jacobs shaped his final surfboard in April‭ ‬2019.‭ ‬It was a clear glassed,‭ ‬9-foot Performance model,‭ ‬with a single stringer.‭ ‬Nowadays it‭’‬s Jose Barahona,‭ ‬who continues Jacobs‭’‬ legacy.‭ ‬Hap is still a respected member of his community and a legend in the surfing world.‭ ‬He was tapped as a charter member of the Hermosa Beach Surfer‭’‬s Walk of Fame in‭ ‬2003.

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