波洋喜的法國之友Paul, Paul you already know

我會認識Paul 是因為他來台東住了一年吧。同樣熱愛板子的我們就變成好朋友了。我很欣賞他的衝浪風格，也很讚嘆他的職涯安排，簡直完美的衝浪人生活。

問：你來自哪裡？現在住在哪裡？

答：我來自法國北部的聖納澤爾，不太算是個衝浪的區域但能在海邊長大仍然很開心。現在我住在布列塔尼南部的Lorient，我在這邊接受航海訓練。

問：你在哪裡學衝浪的？那裡的浪怎麼樣？你是如何讓自己進步的？

答：我是在家裡附近開始玩衝浪的，我爸會玩風浪板，他把一張舊的風浪板重新製作成一張又怪又重的single fin，我大概六七歲的時候拿他衝浪。但是大部分的時間就是玩Body board。

我家附近的浪通常又小又軟又吹風，我們也沒有真的教練，所以就是看DVD和雜誌。當你習慣衝爛爛的浪況，遇到好浪的時候一切都會變得簡單得多。

問：你是靠什麼維生的？

答：我是水手，大部分是在帆船上。我會選擇這份工作是因為我希望我可以待在海邊，並且能夠在空閒的時候去衝浪。

問：你最近在哪邊衝浪？
答：八月的時候我去了一趟印尼，能夠衝到真正的浪感覺真的很好。我最近都在布列塔尼衝，這邊還有很多浪點我還沒去過。風大的時候我也會去玩風浪板，因為他充滿挑戰性，也讓我為之著迷。

問：你最近在衝 Gencive Surfboards，你們最近專注於哪些衝浪板設計？

答：有趣的是，我們也是在台東金樽相遇而認識彼此，似乎美好的故事都從台灣開始。我們很快的變成好朋友。我們同樣熱愛衝浪板，我也很喜歡他的設計，再加上他包板技術令人驚艷，他包的染色的板跟沒有染色一樣輕盈。

我們喜歡實驗不同的設計和尾舵配置，我最近嘗試很多四舵的配置。我很喜歡四舵的速度，驅動力，還有各式各樣的組合可能性。舵槽的位置和尾舵之間的距離能夠改變整張板的感覺，這是一個很複雜的科學問題，但我們都很愛。

我們最近正在發展一個名為 Lucifer 的板型，目標是成為我可以在任何情況下衝的一張性能板，我也很期待帶他去愛爾蘭衝浪，看看他在捲浪有什麼樣的表現。

另一個正在發展的板型是 taikonaut，這張板是基於一張我在東河喬凡尼的工作室削的一張不對稱的板，我很愛這張板的感覺，當浪又捲又炸的時候，這張是我的最愛，可能因為我把它包的很厚吧，完全不會擔心斷掉。不對稱的板子最棒的地方就在於，由於他的輪廓相當平行，他可以做的很窄但是又保持浮力。窄板身加上長板緣在有力的浪況下感覺超優。你跑得越快，壓板緣的感覺越好。砍掉的板頭讓你可在5’8的板子身上保有大浪板的長板緣。我帶 taikonaut去印尼玩的很開心，但也很期待做一個不同的版本在家裡附近衝看看。

最後我也嘗試了他的一張名為 Lancha 的 6’4 twinzer 。在印尼某個開闊的浪壁，有點像成功的浪況下，我衝了一道就知道對了，很好划水，很穩定，速度也快，也代表著你可以有更大的浪壁可以去運用，也扔然很好轉，比起衝更短更多翹度的板子，你可以跑出更大的路線。唯一的問題是，那是我女朋友的板子，但我想我應該也要來訂一張了。

Where are you from and where do you stay now?

I’m from Saint-Nazaire in France. Not really a surf town but still super nice to grow up by the beach.

Now I’m in Lorient, south Brittany, about 1h30 north from home. I’m doing a sailor training there.

Where did you learn surfing? How are the waves there and how did you improve?

I learned surfing around home. My dad used to windsurf a lot and he shaped an old windsurf board into a kind of weird orange single fin, super thick and heavy. I took my first waves on that when I was 6 or 7, but I was mostly bodyboarding at that time.

Waves at home were usually small, soft and windy, and we didn’t really have any coaching. I improved by watching surf DVDs and magazines. When you grow up surfing shitty waves, everything feels easier when the waves get better.

What do you do for a living?

I’m a sailor. Mostly working on sailing boats. I chose this path because I love being at sea, and it also gives me time to surf when I’m off duty.

Where do you surf recently?

I went to Indo in August, felt so good to get real waves again. Lately I’m mostly surfing in Brittany. There are so many spots and I still have a bunch I haven’t tried yet. And when it’s windy I go windsurfing — I love how challenging it is.

You’re working with Gencive Surfboards now, what boards and designs are you into at the moment?

Funny, we actually met last year in Jinzun. Seems like every good story starts in Taiwan. We became buddies pretty fast. We’re both into surfboard design, and I love his shapes — plus his glassing is insane. He can make a tinted board feel as light as a clear one.

We like to experiment with different designs and fin setups. Lately I’ve been surfing a lot of quads — love the speed, the drive, and all the fin combo possibilities. Fin plug placement and the space between fins change the whole feeling of a board, it’s such a complex science and I love that. Right now at home I’m testing his Lucifer design with pretty compact quad set up. It became my go to performance board in every conditions i can’t wait to bring this one to Ireland this winter and see how it goes in hollow surf.

We also worked on an asym design together called the taikonaut, based on the crazy good feeling I got from a board I shaped myself a few years ago in Giovanni’s workshop in Donghe, when I was living in Taiwan. It became my favorite board for hollow slabby waves, also because I glassed it super strong so I’m not stressed about breaking it.

Asyms are sick because they can be super narrow without losing volume thanks to the straight outline. Narrow boards with long rail lines feel insane when the waves get good and I think they look good too— the faster you go, the better it feels on rail. And the cut-off nose lets you surf a 5’8 with the rail line of a step-up. I tried the Taikonaut in Indo and it felt so good on big open walls. Would be nice to try a more versatile version of it to ride it at home.

I also tested his Lancha in 6’4 with a twinzer setup, on big Indo walls that felt a bit like big Cheng Gong. After the first wave I knew it just felt right. Super easy paddling, super stable, and so fast that you get access to a way bigger canvas to draw your lines on the wave than on a shorter, more rockered board. And it still turns so good.

Only problem: it’s my girlfriend’s board so I really need my own now