For some beach fans, there is nothing more enjoyable than riding the waves from on top of a surfboard, cruising along a wave’s rippled crest and harnessing the power of the ocean for a smooth ride along the shore.
And for Gregg Rosner and his company, Rocket Alaias, that experience is even more meaningful when using an all-natural board, made in the same style it was 100 years ago, but with a few modern, green adjustments.
From his workshop at the intersection of Burbage and Roxanna roads in eastern Sussex County, Del., he, with occasional help from his father, Chase, takes rough-cut slabs of paulownia wood, and shapes it into finless, sleek surfboards that look as much like pieces of art as they do a piece of sporting equipment.
Rosner first got started making these all-natural wooden surfboards three years ago, when he read about a Hawaiian body-boarder who was using wood from the paulownia tree, which is native to Asia but now found throughout the world.
So, he said, he tried it for himself, purchasing paulownia wood and shaping it into a board form.
“Even the first one that I rode was just amazingly fast,” he said.
In addition to being incredibly lightweight, paulownia wood has great carbon uptake, absorbs little moisture and can regenerate when cut down. Now, Rosner said, paulownia trees are grown on plantations in southeast Georgia and South Carolina. Some paulownia groves can even be found in Delaware.
And there are no artificial sealing agents on Rosner’s boards. He uses an all-natural melted-down mixture of linseed oil and beeswax.
“So it’s 100 percent sustainable,” he said.
When it comes to designing and creating the boards, he takes the advice of George Nakashima, a woodworker from New Hope, Pa.
“He says, ‘Let the wood tell you what you’re going to make,’” Rosner recalled, pointing out that paulownia wood is naturally inconsistent, with large rings and frequent knots.
Unlike most surfboards today, which can contribute to pollution with artificial materials, on Rosner’s boards there are no fins, and no curved edge or “rocker.” The bottom is completely flat, but with a trench running the length of the underside to catch the water. And, as Rosner demonstrated by leaning on the board, causing it bow slightly, they have a natural flexibility.
“It makes the board real lively underneath your feet,” he said.
Rosner’s shortest “Alaia” board starts at $250, and the price goes up from there. Each board takes between 30 minutes and two hours, per foot, to create. But after the initial creation, the boards themselves are also easily maintained.
“It’s something anyone can do with a little bit of sandpaper, and you don’t ever have to get ding repair,” Rosner said.
In his workshop, there are very few power tools. Rosner said he prefers to do most of the planing and sanding by hand, beyond the first initial planes to get the correct thickness.
“I really try to put everything into it,” he said.
And, like Native Americans legendarily did with buffalo, Rosner tries to use every part of the wood. Small scraps are gathered and glued together to make paddles. All he does is add an ash handle. (Ash wood is commonly used to make baseball bats.) The wood shavings are gathered in trash bags and used to help compost animal skulls at the Marine Education, Research and Rehabilitation Institute (MERR), where Rosner is a volunteer, helping rescue and recover stranded ocean animals.
“I just return everything back to the Earth,” he said.
Pieces of the leftover wood that are just less than two feet long become small boards for body-surfers. Irregular pieces that won’t do for much else are fashioned into tables. Rosner said he hopes to start making other pieces of furniture soon.
And, Rosner said, he is ahead of the curve in the surfing world, because this is “the next big thing.”
“This is what they basically rode 100 years ago in Hawaii, so these are sacred totems,” he said, adding that proper maintenance will ensure the boards can be passed down from generation to generation.
“And, even when it goes away, it’s just going to go back to the Earth, because it’s wood,” he said.
That commitment to the taking care of the Earth is appreciated by many who know Rosner.
“Gregg has an unflagging commitment to the environment,” said Rob Rector, who sits on the board of MERR with Rosner.
“In working with him through MERR, I know he approaches every activity in which he is involved by looking at the environmental impact. I know he goes to great lengths to ensure his boards are not just a fun ride, but environmentally sound.”
Rocket Alaias boards can be seen and purchased at Liquid Surf Shop and Rehoboth Board Shop, and three boards are on display at a surfing exhibit at the Rehoboth Historical Society through April 2012.
For more information, visit rocketalaias.com online.
