Shaping Legend Bob “Ole” Olson

Ole has a quiver of Skil 100 planers that he relies on to hand shape each one of his surfboards.

He’s 83 years old, been surfing since 1946, shaping since 1958, has no plans to retire, has a bum neck…and he’s as stoked as any 12 year old grommet out there. This man is the legendary surfboard shaper Bob “Ole” Olson. We are fortunate enough to be able to supply Bob with his tools and surfboard blanks on the island of Maui.

Beautiful tail block and stringer combos are why people come to Ole for their logs.

This about sums it up. Ole loves surfing, his dog and his truck.

Ole was nice enough to let us hang around his shop for a couple of hours and talk story about life and shaping. He is a surfer from one of the very early generations in California that was considered to be outsiders. Ole embraced that lifestyle and walked away from a cozy teaching career to move out to Maui to become a full time surfboard shaper. He bought a house, which he still lives in to this day, has a small shaping room and very low overhead which he credits to being the secret to his success in this industry.

Phil Edwards is a funny guy. Ole’s small shop is packed with awesome pictures from his personal surfing history.

A true craftsman, surfer and a blast from the past, Ole is living his dream everyday because he decided to follow that dream. We hope you enjoy this profile on Bob “Ole” Olson.

http://www.fiberglasshawaii.com