Trip Forman: Welcome to the Real Boardloft. I'm Trip Forman. We are at the 2026 Boardroom Show in Del Mar, California. And this whole show is honoring this man right here, Maurice Cole. Maurice, is that me?
Maurice Cole: That is you. That still is me. I'm getting a little older and I've got a few little short-term memory lapses. Yes. My name is Maurice Cole. If you find him wandering the streets, please call this number. I've got it. That's when you're over 70, that's what happens.
Trip Forman: We have had and continue to have an incredible relationship with Maurice building boards and stoking people out, and just people keep coming back again and again for your boards, like for the reverse vee and for what you've always had in your heart and in your own surfing and in your shaping. And now it's just like absolutely spread like wildfire. What's it like being at a show like this surrounded by all these people and it's all about you and your life and your surfing and your shaping, and not only that, but kind of what you've given back the whole way through?
Maurice Cole: Yeah. I never ever think in the terms of what I've ever given. I'm always looking forward and going I can do that, I can do that. And as I've gotten older, my mo right now is who can I help with the younger generation, right? And get more designers happening. Get people outside the comfort box, you know? I mean, that's what we did back in the day, which has been 50 years, 55 years of surfing and shaping. Necessity was the mother of invention. We had to build guns. We had to build longer boards. We have to build shorter boards because wow, how are we going to surf that? What are we going to surf that with? Single fins, twin fins, thrusters, quads? The amount of R&D that the passionate surfer designers put in. I've been talking to a whole bunch of people that I really respect here. We think we've probably spent more than 50% of our life's revenue making boards for ourselves and testing us. That's why we need guys like you to try and at least throw a little bit of money in the kid.
Trip Forman: That's called an addiction.
Maurice Cole: It's called an addiction. Adrenaline junkie. But it's a good cover up what we do, right? It's a cover up. But coming back to the show, I was really hesitant to do it. There was quite a lot of people got me going in it. I guess in the last few years I've become pretty reclusive with all my health stuff. But coming here and seeing so many likeminded people and also people have come to me that I don't know and go, I got a reverse vee back in the day or you did this board for me two years ago or my shaper got this that. It's pretty humbling to realize the effect that just one guy, one crazy guy just hanging out in France with a few other crazy surfers like Tom and Occy and the Margos and the Tajes and the Trents and the Ross Clark-Jones and all the lunatic fringe. There's so many likeminded people here. And I actually said it last night, there's nowhere to hide here. If you're full of it and you're just doing bells and whistles, this is not going to—people here will just walk up and go, "Oh, that's shit." You know, but then there'll be people come on to my stand and go, "What are you doing? What's this? What's going on?" And of course, I don't care about the look. Everything I do has a technical reason. Everything I do has a technical reason. And then I might try and make the nose look cool or do something. But everything has a technical reason. I realized the experience of 40 to 50 years working with the best surfers and shapers like Reno Abellira. He was a very big influence on me in Hawaii. Got our guns organized going to France with that DNA where I already had Hawaiian gum sort of in the head. Saw waves, saw barrels, started making boards. And one day, you know, Tom Curran paddle out, didn't make a wave, and I made—everyone comes to the car and goes, "Could you make me a—" I went, "What?" He said, "How long's your board?" And I said, "6'8". Can you make me a 6'9"?" Hey, but I must admit it was 8-foot big barrels and I was on my most magic tube-riding board ever. So I was just getting blown out of these things. Tom didn't make a wave. He was on a 6'1" and he didn't have any wax. Made me look good. All the locals are on the hill.
Trip Forman: You got to retire from competition after that.
Maurice Cole: Yeah. Well, it was—I was ready to, but so that was my start, the journey with Tom, and it was his need for a board. You know, necessity is the mother of invention. Necessity sometimes is the mother of a relationship, of a friendship. You know, we might have gone through that period, but that set the bar for all of these people remember. There was Tom Curran. There was also this other guy I was making boards for at the same time called Occy. So his boards completely different. So what I guess I've been doing over the years is having to design surfboards for the biggest array of surfers possible. The custom board, which one can we turn into a model that you can sell lots of that I can keep paying for new boards and fins? You know what I mean? It's like, oh yeah, and a bit of food and I need gas money, right? But more importantly, I need these boards done.
Trip Forman: So let me say something about something that you've stayed true to the whole way through your life, and that's like an open mind and a forward-thinking mind, not only in the design of the board, but also in the construction of the board and the materials that you're using and really out-of-the-box thinking and not being—I think last night you called it the sausage factory—not getting pulled into the sausage factory of like everything don't be vanilla, don't be vanilla. Normal is a freaking enemy. How many normal people are around here? Oh, hang on, is there anyone normal out there? Anyone want to put up their hand? So really always been impressive like that. Get out of the comfort box. And that's why I've got the young French surfer over here, shaper, who's the son of one of my best friends who's one of the best sanders in the world, learned off Charlie Walker and Jack Reeves came to me with Hawaii in the 80s. Here's his son 35 years later copying a board that his dad sanded. And I think he'll be the new Ryan Burch of Europe. And he can surf barrels. And we saw him—so we actually surfed with him the other day. Like Carito. He was ripping.
Maurice Cole: He goes pretty damn good, didn't he? So humble. And that's what it's all about. Trying to inspire young people, get them out of this box. I sat with Rob Machado here yesterday. Wait until you see that interview.
Trip Forman: Oh, nice. Let's talk about the Icons of Foam shape-off, right? And well, one, it's just the most in our opinion like the most stacked lineup of shapers talent-wise of all time at this show. But also the curveballs that you're throwing these guys like for the boards that they have to try and replicate in 90 minutes handshaping these things, right? Board number one, the infamous '78 Tom Curran reverse vee. Board number two, a tow board. Talk to us about that tow board.
Maurice Cole: The tow board, it took three years to make with Ross Clark-Jones. He came to me and went, "I need a 5'9" that goes from 8 to 80 ft. One board." Okay. Because we have such good big waves at home, it took three years to get to that board. So 2012 to 2015, that became the first magic tow board and we had a day that Ross called twice the size of my calling out. It's a slab and it breaks over 800, 900 meters, nearly a kilometer long. I'll show you maybe some footage one time. And then secretly—nobody's going to hear this 'cause we're not allowed to announce this yet—what's board number three? Board number three is a 10-foot gun for Noah Johnson.
Trip Forman: Oh, it's one of Noah Johnson's 10-foot guns. So Matt Calvani is in the final and we're going to find out whether it's Timmy -- or Timmy Patterson on the other side. But that's—I love it. I love the cards that you throw these guys as far as like what you know what they're going to. Scott said, "What boards?" He went, "You bastard." I went, "Thank you. I know I got it right." Welcome. Well, hey Maurice, thank you so much for spending the time with us and you deserve—papa bear, papa man, you deserve every bit of this, man. You deserve—you're an incredible, very, very incredible human.
Maurice Cole: I think it's the drugs for the cancer. I'll blame all that, but I get very emotional. And yeah, I'm just so stoked. I'm just so stoked.
Trip Forman: At the Boardroom Show. Any of you out there have any questions on the Maurice Cole surfboards or would like to order one either stock or custom, you can always reach us at the shop at 252-987-6000 or look us up online at realwatersports.com/surfing. Thanks for tuning in. Got it. Did you get that? Our Icon of Foam Maurice Cole 2026. He's been through a lot, but he's here. He's the sweetest guy in the world. We love him to death. How about a round of applause for Maurice Cole? We've got two shapers here: Matt Calvani, a former winner 2013, won the Terry Martin shape-off. An Icon of Foam in 2022, Timmy Patterson. Round of applause for these two guys. And without further ado, the winner of the 2026 Icons of Foam is Matt Calvani. You worked hard. You worked harder.
