Head Shaper:

Peter “PJ” Johnson

Behind the Brand: Kane Garden Surfboards was founded in San Diego as a local surfboard company, which grew into an internationally recognized label in the 2000s. Their philosophy was simple: Build the best quality surfboards using innovative, practical designs that would work well in average conditions, but excel as the surf got better. As one of the original owners, Peter “PJ” Johnson has been working and building surfboards for most of his life. He brought in a small team of shaping talent who worked together on an old San Diego design (the Fish) to revamp this incredibly versatile concept into a line of high-performance surfboards. “I started working on boards when I was 12 years old,” says Johnson. “I fixed dings and cut down and reshaped my friends’ old longboards during the frenzied period of the shortboard revolution. My friends and I were always excited about all the new innovations happening during this period. My cousin was a glasser in one of the old factories in South Bay San Diego, so I was around surfboards my entire life. My early shaping and design influences were master craftsmen Jeff Logan and Richard Jolie of the original South Coast crew in the ’60s, Jeff Ching and John Belik, along with Skip Frye and Rusty Preisendorfer. My mentor and close friend Pat Rawson worked with me in the ’90s and 2000s and continues to have a big influence on me anytime I pick up a blank.” Today, Kane Garden Surfboards is committed to improving its Fish Series line and its models for 2010.

About Kane Garden's Most Popular Models: “Our most popular models are the Sea Viper, Nautilus, and Orca, followed closely by the Kingfish” says PJ. “People are drawn to these designs because they look great and are built to last. They are easy to paddle, very stable, but fighter-jet fast, and that translates into section-making speed with precise turning.”

Shop Talk: “We’re not retro. We consider ourselves an innovative, post-modern surfboard company and brand.”

What do you think sets Kane Garden apart from the rest of the labels on the market? “When we set out to expand our business, we were one of the few surfboard companies that even built the fish commercially at the time. Plus, a lot of the employees at our factory in San Diego still rode a fish as our primary board. We had done quite a few design innovations over the years that had taken out some of the more irritating aspects of the design and this gave us a big head start when the fish became popular again.”

What changes have you noticed in the board manufacturing business over the past few years? “The entire business model for our industry changed radically when Clark Foam closed down and the emphasis on surfboards in the stores went from the custom surfboard to more model-orientated and price-point boards, which in turned allowed the ‘overseas’ boards to gain a solid foothold in the industry. This made us very aware of how important our models needed to be tuned-in and that it was important to make our customers aware of their design features. It also highlighted the importance of doing a great job with our service concerning custom orders.”