In news that is rocking the surf world, FCS fins are now 12/12!
When Matt “Wilko” Wilkinson beat “Brother” Kolohe Andino in the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast the world wondered one thing. What fins was he riding? Is professional sport’s most impressive streak (FCS’s 11/11 on the World Surf League’s Championship Tour in 2015) still alive?
Remember when Stab (2004-2016) reported:
Here’s a thing you probably didn’t know: In 2015, every Men’s WSL World Tour event was won by a surfer riding a set of FCS fins. Eleven events, 11 wins on FCS rudders, starting with Filipe Toledo on the Gold Coast almost a year ago, and ending with Adriano De Souza at the Pipe Masters (a fact that wouldn’t have changed even if Gabs had won Pipe, since he rides FCS too).
An ironman run matched only, maybe, by Cal Ripken Jr. playing 2,362 games in a row or Wayne Gretzky scoring in 51 straight.
But is the streak still alive?
As soon as Wilko finished his last turn I went running, alongside every other surf fan, to my computer and logged on to FCS’s website. No Matt Wilkinson on the main team page! My heart sank. I was absolutely crushed. Devastated. Somehow, even though I couldn’t see through the tears in my eyes, I made it downstairs to the freezer and started pulling directly from an icy vodka bottle. How could it be over? How could it have ended?
I put the B.B. King station on Pandora and slumped in the corner getting drunker and drunker. “The burden that I carry is so heavy, you see. It seems like there ain’t nobody in this world. Who would wanna help poor me…” I saw a dirty kitchen knife in the sink and thought, “Is life worth living?”
Before grabbing it, though, I thought I’d check one more time…
…and there he was! There was some further level of the Global Surf Team that I somehow missed and there was Matt Wilkinson! Oh the sheer joy that flooded my body! I started weeping again, uncontrollably, but this time from happiness.
Ladies and gentlemen, the streak™ liveth!
Haha I don’t think old Syl is up with current affairs
aids left them a month ago for futures. no world champ fin/ bonus for him
So you’re saying FCS had aids and now they don’t? Does Charlie Sheen know?
Adriano hahaha
I’m gonna be “that dick” and tell you to go and checkout the surfstich website yourself… you’re welcome everyone.
OK I’ll say it. the FCS II system is the worst fucking fin system on the market . Everyone has lost a fin , had to buy more sets ,so you have to use the screws to hold in the fins, which goes against their no screwing marketing blah blah . I was actually insulted when the screwlesss system came out , FFS, I have spent the better part of my life working out how to use a fin key , and then FCS tells us all this very hard to learn skill , decades of trialing and erroring , has now been superceded by the screwless FCS II……..ahhhh , fuck I might have to go and buy a bottle of vodka , and learn how to be devastated AKA Chas???
One time I surfed with an FCSII fin hanging out for two sessions in the same day. I noticed it after the first session but was already sinking tinnies and then forgot to pop it in properly afterwards (despite the minimal effort it would require). It somehow stayed in on the second surf again. If anyone decides the above is a poor reflection on my surfing I’ll smash ya.
After nearly giving myself another bumhole with the screw type, I’m kinda OK if the fins pop out a bit easier. That said I haven’t lost one yet (possibly a reflection on my surfing ha).
Hahaha we all make mistakes after a few Bintangs mate!! I got drunk one night on a trip in Indo and decided to get out and surf in the moon light. I’m already blind as fuck and I pulled back on a wave. It just looked like blackness and I was confused. Next thing I know I’m sitting on my board completing a full somersault to the flats with the lip. I’m surprised my fat arse didn’t go straight through the board but I’m pretty thankful it didn’t or the line down the middle of my sack would now be reinforced with timber from the stringer.
Welcome to the futures…
Btw there’s a warranty on all FCSII fins lost… they just don’t advertise it much.
Are you still using Red X Maurice?
nah they stopped making them , so I use Surfinz which is another adjustable fin system , as now having learnt how to move the fins around , I can’t surf without having fins that can be adjusted up to 1/2″ . For customers I recommend Futures , and the one redeeming positive about FCS II is that is you use the old 2 x Tab FCS fin , they are actually adjustable , but the plastic is so soft for the stainless steel screws that when a lot of pressure comes on them they strip, which means then you have to get bigger screws…screwing continually , surely there is a marketing angle here???
Screwing us! plastic fins should cease production immediately in my amateur opinion
I hate to say this but I’m a convert. I only buy boards off the rack these days and the last few boards I’ve gotten only had the FCS II system so had no choice. I’ve had less cracking around the plugs/boxes than any other system in the past. Every board I’ve owned for the past 10 yrs has been futures or regular fcs and there’s almost always little cracks in the glass within the week. I’ve gone 3 months with no cracking with 3 boards and pulling them out and changing them is soooo much better. Super tight though (bit of silicon spray helps heaps) so there’s no chance any are falling out of any of my boards. I don’t like the company, their previous Macquarie Bank fuckwits and now I especially don’t like Surfstitch BUT in spite of this I’m getting FCSII from now until Futures catches up and makes something better.
great to hear SH , but I think if you get cracking around the box , that’s a manufacturing fault and usually means no glass and just resin .
I’ve never been very involved with the manufacturing of my boards but I’ve had plenty of good and bad glass jobs. Both customs and off the rack. Not much difference as far as these little cracks goes though. It’s been a frustration for a long time. Every board since forever. Once you get repairs in this part of a board they’re pretty much almost dead. Ding repairers hate it. Which reminds me, ding repairers hate the new FCSII system more than any of the others. I forgot when I was giving them praise yesterday. I guess now it’s less visits to the ding guy but more expensive each time. Maybe someone should get all the glassers and ding repairers together to design a new system? Semi joking. Mostly. Fuck that’d a sight. Lots of crusty angry men chain smoking and arguing.
hey SH , cracking means no fiberglass , which means sanded too much , or not enough glass . You should be able to go back and claim faulty workmanship. Just need to get the manufacturers to admit their fault , and install them more better!!
wonder if Stab will update their stats?
Micro School of Surfing 2/2