Mololo

The malolo is Hawaii's flying fish. Sleek, quick, nimble; one moment it's jetting through the water, the next it's gliding several feet in the air. That's the fish this board is named for, and that's the surfing it's built to do. The second half of the name comes from what the board is built to do: let you get "mo' lolo," or more crazy, on every wave. This is my take on the performance fish. It's built for the days when the surf isn't offering much, but you still want to surf it hard.

The rocker runs medium-low through the entry for easy paddling and speed across flat sections, with enough kick left in the tail to let the board work in the pocket and hold through steeper sections. The outline carries a generous amount of foam and a lot of curve, which helps it paddle and lets it initiate turns quickly. A wing set back near the tail pulls the width in and narrows the tail, a significant departure from the wide, flat tail of a classic fish, keeping it more responsive underfoot and closer to how a shortboard behaves. The rails follow that same logic: pulled more from a performance shortboard than a fish, so the edge stays locked into a turn instead of releasing early.

The lower entry rocker and wide outline make it easy to get along with early. Beginners and intermediates can paddle it well and get to their feet without a fight. But the surfing it rewards is more advanced: it carries speed through the flat, mushy parts of a wave, then lets you put it on rail and rip once the wave gives you something. Waist-high to head-high is where it's happiest, though it holds its own if the surf jumps past that. Feed it a ramp or a bit of a bowl and it turns explosive in the air under the right feet. It's built for the days you want to get mo' lolo, rail to rail, fully committed, ripping whatever mediocre wave the ocean hands you.