PROFILE

Yoshihiko Kushimoto

KAIFU SHIKOKU JAPAN

In the late 70's, Kushimoto played an active role as
a professional surfer in Japan. After that, he aspired
to be a big wave rider and surfboard shaper.
He become an apprentice shaper, studing with George Downing.

These days, he shapes all kinds of surfboards under
his own label, KI SURFBOARDS.

"KI" is a Japanese word meaning "SPIRIT",

which Kushimoto tries to put into everyone of his boards.

And he's using these boards to ride some of the biggest
waves in the world, especially those found in Hawaii.
Usually, when we talk about professional surfers,

we mean contest surfers.

But these is another kind of pro surfer-the soul surfer.
These are the surfers who become famous through
sheer style and guts-the things you need to be a big
wave rider. Famous surfers in this school include
Laird Hamilton, Keoni Downing and Mark Foo,
who respectively pioneered TOW-IN surfing on

30ft plus waves, Won the EDDY AIKAU contestat Waimea bay,
and passed away at Marvericks, trying to conquer a new wave.

Yoshihiko Kushimoto has also been making name
for himself for the past 40 big wave seasons in Hawaii.

Shaper Kushimoto used this gun for many seasons
before it was broken in half by a 30ft wave in 1993.
George Downing roughly shaped it,
and Kushimoto fine tuned.
The deisign to include features such as a domed
deck and parabolic bottom,

important for maneuvening through big wave.
Kushimoto kept the board, but a similer board was
shaped for Keoni Downing, which he used to win
the EDDIE AIKAU contest in 1990.