Stretch Buzzsaw: The everyday shortboard with plenty of responsiveness

Stretch Buzzsaw: The everyday shortboard with plenty of bite

If you follow Californian board designs closely, you’re bound to be familiar with the ‘Buzz’ range from Stretch Boards, born out of a collaboration between shaper William ‘Stretch’ Riedel and extreme surfer Nathan Fletcher. Following on from the ultra-radical Mr. Buzz and the very accessible Super Buzz, Stretch has released the ultimate weapon for the everyday surfer: the Stretch Buzzsaw.

Its aim? To offer you mind-blowing speed and instant glide, without ever forcing you to step outside the comfort zone of your usual shortboard.

Performance DNA combined with a speed boost
Unlike its bigger sisters, which are ridden very short and very wide, the Buzzsaw retains a standard length. Its secret lies in the harmony of its curves:

• At the front: An outline inherited from the 2x4 model (the brand’s benchmark step-up), offering a reassuring nose, a smooth paddle and excellent wave entry.

• At the rear: Here we find all the genius of the Buzz series. A wider but subtly more curved tail, combined with an aggressive rocker/concave combo (Stretch’s famous single-to-double concave) that generates incredible speed right from the bottom turn.

Precise glide, especially under the back
foot. The Buzzsaw is an incredibly responsive board, particularly suited to surfers who like to push hard with their back leg. The moderately voluminous rails (balanced profile) and the very well-distributed foil allow for surgical control when the waves pick up speed or start to hollow out. Thanks to its 5-fin setup, you can switch to Quad mode to glide over soft sections or charge through tubes, or stick with Thruster mode for ultra-vertical surfing in the pocket.

Why should it be your ‘Daily Driver’?
It’s the board to keep in the boot of your car at all times. It excels in the mediocre to medium-sized waves of our everyday beach breaks thanks to its buoyant tail, yet it never gets overwhelmed when conditions get serious (from 50cm to over 2 metres).

In short, if you’re looking to boost your speed on the line without losing your usual sense of direction, the Stretch Buzzsaw is the ideal choice. It’s manufactured and distributed in Europe by Polen Surfboards and available to order from Waïmea Surf Shop.