Surfboard Lost Maysym

The LOST MAYSYM surfboard features anatomically corrected tail curves for greater control in a high-volume, small‑wave Stub Rocket. Deliberately asymmetrical boards have existed for decades. The advent and popularization are attributed mainly to the talented designer Carl Ekstrom.

The general idea is that we all surf with different leverage on our heels compared with our toes. Heel-side turns are more abrupt, without the ability to “smooth out” rail pressure using flexible ankles and toes. Contrary to common misconception, asymmetrical boards are not for “going right or left,” or “frontside or backside,” but are designed to work in symmetry with a regular- or goofy-footed surfer. They are almost always designed to be more forgiving on the heel side (usually by reducing the surface area or shortening the rail line) and to have more drive on the toe side (a wider, straighter or longer rail and rocker line).

My first foray into asymmetrical designs was in the winter of ’92. I was influenced by the best snowboard I’d had up to that point, a NITRO “PYRO” (see board photo), a twin‑tip, asymmetrical snowboard. It was the first board I rode on which I could properly carve the heel edge. It sparked my interest in the concept, but I only made a couple of asymmetrical surfboards at that time, and soon lost interest. At the turn of the

century, after reading an article on asymmetricals in Surfer’s Journal in 1999, I revisited them, making some HPSBs for an early trip to the Mentawais. One of them was easily one of my best boards of all time up to that point. Once again, I soon neglected the design. About ten years later, inspired by the renewed popularity of asymmetricals, we made a few for Aaron “Gorkin” Cormican, with a winged swallow on the toe side and a round pin on the heel side.

This particular board, the “MAYSYM,” is based on our “V2 StubRocket,” a small‑wave specific board derived from the original “Rocket” (which was popular when I began developing this board). I worked on it periodically for more than 5 years, and I feel that thanks to the work of people like Ekstrom and young Ryan Burch, among others, in popularizing asymmetrical designs, this is the right time to offer these designs to the public. For me, asymmetry helps most when applied to high‑volume boards. On a narrow / thin, low‑volume board, the surfer can easily control the tail on either the heel or toe edge, which is why it’s very rare to see top‑level surfers using them on high‑performance shortboards (although I think there’s room to develop and improve them in that category). With wide tails and high volume‑to‑body‑weight ratios on small‑wave boards, for average surfers, big tails can easily start to get in the way. Precision surfing can fall victim to wave‑catching ability and ease of generating speed…especially on heel‑side turns (backside bottom turns or frontside pocket snaps are where they’re most effective), so I started taking surface area out of the heel‑side rail on my wide‑tailed Rockets, turning them into round tails, and then slowly offsetting the center line, as well as adding more rail rocker to the wider side of the tail and other subtle tweaks to try to neutralize the difference between heel‑side and toe‑side body mechanics. The MAYSYM is the outcome.

Unlike many asymms floating around today, we toned down the “shock and awe” effect. These are practical asymms that simply aim to make riding a really wide shortboard easier when transitioning from heel to toe. The fins are set the same. No offset fin marks. No inverted pickle‑fork noses, and no over‑exaggerated offset rockers or extreme curves. One of my favorite design principles is “Don’t let go until you’re in control.” I’ll let other cutting‑edge shapers push the limits of the balance between visual shock and actual function.

We offer every size in regular construction for goofy‑footers. I thoroughly designed each board / size / regular / goofy, and worked closely with AKU Shaper so that each one is pre‑cut specifically as an asymmetrical. The tail is already pre‑shaped in the blank before the single concave is hand‑tuned and the rest of the shape is refined. This gives the boards previously unmatched consistency, bringing a once fringe, “underground” design to the surf‑shop customer.

We hope you take the risk and try one. You won’t be disappointed.

PU Construction:

LOST boards are manufactured in the Basque Country by the Olatu factory, owner of the Pukas brand, which also manufactures for the prestigious Al Merrick Channel Islands brand. Polyurethane foam core, Silmar polyester resin, and Hexcel fiberglass, together with an exceptional finish.

Paint and tinted resin options:

The board can be decorated according to the designs on the website lostsurfboards.net. If you want a special design, choose the appropriate option and, in the “Customize your product” tab, indicate the design reference and the desired colors.

Custom dimensions:

You can customize this board with the length, width, and thickness you want. To do this, choose the “Custom” option in the size drop‑down menu and indicate the desired dimensions in the “Customize your product” tab.