JS Surfboards – Winning Awards Like They’re Shelling Peas

JS Surfboards have been one of the biggest sellers of boards in Australia over the past decade, rolling out quality board after quality board and winning more than their fair share of SBIA Board of the Year awards in that time. That run started with their flagship Monsta board in 2012 and has extended through to the Raging Bull most recently, with a couple of other designs winning awards in between. The iconic ‘Traktor’ logo is probably one of the most recognisable at your local break, something which would have been beyond the wildest dreams of founder Jason Stevenson when he first began the company. 

The history of JS Surfboards

While the founders of many major surfboard brands boast stories of their humble beginnings shaping out in the back shed with zero experience, Stevenson already had plenty of experience in the industry when he branched out to begin his own shaping company. He had previously done an apprenticeship with Murray Bourton before working for DHD for four years, but despite that there was still plenty of scepticism surrounding his move. Over two decades later, that move has well and truly paid off.

A defining moment for JS Surfboards came in 2003 when Stevenson’s first team rider, Dean Morrison, won the Quiksilver Pro. The world number two at the time was Luke Egan, and following Morrison’s win, he too wanted a few JS boards. Suddenly, everyone wanted a piece of the pie, with names as big as Andy Irons and Sunny Garcia included among them. Fast forward to 2022, and JS Surfboards are arguably the biggest shapers in the country, with former world champions and a host of Championship Tour stalwarts included in their team.

Who surfs JS Surfboards?

There is no shortage of very, very good surfers on the JS Surfboards team. Among the best of them include current Tour surfers Conner Coffin and Ryan Callinan, former world champion Joel Parkinson, as well as names like Julian Wilson, Jeremy Flores, Mikey Wright and Mark Occhilupo. And while those are names officially tied to the brand, there are plenty of others on the World Tour who like to get a JS under their feet, particularly when the Quiksilver Pro on the Gold Coast comes around each year. Snapper Rocks is just around the corner from the JS factory, and with Jason Stevenson having been a regular at the break for over three decades, it’s safe to say he knows what’s required underfoot there.

Like most brands, however, it’s not just the pros for whom JS shape their boards. Parkinson winning a world title with the famous ‘Traktor’ logo beneath his feet is no doubt good for business, but clearly it’s the everyday surfers who are buying the bulk of the boards. And there’s certainly no lack of those. While JS makes some of the most popular boards for pros, the average surfer is going to have different requirements, and those are well and truly catered for in their range. 

What do JS Surfboards sell?

The boards JS Surfboards are among the most popular in the world, and over the past decade have won a litany of Australian awards. Each of the Monsta, HYFI Blak Box 2, Monsta Box, and most recently the Raging Bull have won the SBIA Board of the Year over the past decade, testament to the consistent quality of boards that this company pumps out. These are some of their best-known boards:

• Raging Bull – The Raging Bull won the aforementioned SBIA Board of the Year award in 2021, with its ability to make high-performance surfing easy while remaining user-friendly for those a little less experienced making it popular among a broad range of surfers. With a full nose and flatter entry rocker, it paddles fast and is easy to get into waves, while the pulled in tail ensures you retain plenty of control for heavier conditions. This is a high-performance board in disguise, and is suitable in anything from 2 to 8-foot conditions.
• Monsta – The self-proclaimed flagship board of JS Surfboards, the Monsta was the winner of the SBIA Board of the Year way back in 2012. It had a major impact on modern shortboard design; a more forgiving nature made it popular among a broad range of surfers, but it retained enough high-performance features for Joel Parkinson to surf it regularly en route to a world title that same year. Ten years after it first hit the markets, the Monsta retains hugely popular among amateurs and pros alike.
• Blak Box – The Blak Box became popular for its user-friendly nature and surfability in various conditions, and is particularly suited for those not fortunate enough to have access to high-quality waves day in, day out. In 2016, the second version of this board, created using JS’s new HYFI construction – a method of construction which makes their boards stronger and lighter – won the SBIA Board of the Year Award. Six years later, the board is as popular as ever.
• Monsta Box – As the name suggests, the Monsta Box is a fusion of the aforementioned two boards, and it’s a mighty good one. It gives surfers the best of both worlds; the high-performance nature of the Monsta combined with the ability to get the best out of subpar conditions which is synonymous with the Blak Box. It has more rocker than the Blak Box but is flatter than the Monsta; less width than the Blak Box but is fuller than the Monsta. Testament to its popularity, the Monsta Box won the SBIA Board of the Year in both 2018 and 2019, and three years later it’s still helping surfers to get the best out of their ability around Australia and the world. 

Over the past couple of decades, JS Surfboards have had made a major imprint on surfboard and design, and since their Monsta won the SBIA Board of the Year in 2012 they’ve been churning out quality new designs with incredible regularity. The aforementioned are just some of the favourites, but there are plenty of others worth checking out too, including the likes of the Bullseye, Black Baron and Forget Me Not. They excel in their production of high-performance boards and have been popular with many tour professionals over the year, but the forgiving nature these high-performance boards retain – as well as the presence of numerous high-quality, more user-friendly options in their range of offerings – make them popular for all levels on surfers in all kinds of conditions.