The Old Con Ugly

>>> Didn't that board have hard rails in the nose and very turned up rails in > the tail? -- does this configuration aid with noseriding? No! The Ugly, and the Super Ugly, had an uprail at the nose, blending back into the wide pt. with a 50/50 rail blending back into a thinner tail still 50/50, then with a thinned out tail, that flaired up starting at about 6" before the corners. There was always a slight concave line from corner to corner instead of boring straight The deck was a step deck, but not quite as pronounced as, say, a Yater Spoon. The trick to their noseriding potential was that they were templated at 21"s a foot back from the nose with a wide point at 22"-22 1/2" some times 23". And between the bevels at the rails there was concave that finally blended out of the rocker 2/3 of the way back from the nose. With the wide nose, the extra concave, and the tail slightly flipped up, at the very end, there was, all things considered a beautiful "Ugly". I ought to know, I shaped countless numbers of them in the 80's for good ole' Con Colburn, God rest his soul, amongst all the other various models of Con Surfboards. Bob Purvy, was the colorful character that deserves the credit for that design. He and I spent a lot of time joking around about that Surfboard's sucess and it's undeniable position in surfboard design history. Bob Purvy was a team rider for Con Surfboards in the mid 60's. Hope he's well! No hard rails or feelings!

I agree, The Ugly can be considered beautiful. I believe Longboard Magazine did a very nice piece on this design and highlighted it's noseriding capapbilities. Unfortuanately I don't recall any credit being given to those of you involved in the design and shaping of this fine vehicle. Nothing new right? Some great history surrounding this shape. I remember seeing the ads for it as grom before I got my first surfboard. Recently I had to setttle for a knockoff of the Ugly that seems to be pretty faithful to your specs- shaped by Midget Smith out of San Clemente. Is this just his interpretation or did he fit in somewhere in the later history of Con Surfboards? TS>>> No! The Ugly, and the Super Ugly, had an uprail at the nose, blending back > into the wide pt. with a 50/50 rail blending back into a thinner tail > still 50/50, then with a thinned out tail, that flaired up starting at > about 6" before the corners. There was always a slight concave line > from corner to corner instead of boring straight The deck was a step deck, > but not quite as pronounced as, say, a Yater Spoon. The trick to their > noseriding potential was that they were templated at 21"s a foot back > from the nose with a wide point at 22"-22 1/2" some times > 23". And between the bevels at the rails there was concave that > finally blended out of the rocker 2/3 of the way back from the nose. With > the wide nose, the extra concave, and the tail slightly flipped up, at the > very end, there was, all things considered a beautiful "Ugly". I > ought to know, I shaped countless numbers of them in the 80's for good > ole' Con Colburn, God rest his soul, amongst all the other various models > of Con Surfboards. Bob Purvy, was the colorful character that deserves the > credit for that design. He and I spent a lot of time joking around about > that Surfboard's sucess and it's undeniable position in surfboard design > history. Bob Purvy was a team rider for Con Surfboards in the mid 60's. > Hope he's well! No hard rails or feelings!

>>> I agree, The Ugly can be considered beautiful. I believe Longboard > Magazine did a very nice piece on this design and highlighted it's > noseriding capapbilities. Unfortuanately I don't recall any credit being > given to those of you involved in the design and shaping of this fine > vehicle. Nothing new right? Some great history surrounding this shape. I > remember seeing the ads for it as grom before I got my first surfboard. > Recently I had to setttle for a knockoff of the Ugly that seems to be > pretty faithful to your specs- shaped by Midget Smith out of San Clemente. > Is this just his interpretation or did he fit in somewhere in the later > history of Con Surfboards? > TS ..........anybody interested in a new "ugly" should contact bruce grant. he's based out of aqua tech in marina del rey. he's been making ugly's for some time and as far as i'm concerned is the best source for that model. the pic is a board i made for a good friend(and great surfer) who let his prized con slip away a few years ago. i've owned some old uglys so i shaped it from memory and photos he had. i don't offer these(no mas)mainly because its bruces thing and he's got the most ugly experience.

>>> Gene, Con was a great person,when I started my surfboard shop in the mid 70s he gave me a lot of insight as well as glassing some of my boards.Herb.

>>> Gene, What do you think your doing? ... Tom, every shaper that thinks that > they are a shaper, tries their hand at this Model, at some time or > another.You can't help it. It's a test of one of the final levels of > shaping, and sculpting achievements. Yes, you got a knock-off, an > interpretation. Midget, wasn't a part of the Con surfboard trail. Neither > was Gene Cooper-fish.(He never said he did shape for Con). As a matter of > fact he just started shaping and paying for the pretty wrappings just a > couple of years ago. Sorry, the *PIC* is a pathetic image of something > that's suppost to pass off as an ugly replica, and I'm not buying into the > dribble that there is to much respect for Bruce Grant, that, that is the > reason for not shaping his(Gene's) rendition of an Ugly and calling it > something else ridiculous, like one of his other bogus knock-off's like > the could be, MELLO YELLO MODELO UGLYO or something like that. Dude, you > don't have the shaping credentials, to shape this board. I shaped hundreds > of Ugly's, and Super Ugly's(remember these), CC Riders,and every other > model that Con took orders for, including the Rocket Fish. Yes, Rocket > Fish, Yes Clyde Beatty used to work for Con as well (team rider, airbrush, > some pinline work). The Ugly was by far then, and still is the hardest > shape to correctly execute, that I have ever tangled with. Scores of Uglys > in the 80's, years before Bruce Grant, and years after Gary Seaman(son of > the great boat designer and builder, Warren Seaman),shaped the first one! > I stand corected from earlier, sorry Gary. Bob Purvy a team rider at the > time, wanted something new, to noseride. Gary designed the board.... Bob > rode it. Then decided that he designed it. Starting to take on a familiar > sound, boys. The board did well(of course), Purvey was a good surfer, too! > Con invested in advertising, the board sold well, there was a court case > that insued later, devoted to the designers rights, and > royalties,(naturally). As Gary Seaman put it to me today, the squeaky > voice got the cookie. Bob got some cookie. Gary, also gets credit for > shaping and designing the original Windsurfer plug for Hoyle Schweitzer's > rotomolded sailboard at Windsurfer International, out of the Con factory, > the rest is history there. One of the first shapers-craftsmen that worked > at Con's was named Don Donfrey, he taught Gary how to shape. This guy was > of all things a concert violinist. Then there was, (according to Gary's > memory), Joe Matsoe, Bill Schrosby(spell), Gary Seaman, and his brother > Roy,(who between the two of them were there for a span of ten years, > beginning in the mid 60's). Then on to John Rice(he thinks), to Michael > Olivaris, whom I worked with, and Bill Urbany, and then a character from > Brazil named Coyote, with his Makita planer (on one setting), and then Mr. > Bruce Grant. Gene's right anybody interested in an Ugly from Bruce Grant's > shaping room, better hurry. He doesn't wear a dust mask. (Bruce how many > times do I have to tell you to put on your mask before you start up next > to me)huh? huh? Bruce and I shaped side by side, or should I say, stall by > stall at Con's factory in the 80's. Better ask which limited edition, of > the Ugly, that you are getting! The old logo images are reprinted there > though, check the pantone colors one more time again boys before the next > run. Gene, Gene, Gene, see that couch in the second PIC, get that thing > off of there, I don't care where you put it. Just lay down with a cold > compress and try to come to your senses. It's crap like this stuff that > your trying to cram down the throats of a new generation, an unfamiliar > generation with the real story, that take most things that, people like > you put in print or "*PIC*s" as to what's real or truth. These > people don't necessarly know that it's just your fantasy! You pointed out > "according to your memory", on this *PIC* torial. Leave your > memory's in the little box next to your keyboard. Spare these people, they > don't need to see these pathetic erronous memorys of yours that you try to > pass off as valid examples or samples. Don't do it again, unless you know > what your talking about. IT REALLY MAKES US THINK TWICE ABOUT ALL THE > OTHER OFFERINGS THAT YOU HAVE OUT THERE!!. Stick to your Comet, or Hornet, > or whatever other Mello wallhanger hairball you cough up. It's OK , Gene, > I don't have the time to get into that. Yes, we'll spare you the verbal, > for now. And OH BY THE WAY, if anybody needs to be reminded about a > Cooper, or worse, see a *PIC*ture rendition of an Ugly, that a few year > old fantasy shaper, that thinks he's the cat's meow (that's cat's meow > Gene, not "da-cat"s' meow).(Or is that coming next Gene?).Just > tell them to check out their used board rack. Susie Colburn, one of the > real hotties on the beach, in her day (nothing cosmetic about her),Con's > wife, shared in the development of Con surfboards, from it's inception in > 59'. She stayed through the divorce, with her eyes on the books,(and our > asses) up to the time the business was sold as Con Surfboards. Control > Products was sold as a separate entity. Control Products is another story. > Constantine Colburn was a great surfer in his day, a great craftsman, and > a pain in the ass to work for. I still miss him. We shared the love of > fast cars and faster Skil 100's... Rest in Peace old friend. GOOD ATTITUDE=GOOD SUCCESS. BAD ATTITUDE=well, here we basically see what a surf factory is really like, when you take uneducated, drug/alcohol abusing one skill menial workerbee's and shove dozens of pre-scheduled surfboards down their throats with no paid vacation or sick leaves. It's a dogs life, why anyone would want to be a production worker has got me! At much less effort you can aquire a college degree, make that money, shape/glass a board at your leisure and surf your a-s off! When did this simple construction skill(surfboard making) become an attitude issue. I know many start up shapers along with many Mexican workers that glass/sand/polish very well,want to work,don't complain, and have a positive,non-aggressive attitude. LOVE YOUR QUALITY WORK GENE, NEVER HEARD OF YOU BROM. SEE YA DON'T WANNA BE-YA................