Wax+Surf’s elastic rubber pouch and tiny wax blocks are a solution to one of our shared daily challenges. Photo: Waxplussurf.com
Who hasn’t tried to bum wax in the lineup? Whether you just didn’t have it in your car, didn’t have a dollar when passing by a nearby shop, or you were simply in a serious rush to get in the water, there are few things in life more devastating than that moment you’re in the water and realize “Crap, this board is slick.” My wetsuit could split in half and display my naked goods on the jumbotron at the Surf Ranch and I’d be less embarrassed than the moment I slip off my board on that first wave of a session, coming back up to the surface of the water, and having to immediately ask the nearest person, “Hey did you bring any wax out with you?”
Of course, there will always remain the problem of actually having wax ready and available but for the most part, this simple little invention by a guy named Tam Rodwell solves one part of the equation. Rodwell created a nifty biodegradable rubber pouch that sticks onto the deck of a board and holds blocks of wax. Personally, I tend to stuff a bump of wax in my wetsuit cuff if I remember – which is a 50/50 coin flip most days anyway. Aside from the simplicity and convenience of the pouch, his wax may actually be a valuable find too, claiming that it stays sticky in a nearly 40-degree (Fahrenheit) range.
Who knows if the two player, near-monopoly on surf wax will ever change? But you gotta appreciate some creativity and ingenuity when it comes to some of our daily, quirky inconveniences.
