GFH

It seems that so many businesses form from a single idea and ours is no different.

From a garage in college I made my first longboard deck. It was flat, no dedicated tip or tail, just birch ply, a bucket of stain and sealer, and a desire to make something original. I wasn’t impressed by the boards that had cookie-cutter look to them; I wanted a board that was more than grip tape and a heat transfer. And while the first deck that I made was nothing to brag about, it was still a start.

After working in the real world for a while I realised that more fun could be had working in an industry that had no dress codes, and where the product testing grounds were the city streets and sidewalks.

Eight years passed from the time our first deck hit the city street. Several jobs came and went too, and in 2005 GFHurley / GFH Boards came back. We have come a long way since the original shape, but the idea is still the same. Make a board that will truly turn heads. We use exotic woods and try to incorporate the sidewalk-surfer way of life into our boards. When we started, we made the traditional longboard shaped deck, but we kept thinking about the rebirth of the mini boards. The idea that any piece of scrap could be made into an instant blank board was something that needed to be revisited.

The first mini I made was for a friend back in 1999. It was a 60’s style board and was all of 20 inches. It was more than small, it was a challenge for anything other than barefoot riding. That barefoot style and feel is exactly why we made the Pug and Pigme. Once again, a sidewalk, a driveway, or a surf check have become something to look forward to.

We are always looking at the past and the future, so be on the lookout for what’s coming up next............Garrett F Hurley