Madre Surfboards makes a clean and sturdy looking surfboard. Single layer of 4 ounce cloth, pulled in nose yet full enough for smaller waves. Knifey rails into a medium width half moon tail. Single concave to a mild double. A hint of V off the tail. Straight forward and honest. It tracks.
Alex is the owner and creator of Madre Surfboards. He recently slept in the shop’s backyard. He slung a hammock between two sturdy wood posts that hold up the slim zinc roof, and slept there. The original plan had been to camp at the beach, a few short kilometers from the shop. But this backyard option seems more secure. Alex isn’t traveling with much, but every possession has a sincere value.
When biking the length of the Gold Coast here in Costa Rica light is right, and every item matters. That is right. Alex is biking the coast line here. Twice.
This popular Pacific Coastal destination labeled the Costa de Oro basically runs from the Nicaraguan border to the southern tip of the Guanacaste peninsula in western Costa Rica. A long section of pristine beaches and low hills and flat farmland and famous surf destinations has garnered international notoriety and made Costa Rica an increasingly attractive travel destination.
The Guanacaste area specifically now extolls the whole tropical adventure wonderland narrative. Popular with surfers and wellness seekers and North American expatriates, this patch of earth entertains a diverse breed of nature and humans. And Alex is biking across it all. And back again.
Landing at the Liberia International Airport Alex takes a night in town at an Airbnb to assemble. his simple mountain bike and organize supplies for the plotted trip ahead. With the minimal essentials properly rolled, folded and stashed, Alex departs in the early morning before the sun is above the tree lined horizon and begins his pedaled journey to Santa Theresa. 175 kilometers to the south. In April. Traditionally the hottest and most humid month in an equatorial country that is just a steady calendar of hot and humid months.
The whole round trip will be about 350 kilometers…..
Alex arrives in Marbella on a scorching mid day afternoon, committed to the return leg of his trip, searching for waves and a camp site. At the shop we get aquatinted and review some of the details from his trip. Locations, distances, company, priorities. He is quite happy with a cold glass of water.
I don’t do coffee, he says.
We chat the local beaches and the roads. A dive into Google maps reveals an inland detour he took along a lovely yet mountainous ridge line.
There is a good short cut here, I point to. A slight river, but low now, and passable this time of year.
We chat bicycle adventures and surfboard production; the cool bliss of small mountain towns and their growing crowds; small Central American surf pueblo living and the inherent challenges that consume us all; waves both near and far.
When not peddling the lengths of Costa Rica Alex hand crafts surfboards in Montana. Not exactly a Mecca for surfing, but as a craftsman with a passion for surfing he has fashioned a functional workspace and steady production of hollow, wooden, Madera Surfboards. His workspace is skillfully wedged between skis and snowshoes and bikes and completed wooden surfboards.
Madera Surfboards work well enough to successfully negotiate Marbella beach with the tide dropping and a sizable swell in the water, which says a lot about the design and quality of his work. The fin plugs are cleanly installed and the entry rocker looks smooth. The wood is light yet authentic looking. These boards could easily hang on a wall if not being surfed in the warm Pacific Ocean. But this board is being surfed at every stop along his cycling route. At Marbella Alex manages to catch an evening session with the winds low, then an un crowded early morning surf before continuing his journey north.
Peddling his bicycle around Costa Rica with a personally crafted wooden surfboard in the side rack is slow going. Brutally hot. The mantra is keep moving and watch the country slowly pass you by. Choosing a bicycle for this foreign adventure ensures you move fast enough to cover some distance, but slow enough so you can be uniquely aquatinted with this exotic land and warm people.
Humans are nuts. We do the wildest things. Perhaps to avoid the ever encroaching reality of death; perhaps to prove that we are enough, an allusive ego drenched argument we are often making to ourselves and others. Perhaps just to be uncomfortable enough, in a rather comfortable world, therefore reminding our thoroughly modern selves that we are still alive and capable.
Discomfort is a sign that we are pushing ourselves to become the best version of ourselves, writes Michael Easter in his book The Comfort Crisis.
Comforts and conveniences are great. But they haven’t always moved the ball downfield in our most important metric: happy, healthful years, he writes.
Match the very real human mania for endorphins with the notorious obsession that cyclists and surfers practice, and the results are looney and beautiful. Stylish in their own grimy way, and thoroughly entertaining to observe or read about. Brands and media fill a whole techno sphere with outdoor adventures to inspire and provoke us away from our daily lives, and often accompanying screens. Sometimes these enthusiasts arrive here in Marbella, drawn by the magnetic promise of insight, provoked by turbulence.
In the back yard I watch Alex meticulously pack up the bike and prep for movement. His bike is efficiently parceled into hangers and racks. Each item (there aren’t many) are tightly wound around the sturdy aluminum frame. Compressed vinyl sacks and form fitting pockets are well tenured under the seat post and along the top tube. A hastily custom made steel rack hangs off the right side of the bicycle and firmly holds the surfboard, wrapped in a black sleeve dotted with white skulls and crossbones. A translucent yellow water bottle is wrapped against the front right fork. The efficiency is impressive.
Bike the tropical coast line, shape a surfboard out of wood, pull into heavy waves at a foreign beach, return to a loving home and a paying job — these days and months and wild pursuits quickly construct a lifetime and fill a short catalogue of memories.
As my author friend Shelby Stanger writes in her book Will to Wild “are you gonna go?”
Before the days heat really sets in Alex rolls his bike out the shop driveway and onto the road. He mounts the frame, the dust from a car that just passed clouds around him, as he casually pedals to the next beach, hoping to arrive before sunset so he can manage an end of the day surf. Meanwhile, it is damn hot in the jungle, and this dude is biking north up a dusty road after surfing heavy Marbella waves. Bravo
