OLIE LE NOEL
Born and raised in New Zealand, I’ve been shaping since I was 17. I began shaping to help me surf the terrible wind slop that lap up the North Shore of Auckland. I have been lucky to have learned the skills that I know and continue to learn from a long list of influences and old guys that keep me inspired.
Moving down to Dunedin, I learned how to surf in real waves and how to make boards suited to ride them. I was taught by the King of the South Coast of New Zealand, Graham Carse, who pushed me to grow my shaping skills. My time in Dunedin was followed by a move over to Indonesia, where I shaped boards out of a factory in Bali.
I then moved to Portugal, where I was exposed to a new level of quality and standards in board production. This is where I was pushed to perfect my craft, thanks to the team at Wave Gliders, and Nico.
Following my stint in Portugal, I moved to Encinitas, California, and was lucky enough to be introduced to the living legend, Jim Phillips, who kept a watchful eye over my surfing experiments, and passed on his knowledge of surfing and it’s history, one story at a time.
I now shape out of my own factory on the East Coast of the North Island, in Gisborne. I enjoy making boards that go fast and glide using little effort or energy to flow and fly down the line, but also be able to turn on a dime.
Big thanks to all my shaping mentors that have taken there time to educate me.
Wayne Parks and Phil ,NZ
Graham Carse, South Island NZ
Nico, Portugal
Jim Phillips, USA
Currently shaping out of Tairāwhiti, Gisborne, NZ.
