About custom handplanes
All of the bodysurfing handplane shapes we make are tried and tested in a variety of conditions. Our research and development is to take the handplanes we make – and go surfing.
Bodysurfing hand planes from Burnett Wood Surfboards cost R850 each, and this includes door-to-door courier to anywhere in South Africa.
We have a stock of expertly crafted bodysurfing handplanes, or can make a plane specially for you.
Visit the shop page to buy a handplane or contact Patrick on burnett.patrick@gmail.com or 073 232 3043
About bodysurfing handplane workshops
In this one-day workshop, participants shape their own bodysurfing hand plane.
We’ll take you through some basics about getting the best out of the piece of timber you work with, brief you on the tools you’ll be using, provide information on the different features of hand planes and give you a step-by-step briefing on how to shape your hand plane.
The workshop costs R1,200, including tuition, tools, materials, and your finished hand plane.
What you get:
- Access to all tools and materials needed to shape your hand plane
- A briefing on hand planes and how they work
- Tuition and assistance
- Your own beautiful, functional wave craft
- Experience of working with wood and craft
Contact Patrick on burnett.patrick@gmail.com or 073 232 3043
About bodysurfing
It’s an art all in itself, with a growing base of fanatics around the world.
For surfers and other water users, bodysurfing helps with fitness because you’re pulling your own bodyweight through the water and into waves. Another benefit includes getting in the water more often, especially when the conditions might not be great for surfing.
An oft said fact about bodysurfing is that it is unique because in other wave-riding disciplines, you are above the water on your craft, whereas with bodysurfing, you’re completely submerged in the water. That’s why bodysurfing feels like you’re very much in the wave.
A bodysurfing handplane (held in one hand) creates lift underneath the handplane, allowing the user to hold their upper body out of the water when riding a wave. The feeling of riding an unbroken wave with only legs in the wave behind you, is unique.
With practice you can actually surf the unbroken wave and perform manoeuvres such as cutbacks and barrel rolls.
Bodysurfing is an easy way to enjoy the waves, keep water-fit and is just plain fun. It’s best enjoyed with a pair of fins.
tips
Starting out? Here are some tips on how to get going.
Bodysurfing tips
Start out practicing going straight in broken waves. Hold the plane in front of you, straighten your arms and experiment with how the plane allows your body to be lifted out of the water.
When progressing to catching unbroken waves, hold the plane out and angle into the unbroken part (face) of the wave. Hold the plane in the hand closest to the face.
Bodysurfing handplanes are not a flotation or safety device. Users should be competent swimmers and aware of ocean conditions such as rip currents or strong tides. Use at your own risk.
