Chasing Down the Genius

A self-taught surfboard maker, Jim Phillips began shaping in his early teens in the ’60s while living in Hawaii. But being a military brat, he became and East Coast guy in the mid-’60s and quickly worked his way into the surf niche as a surfer-shaper when the East Coast surf scene was in its infancy. Phillips relocated to California in the ’90s, still builds boards the old-fashioned way, and is truly a master craftsman.