Carlos García / Tenerife

Fitenia Surf Shop is the oldest surf shop in Santa Cruz, if you come to Tenerife, you have to visit it – Carlos is the owner and joined the vintage board collectors not so long ago!

Who are you? Where are you living?
I am Carlos García from Santa Cruz / Tenerife and I am the owner of Fitenia Surf Shop.

When and how did you start collecting and which was the first board of your collection?
The first collection board was a board of mine signed by Kelly Slater in 2004: an Al Merrick Red Beauty. I know it is not a very old board but that it is signed by Kelly is a luxury. The anecdote was that he signed it with a non-waterproof marker and that day after the championship there were incredible waves and I couldn’t surf. My wife and my friends went into the water and I had to stay at the beach under the parasol. I had to go to a surf shop and buy another board so I could surf the rest of the trip.

How many boards do you have?
I have 12 boards.

Which is now your most preferred board?
The favorite board of my collection is a Johnny Boy Gomez model by Town & Country.

Are you surfing your vintage boards?
No I don’t usually surf those boards, I’m afraid I could break them. I usually use modern shortboards.

Who is your favorite surfer from the 60^’s-90^’s and why?
I think Martin Potter revolutionized surfing a lot with more powerful turns, even some aerial. His power surfing stood out.

Who is your favorite shaper from the 60^’s-90^’s and why?
Mark Richards, I like his shapes and he still makes good boards: he adapted his twin fin from the 70’s to modern surfing.

Where can we see your boards?
I have the boards exposed in my surf shop and people really appreciate it.

Last words:
I hope to continue increasing my collection of vintage boards. It’s a shame not to have started earlier since after so many years surfing and with the store, good boards have passed through my hands to collect. Thank you very much for the interview and keep surfing!

Instagram:         fiteniasurfshop
Facebook:          fiteniasurf
Webpage:          fiteniasurfshop.es
Address: Fitenia Surf Shop – Av. Ángel Guimerá, 13 – 38003 Santa Cruz de Tenerife