Most surfers ride boards their whole lives without ever knowing how one is made. Shapecamp is where that changes. Over four to five days you design, shape, glass and finish your own surfboard by hand, under one on one teaching, and then you paddle out on it. It is not a workshop tour and it is not a class of twenty. It is you, a blank, the tools, and a shaper who has been doing this for forty years standing next to you the whole way.
Here is honestly what the week feels like.
It starts with a conversation, not a saw
Before anything is cut, we talk. What you surf, where you surf, how you surf, and what you actually want this board to do. This is the part that decides everything, and it is the part most people skip when they buy a board off a rack. You leave the first session with a shape on paper that is genuinely yours, and a real understanding of why it is that shape and not another.
Then you make it, with your own hands
Over the days that follow you take a raw blank and turn it into a surfboard. You shape the foam, feeling it come down under your hands and learning to read the light on the rail the way a shaper does. You will get it wrong at first. Everyone does. Then it starts to come right, and the moment the outline appears out of the blank is one people do not forget.
After shaping comes the glassing, laying the cloth and the resin, and this is where colour comes in if you want it, a resin tint or a design that makes the board unmistakably yours. Then the sanding and the polishing, the slow work that turns a rough board into a finished one. It is dusty, physical and completely absorbing. Hours disappear. You will be covered in it and grinning.
Everything is provided, the materials, the safety gear, every tool, at every stage. You bring yourself and a willingness to make a mess and learn.
Who it is for
You do not need to be an expert surfer or have ever made anything. Complete beginners build beautiful boards here, because the teaching is one to one and paced to you. Experienced surfers get something different from it, a deep understanding of how shape becomes feel, that changes how they choose and ride boards forever. Both leave with the same thing: a board no one else on earth has, and the knowledge of exactly how it came to be.
The stay
There is an option with accommodation, four nights in a lagoon side location out in nature, with meals included, so the whole week becomes a proper escape rather than a commute to a workshop. Wake up, eat, build your board, surf, sleep, repeat. Campers and tents are welcome by arrangement, and airport transfers can be sorted. For anyone who wants to keep costs down there is a self catering option too.
What you leave with
A surfboard you made with your own hands, shaped to your surfing, that will very likely become the board you reach for first. But more than that, you leave knowing how it works. You will never look at a surfboard the same way again, and you will understand why a hand shaped board is worth what it is worth, because you will have felt every hour that goes into one.
That is the week. If it sounds like your kind of thing, it probably is.
Health, peace, love and good waves.
FAQ
What is Watta Shapecamp? Shapecamp is a four to five day experience where you design, shape, glass and finish your own surfboard by hand with one on one teaching from shaper Luis Brito on the Portuguese coast, then surf it. All materials, safety gear and tools are provided.
Do I need experience to build my own surfboard at Shapecamp? No. Complete beginners build boards here, because teaching is one to one and paced to the individual. Experienced surfers also gain a deep understanding of how shape creates feel.
How long does Shapecamp take? Four to five days, covering designing, shaping, painting or resin tint glassing, sanding and polishing your own board. Additional finishes such as cut laps or specific resin tints may add time.
Is accommodation included? There are two packages. One is the build only, with lunch included. The other adds four nights in a lagoon side location in nature with breakfast, lunch and dinner. A self catering meal option is also available, and campers and tents are welcome by arrangement.
What size board can I build? Shortboards up to 6'10", mid lengths up to 8'0", and longboards. The board is shaped to suit your surfing and your local waves.
Do I get to keep and surf the board I make? Yes. You leave with a finished, hand made surfboard shaped to you, and you paddle out on it during or at the end of the camp.
How do I book Shapecamp or ask a question? Contact Watta at luis@wattasurfboards.pro or +351 961 461 404, or on Instagram and Facebook @wattasurfboards. A deposit secures your place, with the balance due before arrival.