During the filming of Stab in the Dark, Italo Ferreira rode just 12 of the 13 boards shapers designed for him.
The other one he threw to the side upon their initial meeting, banishing it from all water-bound activities during his 10-day Stab in the Dark testing window.
The board flew back stateside without as much as a heel dent. Why, you might ask? Well, Italo grew up surfing on a cooler lid, so we know he’s not overly picky. The board he eliminated wasn’t the one with Medina’s number on it, so the decision wasn't out of spite. And it certainly wasn’t an energy issue.
The reason Italo abandoned one board from his SITD roster is because, simply, we made him. Yes, Unlucky 13 is back. When we sent out invites to this year’s shapers, we were very clear: There is a 7.7% chance that your board will not be tested by our mystery surfer. Pretty good odds, unless of course you’re that one unlucky shaper. Watching Italo select Unlucky 13 was a study of the soft sciences. Would he base it on a board’s outline, its fin placement, or a particularly distasteful shade of gray?
Before riding a board, we all have an instinct about how it will go, but rarely (if ever) can we know we’re correct until we actually put foot to fiberglass. Despite some protestation, Italo grabbed one board off the mint green container and sent it packing, ultimately basing his decision on some combination of nose design and tail contours. As if anyone actually knows that those things do.
Who did he choose? You'll have to watch the full episode to find out: https://tinyurl.com/y285tv3k