Basque Country Shaper Slammed on Nazaré Paddle Wave

Hailing from the French region of the Basque Country, 21-year-old Gorka Rougé is intertwined with the area’s surf scene. His father Eric Rougé is a longtime shaper and was an early pioneer at the massive left known as Belharra. Now Groka is forging his own path in the shaping bay with an emphasis on shorter boards for bigger waves. And he had a certain Big Wave World Champion endorse his product.

“I began to shape four years ago and I’m convinced in big surf we don’t need boards bigger than 9’ so I shaped an 8’2” to go to Nazaré to try new lines on those big waves,” Gorka said. “I met Grant ‘Twiggy’ Baker, and he was curious about my board because it’s shorter but I took a lot of waves. The next day he asked me if he could test it, and he really liked it. I was so confident in my shape, I decided to initiate my label.”

As for this drop gone wrong at Nazaré last winter, Gorka has a story for that, too. Riding a self-shaped 8’2”, Gorka leaned a hair too far over his toe edge and face-planted at the bottom. He’s still dealing with the repercussions, but he’s already thinking about his next board. A real shaper, this guy.

“In January I saw a big swell coming to Nazaré so I took my van, my dog and my board and I was like, ‘Let’s go!’ Clement Roseyro, a really good surfer from Basque Country, has helped me a lot at Nazaré. He brought me to the spot and that wipeout was my first wave of this session. I was confident about my board but I didn't have faith in my capacity during the drop. I almost made it, but down on the wave I jumped off my board and I crashed, the lip hit my head, I felt my brain explode in my head. I felt so good and so alive after this I continued to surf for three hours. Next day I went to the hospital because my knees hurt, my head, dizziness, etc. I got a severe concussion. Seven months later I’m still recovering. I shaped a new gun in 8’8” for next winter to go to Nazaré again and make this amazing drop. I aim to develop my shape on big waves in France and Portugal.”

Related: Paddle Session // Belharra // 4:11