ENCINITAS, Calif. — Many of the top surfboard shapers are men. But a mom in Encinitas has been making waves in the board-making industry.
Valerie Duprat is not only a surfboard shaper, hand-shaping Mere-Made Surfboards, but she’s also a scientist.
Valerie spends her workdays in a lab doing research development for a company that does DNA sequencing — as a biochemist. But on weekends and after work, she can often be found in her purple-colored surfboard shaping shack in her backyard.
Valerie started shaping surfboards about 14 years ago when she was looking for a hobby that would combine her surfing lifestyle with art.
“I even had no clue that only a few women were doing it. When I started, I thought it was normal,” she said with a laugh.
Today, the number of female shapers isn’t all that high, while the number of women participating in the sport is growing. According to the Surf Industry Members Association, 35% of surfers are women.
But among the top pro surfers in the world competing at the highest level, Valerie says, “I don’t know of any surfer who ride female boards — female shaper boards.”
Valerie competed in the Boardroom Show’s “Icons of Foam” shape-off against legendary craftsman Timmy Patterson in 2021. Duprat said she was the only female shaper who was invited to participate that year.
But the USA Surfing 2024 Under 16 Champion Surfer rides Duprat’s Mere-Made Surfboards because the shaper is also her mom. Victoria is part of what you might call the “research and development” team, and she gives her mom Valerie instant feedback from the lineup.
“I love her boards. Honestly, she makes some magic boards that I think are super fun to ride,” said Victoria.
By the way, whoever rides Mere-Made Surfboards is riding a “mom-made” board because “mere” is “mom” in French, so her board brand translates to “Mom-Made Surfboards.”
Valerie has close to 400 hand-shaped surfboards. She hopes to pass on the craft to the next generation. She also teaches one-on-one surfboard shaping classes at UC San Diego’s Craft Center.
