The Art of the Asym: Ah Vessels Magic North Shore Quiver

It was earlier this winter when a flurry of activity swept through the Center of Radical Education (CORE) as shaper Ashton Pickle worked on a stunning quiver of boards for his latest project with Rhythm: Positive Dissonance.

Pickle, who shapes under the label Ah Vessels, is no stranger to the inside of a tube and builds boards that can go the distance on the North Shore. In the film we see Pickle, James Thompson (aka @jimmysurf), Gunner Day, and others take the brand new quiver and instantly get them in the water.

Each one of the finished blades looks incredible but my favorite is the blue 6'10 Ordainer made for Jimmy who shows just how well it can handle the power at Sunset. Having a 6'8 Ordainer myself, it's awesome seeing a surfer like Jimmy really show what it can do on as he finds a line through the West Bowl. From threading the barrel to huge down carves, the board looks amazing under his feet. Spicy, if you will.

All of the boards are hand-built asyms ranging in size from 5'10 to 9'4 and are further defined by the unique resin panels on each board. Pickle, who only had a few days at CORE, worked with close friend Josh Peterson (@petersonsurfcraft) who helped create the resin panels and finished the quiver.

Gunner flew over from Kauai and hops on a 5'10 asym thruster set up that goes so good you would think he's been riding it for years. Pickle packs a few at Off The Wall on his 6'0 asym twinzer before having to leave and catch a flight. In hindsight, their visit perfectly aligned with a good window of swell in an otherwise inconsistent winter on the North Shore.

The film, shot by Ethan Jolly, takes an approach that brings you into the world of shaping where the work takes years to refine and perfect. Whales breaching, full moon rising, waves pumping at the foot of sacred mountains--this the majesty of winter on the North Shore. Throughout the entire universe of sports, there's nothing that comes close to the intimacy of a custom hand-shaped creation, such as these, made for a specific surfer.

Ethan said, "It was such rad time getting to work with so many unique people on a cohesive project. Ashton and I have been working together for almost 6 years now doing small form stuff here and there so it was cool to see everything come together especially in such a tight time window."

In the endless stream of surf content today, it's great to see a brand like Rhythm get behind projects like this where shapers and board builders are celebrated as artists and craftsmen.