For decades Matt Biolos and his crew of glassers, sanders and artists at …Lost have built a loyal, die-hard following among the world’s best surfer. And while the roster of talent runs across the spectrum, their accomplishments on the Championship Tour alone speaks volumes. For the second straight year, …Lost has taken top honors in the WSL’s Vissla Championship Tour Shaper Rankings.
Headlining …Lost’s CT crew is defending world champ and Olympic gold medalist Caroline Marks and world number two Griffin Colapinto. But what’s really allowed Biolos to dominate the leaderboard of the Shaper Rankings since its inception last year is the depth of his team. …Lost put up over 220,000 points on the board, their closest rival was Sharp Eye, a full 70,000 points behind him. Meanwhile, …Lost finished almost 150,000 points in front of Channel Islands and DHD, who finished third and fourth, respectively.
A quick scan of the WSL’s Championship Tour leaderboard and it’s clear to see how Biolos pulled it off. Besides Marks and Colapinto, sitting sixth in the world is Yago Dora, followed by rookie of the year Crosby Colapinto, who both have Mayhem sleds under their feet. The successes of 15th ranked Cole Houshmand also factored in heavily, especially his win at Bells.
WSL
On the women’s side, it was the youth movement that carried …Lost. Gabriela Bryan, who won at Margaret River and Sawyer Lindblad, who finished runner-up in Rio, both had solid, breakout years, while wildcard Erin Brooks win in Fiji definitely helped put them over the top. And the honorable mention goes to Carissa Moore, who despite announcing that she was stepping away from tour life, did Biolos proud with her performances at Pipe and Tahiti.
So, exactly how does the WSL’s Vissla CT Shaper Rankings work? Designed to celebrate and recognize the surfboard builders and craftspeople that make the equipment the world’s best surfers use, the
The Vissla CT Shaper Rankings are a combined ranking system for men and women that recognizes the shapers who create boards for the world’s best surfers. Starting with the first event of the season at Pipeline and running all the way through the final regular season event of the year at Cloudbreak, points are awarded to each shaper based on the results of surfers who finish in the quarterfinals or better. The shapers then receive the same points as the surfers who are riding their boards. The winner is announced after the regular season comes to a close and before the start of the WSL Finals.
For the effort last year, the WSL awarded …Lost a day at the Surf Ranch, and it looks like they’re headed back. Always one to share the good fortune, last year Biolos even rented out the wave pool for an extra day and treated is entire staff of over 60 people to a day of perfect surf and sun in the California Central Valley.
Related: Mayhem Wins WSL’s Inaugural Vissla CT Shaper Rankings