WIPEOUT

Surfing might never be the same after the closing of the factory that produces the foam used to manufacture 2/3 of US surfboards:

The price of surfboards could climb if Clark's factory remained closed, some in the industry said. Some predict that many surfboards will soon be selling for double — or triple — what they sold for last week.

"Our own boards … have gone up in price already," said Byzak, who said he told surfboard dealers Tuesday to hold off selling his products until he studied market conditions. "It's the law of supply and demand."

Surfboard dealers said the closure of Clark's factory could result in more imported surfboards, which many in the industry have resisted. It could also mean more business for Surftech, a Santa Cruz company that cranks out thousands of boards every year at a factory in Thailand.

My younger son – an avid surfer who buys four or five boards a year – is not happy. He's just ordered a new board and is worried the price will go up. The idea of riding a Thai surboard, no matter the price, doesn't appeal to him either. Globalization, eh?