'Can We Make It Less Ugly?' Torren Martyn Talks 'Calypte'

Originally posted on SURFER | By Chris Dodds | Last updated Apr 9, 2025 1:39 PM ET

A few months ago I went down to Bird's Surf Shed for a screening of Kelly Foote's film "The Ugly Duckling", a story about Torren Martyn and Simon Jones and the creation of their newest board, the "Calypte". The board was named after the boat Torren and Aiyana sailed around Indonesia, documented in a feature length film of the same.

Being that it was Torren and Aiyana's maiden voyage, they brought some experienced friends along for part of the journey, one being Kelly Foote. Kelly was intrigued by an oddball board in the quiver, considerably different than the boards that Torren and Simon were known for--that became known as 'the ugly duckling'. The film is now available to the public and is very much worth a watch.

Throughout the year long journey, Torren gave feedback to Simon who refined the original model into something more refined and far less weird looking. Inspiration for the board came via Trevor Gordon, who Torren saw ripping down the line at Rincon on a self-shaped twinnie that was compact and electric. Not surprisingly, when testing out the first version from Simon, Torren made the board sing down the line on a variety of Indonesian dream waves.

While Torren is primarily known for big, drawn-out lines and swooping carves while riding mid-length boards, he takes a different and much more vertical approach to Indo. "I'd primarily been riding boards that are like mid 6', like this 6'8" Fiji I really love. This board (the ugly duckling) is that cut down to size."

People may forget that Mr. Martyn can rip the top off a wave if he so chooseth, and both the Ugly Duckling and Calypte films serve as a reminder that the stylist can go vertical and throw buckets in the process. If you haven't yet seen Calypte, make a night out of it and let his layback tube rides work their way into your surf dreams.

If you'd like to get a Calypte in the US, or any other model from Simon Jones, hit up our friends at SurfBored.

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

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