Wax May Be Rubbed Out by Spray for Surfboards

Mike Borges wants to make it a better world--for surfers.

Operating out of his Santa Ana apartment and from a rented mini-warehouse, Borges has unleashed on the surfing world a product that could revolutionize one of the oldest traditions of the sport--rubbing a gummy mixture of paraffin, beeswax and candle wax onto the deck of the board before paddling out.

Borges has developed Ultra Deck, a clear, rubberized plastic that comes in spray cans and is applied to a surfboard deck like paint.

“No more waxing up or melting down,” asserts Borges. “It’s like buying a tire for your car that will last 75,000 miles and will never go flat.”

Borges promises superior traction with his product, which was about nine months in development.

Hobie Sports has been selling the stuff at its Dana Point shop for about two months and although sales started slowly, Ultra Deck is “doing pretty well now,” said Mike Winterhalter, manager of the shop.

Not every surf shop operator is a fan. Gordie Duane, whose shop has been a fixture in Huntington Beach since 1950, wants to give Ultra Deck a longer look before allocating shelf space for it.

But in San Clemente, longtime surfer Herbie Fletcher not only sells it in his shop but also has teamed with Borges to market the product.

Shipped From Minnesota

The gooey mixture is shipped to Borges from a chemical company in Minnesota. He contracts with an Anaheim company to have the stuff ladled from the original 55-gallon drums into 15-ounce containers, which he then stores on pallets at his warehouse in Santa Ana and at Fletcher’s shop in San Clemente.

Ultra Deck dries in about 90 minutes but remains supple and thus gives a wet surfer’s feet superior traction, Borges said.

Surfers normally have to use different wax compounds for warm and cold waters, but Ultra Deck remains soft at all ocean temperatures, Borges said.

In addition, Ultra Deck does away with the problem of surf wax rubbing off onto board bags, car seats and clothing.

It’s also lighter than the paraffin mixture--but initially is heavier on the wallet, retailing for about $15 a can. Borges says the price is justified because a single application of the product lasts at least one season.

Borges decided to devote his time, money and energy to Ultra Deck shortly after he took up surfing about 18 months ago.

The 34-year-old operator of a property maintenance service said he found the chore of elbowing wax onto a surfboard deck to be messy and inconvenient.

10 Months of Tinkering

So he contacted a Minnesota chemical company he declines to identify and, in his spare time during the next 10 months, tinkered with modifying the company’s rubberized plastic mixture. The final concoction adhered to surfboard decks, stayed pliable and does not wear off easily. In all, Borges calculates he spent about $4,500 getting the product to market.

As he sees it, the Ultra Deck story “proves that with a little diligence, the little guy can still start a business on his own.”

The product was introduced in September and is in most surf shops in Orange County, he said.

He said he expects distribution elsewhere in the nation and overseas to begin early next year.

Flush with the apparent success of his first entrepreneurial venture, Borges has more inventions under development.

Using a modified mixture of Ultra Deck, he is working on a slip-proofing product for bathtubs. “I’ve just about got it nailed,” he said.