Behind every great wave rider is a shaper—and here on the First Coast, few names resonate like Whisnant.
A longtime fixture in the local surf scene, Whisnant Surfboards are more than just boards—they’re custom-built vessels of performance and personality.
Surf artisan Mike Whisnant has been making my boards for over 20 years, but he’s been pushing design boundaries for decades before that.
Born and raised right here in Jacksonville, Mike’s been in the shaping game longer than most locals have been standing up on a board.
His path into board-building began in 1973—not with shaping, but sanding.
“I was the kid smoothing out someone else’s work,” he said, surrounded by the familiar swirl of resin dust and the whir of tools.
Over time, he worked every role in the bay—sanding, glassing, laminating—until he picked up a planer and took the leap into shaping his own.
What sparked that move? A classic tale of creative frustration.
“I was getting tired of the shapers around here not listening,” Mike said.
He had fresh ideas—boards built specifically for the local breaks—but no one would take the chance.
So he went rogue, shaped one himself... and promptly got fired from his glassing job. It was his first taste of what it means to be ahead of the curve.
That setback didn’t stop him—it started something.
In the summer of 1989, with a vision in his head and resin on his hands, Mike founded Whisnant Surfboards.
Nearly four decades later, he’s still shaping every single board by hand—from the blank to the final gloss coat.
In a world overrun by CNC machines and overseas pop-outs, Mike remains a throwback to the golden era: a craftsman whose hands have shaped thousands of boards and whose eyes still catch the subtleties of every rail, rocker, and tail.
And the surf world has taken notice. Mike’s taken top honors at Surf Expo’s Florida Shape Off—twice—winning in both 2011 and 2015.
In 2016, he earned the Masters of Masters title, a recognition of lifetime skill and innovation.
But if you ask him, the real trophy is watching someone ride a board the way it was meant to move—fast, fluid, and in rhythm with the ocean.
His boards don’t just perform—they express.
Some feature lionfish graphics; others soft pastel fades to eye-popping pigments, and each board is both tool and statement.
Rideable sculpture.
Step into his factory, and you’ll find more than foam and fiberglass. You’ll get knowledge, stories, and his signature humor.
Mike’s equal parts laminator, sander, and stand-up comic. I call his shop the unofficial water cooler of Jacksonville’s beaches.
Stop in, and you’re likely to bump into a pro, a grom, or someone picking up their third—or thirtieth—Whisnant board.
With so many overhyped or foreign pop-outs, Whisnant Surfboards are the antidote: shaped by hand, by eye, and sized for your ability.
It’s no wonder top-tier riders return to craftsmen like Mike, who understand what a surfboard really is—an extension of the rider and a connection to the wave.
So the next time you’re sitting outside, waiting on the set to roll in, glance down. If the rail reads Whisnant, you’re holding more than a board. You’re holding a piece of First Coast history—shaped by the guy who’s been quietly shaping the culture all along.