It’s safe to say Kolohe Andino’s new FCS Traction pad is truly unique. And while it shares some of the same features as other FCS ‘Athlete Series’ pads, there’s some custom elements that set it apart from any other pad on the market.
THE KICK
Probably the most specialised feature on the pad. At times, Kolohe actually stands on top of the kick when he’s turning, so we applied a severe chamfer to the edge of the kick to better fit the contour of his foot. We also incorporated channels on the chamfer to assist with toe and heal grip, and played with the steepness and height of the kick ramp according to Brother’s specifications.
THE GROOVE
After trying a number of our grooves, Kolohe liked the feel of the Double Diamond Groove, but it needed to be clustered closer together to provide the optimum spacing. For his pad we moved from 11mm spacing to 8mm spacing between the grooves to hit the required feel underfoot.
THE FEATURES
- 3-piece pad, spreadable, and designed to suit a variety of different tail shapes.
- No arch bar. Watch how Kolohe surfs; lots of back foot movement and adjustments when turning and landing airs, so for that reason he prefers a flat pad.
- Sanded surfaces for enhanced grip, and strategically placed perforations for extra resistance.
- Cut-out for leash plug.
- 3 colour ways with visual references that tie back to his signature fin.
View FCS Kolohe Andino Traction
“When we set out to design my pad I had a pretty high benchmark. Of course, the surface of the pad needed to have a super grippy feel, but I also wanted to make the kick functional because I use that feature on the pad when I’m doing a turn”. - Kolohe.
In episode five of Beneath The Surface, we catch up with one of the world's most promising and exciting surfers Crosby Colapinto.
Cros gives us his insights into his favourite fins and why he's now jazzed on riding quads.