Star Surf & Wooly TV Review: Machado Groove

Press play above to watch Wooly MacPherson and Star Surf's review on Rob Machado's all-new Groove in Helium Technology, shot in Western Australia (@starsurf.com.au).

Ian 'Wooly' MacPherson (@wooly_macpherson_surf_coach), riding a stock 5'10" and standing at 6'1" and 195 lbs, is the owner/operator of Star Surf + Skate Shop and Mandurah Surf Lessons in the greater Perth area. A stalwart in the local surf community, loved all who know him and learn to surf from him, Wooly is the 'salt-of-the-earth' and passion our surf culture is made from, and will ride everything from 2' to 65' (have a Google on his North West of WA tow session when Damon Eastaugh whipped him into a wave of his life, and his worst wipeout ever). Featured in Surf 'N Show's Groove review, this is Wooly's complete 24-minute review offering another amazingly thorough test in a variety of conditions.

Wooly affirmed this shape is Rob Machado's highest-performance shape, pointing out, "it's pretty mad to be able to get a board this wide and disc-y into the pocket and not slide out." The forever grom points out: this shape is not a groveler, but it still grovels and is super versatile. It's a daily driver, assuming your everyday is over waist-high. Wooly surfed this review with the Machado Groove Fin Set, in both Thruster and Quad configuations.

Meet the highest-performance board Rob Machado's ever designed, the Groove in Helium Technology.

This shape still has the hybrid DNA Rob's known for, but it's the closest thing to a high-performance shortboard Rob's ever created. The Groove's rocker and tail template bring this shape back into the world of being able to come square off the bottom and go square off the lip, what everyone calls 'high-performance surfing.' Rob added in more rocker than his typical shapes, with a tail rocker that puts you tight in the pocket and elevated nose rocker to help you come down tight off the lip without catching your nose. As Rob explains, "all surfboards have a balance of speed and control, and the Groove is all about controlling the speed a good wave gives you. It's the most responsive, high-performance board I've ever designed."

For Wave Type, this shape excels in just about everything. It'll work if you take it on a boat trip. "I build versatility into every design he shapes," says Rob Machado. "I build speed and ease-of-use in every surfboard I make."

For Board Features, Rob says, "thinned out the foil, narrowed the tail block. Added a cute little squash tail. And much more rocker than I've been riding the last several years. I tapped into all my performance DNA that was in my shapes in the 90s, and added sprinkles of my recent design work, making surfboards that are fast, floaty and fun in all conditions."

Pair with Rob's all-new Machado Groove Fin Set for best performance, and be sure to experiment in both the Thruster and Quad configurations.