Following directions for any task is difficult, even those as apparently simple as assembling a toy or programming a VCR. Shaping a surfboard from written instruction is similar to those situations in disaster films where a character who has never flown a plane in his life finds he must take the controls and be "talked in" by radio.

If you've decided, after making your first board, that shaping is something you would like to pursue seriously, then it would really help if you can locate an experienced shaper to watch or, luckily, be a mentor to you. Ask questions -- no matter how silly or elementary you think they'll sound.

Of the number of people who I've taught to shape, only a handful have stuck with it. Some needed constant guidance to progress, but the ones who showed the most promise seemed to be the kind of individual who could reason things out on their own. One apprentice might stop work -- and wait for someone to ask -- when he didn't know how to set fins, when another might show the initiative to go round up a trusted surfboard, grab a T-square and figure it out for himself.

Try not to paralyze yourself with fear. The blank is only $40 or $50; the satisfaction of bringing your hands and mind into synergetic focus is priceless. As in any campaign or career, it's a good idea to keep the momentum going. Your first 10 boards should be grouped together as closely as time and/or budget will allow. This will help boost your learning curve.

Keep a notebook so you can log each board you shape. Include all the dimensions, templates used and blank specifics. Photos help, too. That way, you can refer back to past boards to help you more precisely duplicate design features you want to move ahead with.

Learn as much as you can about the range of blanks, and their rockers, that are available. We are in a whole new era of blank technology. The close tolerance (or close-to-shape) revolution has made shaping easier, faster and cheaper for production builders, but has made the choice of blanks a bit bewildering for the unescorted novice. Nowadays, 80 to 90 percent of what used to be wrought with blood, sweat and dust can be eliminated in the correct ordering of blank and rocker.

Probably every artist's studio or workshop has -- tacked onto the walls -- some version of the following adage: "The laborer works with his hands... The craftsman with his hands and brain... The artist works with his hands, brain and soul..."

Which of these you as a shaper end up becoming depends on which of the above-listed physical and emotional levers you choose to exert force upon.