Gero Tragatschnig is one of the few German guys in the business. He started out shaping his own sailboards in his parents garage as a teenager. When he turned 18, he made the move to Sylt (an island off the german coast, where you can actually find surfable waves) and started shaping sailboards for Paradise Customs. At that time Sylt was the only place in Germany, where “real” surfing (without a sail) actually took place. People needed boards - and Gero made them.
In 1992 Gero made the switch completely: no more sailboards for him.

In 1998 he founded Fatum Surfboards in cooperation with Thomas Lange, a pro surfer with worldwide contest experience, and then, in 2000 made the move to Peniche/Portugal.

His boards developed a serious following over the years: their well balanced designs, the perfect craftmanship and their premium quality are almost legendary. His contest short- and longboards have been winning contests all over the world.

Gero believes in a close relationship with the surfer. Gero listens and learns.

He is always working on perfecting his designs: the perfect outline, the perfect rocker, perfect volume distribution. His approach is straightforward. And even though his is not a fan of fads and bells and whistles, he still keeps his eyes open for innovation.

Gero’s mission: give every surfer, from beginner to contest surfer, his own perfect board.