Rails are a important concept in board design. This is the place where the Deck and bottom of the board meet. This part of the board is crucial in determining how the board reacts when in motion, how it sits on the water and how the board reacts when turning. The rails act as a track for the rider and work together with the fins. The difference in someone falling off in a particular situation can be entirely weighted on the rail design and waves the board is used in.

Firstly there are really only two base designs for surfboard rails, both have their advantages in any given situation.
The Soft Rail is a rounded rail, soft in appearance and no clear edge, giving a smooth flow between the bottom of the surfboard and the deck.

The Soft Rail is found most often in older board designs such as longboards. Soft Rail Boards do not react to sharp turns, they provide good boost in most conditions however the rail shape is best suited to a laid back style of Surfing.

Soft Rail

The other design is known as a Hard Rail. This design has two clearly defined edges and does meet the bottom of the board in a corner situation. The Hard Rail is the choice for surfers who love turning and carving on waves. The Harder the actual rail is in terms of angles and sharpness the faster the board will rip into a rapid turn.

Hard Rail

To define rails a little further we can look into a few classifications of surfboard rails.

• Rounded Rail - This an even design taking on the shape of circle. Its is smooth and uni-formal in its shape.
• Rolled Rail - The rails are rolled under the board, similar to Rounded however sharper in shape.
• Egg Rail - Similar to the Rounded Rail, this rail its extended further and takes on an oblong shape.
• Down Rail - An edge is formed with the bottom of the board. The rails are rolled from the top and meet at a sharp edge with the base
• 50/50 - Technical Description of the Rounded Rail to describe the point at which the rail meets at the tip (rounded point) meaning that it meets in the middle for a rounded rail.
• 70/30 - Defines the rail as having the widest point towards the base of the rail. Meaning that it meets at a sharper edge. Increasing this to 90/10 would essentially mean that the rail meets at a sharp edge and would take on similarities to the Down Rail design.