Question: Moving on from first board

Decos

Hey lads,

Just wondering at what stage you guys moved on from your first board?

Im thinking of changing boards soon, ive been riding a 7'2 NSP minimal. Ive been at it 1.5 / 2 years maybe, out surfing almost every weekend of the year and also midweek on summer evenings. Basically as often as i can

Skillwise im not sure am I ready to move on so a bit of advice would be really handy. I can pop-up and take off on almost every wave i go for, i can bottom turn and trim the wave frontside and backside. I am getting out back whenever i can, only time i cant is usually when the period is above 12 and theres walls of whitewater preventing me (obviously i cant duckdive my board).

That is about all i can do at the moment. Im happy out. Dont get me wrong, i dont have ridiculous aspirations for my surfing but i would like to progress. My question is, am i ready to move on to a shorter board or should i stick with the one i have for longer?

I asked a guy in the tubes shop(limerick) lately about this and mentioned i had been considering a fatboy flyer and he agreed and recommended that i get one of these and that it is the same height as my current board so that the shock of changing boards would be as big.

What do ye think? How did ye find the changeover from first board and what skill level were ye at when ye moved on?

(PS: When i was in oz a while back I bought a secondhand shortboard for the craic for dirt cheap so i know what it is like to paddle one and the differences between that and my current board so i realise what areas will be a lot trickier)

gerk86

hey, i started off with a 7'10 minimal. 8-9months later i (impulsively) bought a custom shaped 6'6 quad fish with plenty of volume. Its a great all rounder. It can handle everything from knee high to proper overhead.

First few sessions you'll (i know i did) feel like a total beginner again. i.e losing balance sitting on the board in the line up, pearling every second wave lol. After a few sessions it was grand though.

After almost 2yrs id say you're more than ready for a shorter board. I probably wasn't but it opened up much more possibilities for me.

Kell

Decos wrote: »

I can pop-up and take off on almost every wave i go for, i can bottom turn and trim the wave frontside and backside.

Personally, I would say you would be safe enough to drop to a 6' 8'/6' 6 fish or fat boy with the skill level you are at. I dont feel that at your level you will have much of a learning curve to get used to the shorter board, and I couldnt imagine it taking you more than a month.

Granted you will lose some of the stability of a longer/wider board, but that will be offset by greater manouverability. I have had a 7' 3 fish since last may and use my GF's 6' 8 fish without any problems.

Best o luck.

K-

Johnom23

Hey man I moved from a 7'6 hybrid broad to a 6'10 fat boy flyer and found the transition easy. With the 6'10 I can duck dive it and get out the back easy. Noticed the difference straight away too much faster board and way more responsive. Defo helped me improve. Got the board for much cheaper too by buying online in the UK. If I were you I might look at something like a 6'8 fatboy flyer since your already surfing 7 or if your surfing alot and have time to practice go straight to a slimmer shortboard maybe a 6'6 or even 6'4 whatever suits your weight.
Hope this helps!

steviesurf

Hey Bud,
I only changed from a 7'2 fatboy 2 weeks ago and I bought a 6'8*19 3/4*2 5/8 shortboard and found that it has improved my surfing massive. I'm only surfing a year and I have the Fatboy for a year but I think now that I should have changed sooner to get the advantages of a shorter board. I.e. more responsive. I decide that I wouldn't sell the fatboy because I could still use it on choppy days but I find it difficult to take it out now because it so much slower to turn.
But buying a new board there is a few things that you have to keep in mind. 1. Your weight. 2. your surf abilitys. 3. Type of waves that you surf. The most important thing is that you don't get a board that is too small because it will be a lot harder to catch the waves and its no fun if you struggle to catch waves.
Enjoy the surf.

Cecil Mor

It's never too soon to get yerself a longboard!!!