Nah Skwell. Yes I have spelt it right...

[SUPGlobal Matt]

Or "Play Ground" when translated from Celtic to English! A new brand has come along in Europe - I managed to get my hands on the 7ft 8 Fish, for about 5 minutes before another buddy "borrowed it".  We are gagging for waves here to try it out, it is really shaped like a big fish sized surfboard.



After speaking to Dave Parmenter about shaping and how he would never go sub 9ft on a stand up board I have kept that as an unofficial golden rule, however I have now seen two "short" subs go like rockets (one Drops board and one Starboard) so I am pretty excited to get this one on the water and review it, especially as it looks like my old 70's fish !

Full details here.

[jdmotes]

 Nice article and Thanks...  I have a demo 7'6" Sea Lion (1st cousin to the NS78) in my possession right now... I have had it out paddling and I'm very surprised with how well it paddles. Still waiting for some surf to try it out in. It's been flat here in N Florida ever since it was delivered last Thursday. Still waiting on the NS line to arrive state-side... Anyone in N Florida area wanting to test the Sea Lion, PM me and I'll try to set something up with you...  Later,   JD

[Paddle-Plappe]

I've tried it. I was surprise how easy it was to paddle, not fast but easy. It's also a pleasure to surf.
The board and the designer:
Sea Lion Surfing

[csx355]

I'm a big fan of the Nah Skwell. I reckon we will see a lot more of this style of board. They seem perfect to open the gate for bigger guys to access shorter boards as they are very stable.

I had a great session on mine last night in dead clean ankle slapper waves. Sure a longer board would catch the bump earlier but what then?? The 7'8" seems to be able to maximise  the use of the wave face and facilitate more turns and re-turns as the wave gets critical. This means I can surf smaller waves without getting 'board' bored, if that makes sense. Whereas for me a longer board sometimes seems to 'bog' down as the smaller  waves steepen up.  Most of this is probably beacause I'm crap but some boards do make me think 'I couldn't of done that better'. My Naish 9'3" is one of those boards - the Nah Skwell 7'8" is another.

I don't suppose it's that much of a secret really - big boards for glide and 'down the line' cruising - smaller boards for that manic chuckability.  It's just that this design allows bigger guys a piece of the action as well.

[jdmotes]

 I wonder how much seaweed Bruno had to clean out of his wetsuit on that last dunk???       
Sure wish I could get some waves like that here to give er a go!!!    Later,    JD

[SUPGlobal Matt]

Finally the forecast looks like we are going to get 4ft and off shore on Wednesday......can't wait to get the fish out there....we had tiny lines breaking on a sand bank off shore last night, I was on my distance board training, but I had to go and snag some waves, great fun....

[jdmotes]

Finally the forecast looks like we are going to get 4ft and off shore on Wednesday......can't wait to get the fish out there....we had tiny lines breaking on a sand bank off shore last night, I was on my distance board training, but I had to go and snag some waves, great fun....

Have fun, Matt...  Hope it's good for ya... Still flat here in Jax Fl...          Later,   JD

[csx355]

Hi Matt - I reckon you are going to have a blast on the Nah Skwell - dont forget to paddle in late with the minimum amount of strokes so that you don't end up sideways on the wave. There is almost zero glide.  A sort of modified J stroke works best for me to keep the board straight. (most times).  Standing well back after the catch also helps, if your back foot finds the raised bar on the tail when turning - watch out for fireworks .  Have fun. Steve

[Jeroensurf]

I,m just back from a 3 weeks Holiday in Crozon-France and have seen Bruno playing with them at plage Palue for a photoshoot, the boards look sweet and very loose on a wave.

[SUPGlobal Matt]

I have had my first session on this in 1-2ft waves.......

The key is not to try and surf it like a 9ft longboard, once I got my head round that it was great.  Treat it like a 6ft short board, think fast and aggressive seemed to work best.  It is a super loose board, very easy to turn and tail slide, take the drops late and steep.

I would love to get this out in a decent 4ft swell, I think it will fly !

[jdmotes]

 Hi to all...   I have now had two sup-surf sessions on the 7'6" Sea Lion...

First the CONS (IMHO):
 1. It does seem to fatigue me quicker than a standard longer board as paddling does take a bit of skill. Not that it's hard to paddle, but that paddling it tires you out quicker than normal...
 2. I believe the AHD gang could have gone with a smaller fin set and used a little toe-in and camber-out that would have loosened it even more than it already is. Of course, this would have an adverse effect on it's windsurfing speed...
 3. Catching waves takes some getting use to (See Pros #3)...
 4. It's a Demo and I will have to let others ride it and eventually, I will have to sell it  ...

Now the PROS (IMHO):
 1. Due to CON number 1 above, I'm losing even more weight than ever  ...
 2. Without a doubt, it's the funnest thing I have ridden yet in sup-surf. (if you get the chance to ride one, you will see what I mean)...
 3. Late drops are the norm on this board but it's not a bad thing. When paddling for a wave, as the wave is about on you and you feel the lift and you feel like you are about to take the whip and go over the falls, all you have to do is cock the board sideways and the inside fin will take bite and then it just explodes down the line like your shot out of a rifle. It's a really amazing feeling when it happens but that's the best way I can describe it...

Other Notes:
 It's basically a big Fish surfboard and you have to ride it differently than you would a regular single, or thruster fin board. You have to ride it more off the front foot and rail to rail turns just like a regular Fish surfboard. But to those who have ridden a regular Fish surfboard, you know that "skatey" kinda feeling you get from generating speed through rail to rail turns and it's a blast!!!    Later,   JD

[gavtheoldskater]

i've had 2 sessions on csx355's skwell and am still making up my mind about the board, but some of my initial observations differ a little from earlier posts (but bear in mind i am very out of practice on a stand up as i hav'nt ridden one since the spring).

floatwise i'm ok on it, i'm a wee bit over 100kg so a good 10kg above the stated max weight limit. not sure i'd want to ride it in nasty windy stuff, but once you get your head around the fact its only 7-8 (in nice conditions at least) its got a similar feel floatwise to the starboard 9-0 extremist i had. that surprised me!

in some ways i'd argue that its easier to use than the 9-0 extremist, it certainly feels as stable and i don't seem to stuff the nose in as much which was my big complaint against the sb.

i find it pretty nice to paddle in to waves with, i would'nt say i'm going late at all. so long as you get a bit of fwrd motion on the swell and stick the opposite rail down a bit it tracks pretty straight. you can definitely dig deep into swells.

the fins i would like to play with. i don't like the feel (can't quite put my finger on it yet) of the standard ones supplied, they seem too long and too thin. i'd really like to try it with some keel fins in, or maybe even a quad set if it had the plugs.

hopefully i'll get another session in this week and see how it goes, but i do think the fish concept has some mileage for stand ups in smaller/fatter surf (was'nt rob machado riding a tiny al merick stand up fish a few years back when the industry standard was a 12ft+ laird surftech?).

[csx355]

You have got to put that into perspective Gav. You have hardly been on a SUP more than once or twice in the last 4-5months. Jump straight back into some mixed to good conditions on a board that is 1'4" shorter   , 1/2" narrower, 8litres less volume and a bit more of an 'attack' nose than the board that you had.  And ride it with enough confidence to want to tune the fin set up.

That's pretty good going, I'm falling off my Naish if I've neglected her for more than a couple of weeks. As far as the wind is concerned I thought it coped better that a bigger board that has more 'windage' (is that the right term?) Less board showing to catch the wind.

I think the Nah Skwell / AHD is a bit special.

Could you imagine what an 8'8" would be like with another 1/4"  trimmed from the width?  

[SUPGlobal Matt]

I have finally got around to finishing the review video, I hope you guys like it !

Stand Up Paddle Global - Nah Skwell Video Review

[jdmotes]

 Nice video Matt... While the NS78 is fun in small surf, it really shines when it's chest high and over. The more time I spend on it, the better I like it.

 There is a video of Steve Sjuggerud riding it in small surf and Steve weighs in around 224 lbs and is 6'4"!  Here's a couple of links to the vids....    JD

YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.

SUP Steve Skwell.mov