Starboard whopper replacement

[SUP-poser]

So I buckled my 10'0" X 34" 170L Whopper yesterday—in relatively small surf—while trying to paddle back out over a wave that had broken. I think that my feet weren't sufficiently far apart in a proper surf stance, and the board bounced off the whitewater and smacked into my chest really hard. When I had a look at the board after this blow, it had buckled, apparently the impact alone was too much for the Lite Tech construction. I've been surfing on the Whopper for about six years, so it's been beaten up a bit, but I was surprised that it didn't survive this (minor IMO) incident.

I believe my board was one of the early versions of the Whopper "Lite Tech." It had some minor issues (the deck pretty rapidly sank in slightly where I stood when paddling. Not a serious problem, but a sign that the deck skin was not very sturdy). Still, I loved its stability (I'm 6'2" and 70 years old) and began catching waves pretty consistently after buying it.

Currently available Whopper Variations; (Starlite, Limited, Lite, Blue Carbon, Rhino...):

https://sup.star-board.com/paddle-board/hard-paddle-board/whopper/

I guess I'd like to hear opinions on which of these would be a good compromise in price/durability/weight. I'm hoping to pay no more than $1500.00 with shipping to HI. I'd welcome any guidance from forum members, including information about alternative brands that might have the sort of forgiving qualities that made it so practical for me to enjoy SUP-surfing.

[Badger]

Have you looked at the BluePlanet boards? The Blocksurf 9'10 x 33 x 161L Turbo might work for you.  https://www.blueplanetsurf.com/910-x-33-x-161l-turbo-2020.html

170 liters is huge for a surf SUP. How much do you weigh?

[SUP-poser]

I have looked at that board, and it might work for me I suppose. If I lived on Oahu, I could probably try one out. I'm weighing about 195# these days, not much older than you at 70, so I guess I can't use that as an excuse for my weak SUP skills. I'm a bit taller at 6'2". When I transitioned to the Whopper from my 9'5"X32 Fanatic Allwave (also 170L like the Whopper but thick and "corky"), the change was substantial—can't turn the Whopper very well, but I was catching way more waves. I think I only managed to catch one wave on the Fanatic? It felt fine on the wave as I recall, but I took the Fanatic out again after I buckled the Whopper, and I still feel very uncomfortable on it—It's a struggle for me. I also hate the Allwave's rough deck pad. I have neuropathy in my feet, and the Allwave's deck pad is really uncomfortable compared to the Whopper's, which has a smoother leather-like texture.

[Badger]

The extra wide whopper is a beast to surf, and the high volume makes it very difficult to sink the rails when turning. You might find a lower volume board to be more stable. The target volume range for your weight should be 130 to 140 liters max. Ultimately, you want the deck pad to be equal to or just above the surface of the water, with the deck often awash. This will provide a stable platform that is easy to turn on the wave.

Length and especially width affect stability the most, but too much length and width will make it hard to maneuver. After going through about 10 surf SUPs over the last ten years, and aging in the process, I ended up at 8'10" x 31" as the perfect length and width for me at my age. The volume of 119L is a little high for my weight, but going lower would have required getting a custom board.

[Badger]

Hypr Nalu makes some nice boards. They have a shop on the Big Island. I had the Hypr 10'6 Gun and wish I had kept it.

https://www.hyprnalu.com/

[ospreysup]

Its a very complicated question. THE WHOPPER comes in at 170 liters and you at 86 liters meaning the board is almost double your weight in liters. Even for those of us age challenged you can be in the 1.5 to 1.7 your weigh or 130 to 150 liters. But there will be a learning curve that will actually lead to stability. At 1.5 to 1.7 and lower rails you will have water on top of your rails that will actually hold you down. The old Allwaves packed a lot of liters into a smaller board hence the thicker rails and the corkiness. The Whopper is packing a lot of liters in a bigger package so not as corky but bigger and you are still on top of the water. If that's your preference then in my opinion the Whopper is the best board get but it is also way more volume than you need. Yes if you go smaller it will feel different but you would most likely figure it out quickly. For comparison I'm 60, 6'2 240 pounds on boards from 160 to 170 liters. Sunova has the ghost and the SPX that offers a more surfy design and varied high volume sizes but is more that your price range. Fanatic no longer makes big allwaves. I have owned the blue planet board an excellent board at an excellent price point but like the sunovas will have a learning curve with lower rails.  The NSP has the cocomat, a hard board to turn. I have heard good thing about Quatro.

All that said, If you have fun on the whopper get the whopper. It has been around so long because its a great design and construction plus they upgraded the design and to boot that's a board you can find on the used markets too because its been around so long.

Remember the best surfer is the one having the most fun. Don't talk yourself out of the fun you are having.

[SUP-poser]

The Big Island Jimmy Lewis dealer (which is probably making it's money doing Kayak/SUP rentals and tours) hasn't been answering the phone or responding to voice mails. I ended up ordering a 10' Whopper Limited from an L.A. vendor. Spent about a hundred more than I was hoping to pay. Should be at Kona Airport Monday.

Hopefully the Limited version will be stronger with the "T" stringers it's supposed to be built with. Thanks for all the help guys.