Messages

1

General Discussion / Re: Outer Banks in September?

« on: August 17, 2023, 09:29:10 PM »

Some friends and I go every fall, have been for 20 + years. We really enjoy it. We are generally around the Hatteras Lighthouse area. If I recall there is usually a big surf fishing tournament in September sometime and they fill up the beaches, so you may want to check and avoid those dates. If you have a 4wd you can buy a pass and drive on the beach in certain areas, which is nice when you are looking for surf and/or trying to avoid a crowd. If I can find information on the fishing tournament I will post it back on here for you.

2

Travel, Trips, Destinations / Re: Costa Rica - Familly trip with a bit SUP Surfing?

« on: January 17, 2023, 06:48:38 PM »

A few friends and I are headed there in The spring. We have been a couple of times before but have only prone surfed when there. I hope to try to SUP this trip. I have been thinking of reaching out to Blue Zone or stopping by. If I get any good info I'll post back in here. We have enjoyed it there every time. My family came the first trip and then it has been just the surfers ever since. The family did have a great time when they went.

3

SUP Gear Reviews / Newly Acquired / On Order / Re: Neeed for SPEEED

« on: January 18, 2022, 08:21:57 PM »

Thanks for the comments and suggestions. Paddling in some calm water is good advice and I should do that some anyway. I'm sure it would help my balance and Just the exercise itsef would be good for me. I can get to water access in about 10 min by bike from the house, so no excuse not to.

I saw the speeed on here as well. It may have been a better size for me but I had already grabbed the 8.10 , plus the one I got was local so no shipping. What I probably need the most is more time in the water.

4

SUP Gear Reviews / Newly Acquired / On Order / Neeed for SPEEED

« on: January 17, 2022, 12:01:36 PM »

So the first Sonova I ever saw in person was a SPEEED. This was maybe 4 years ago. Thought it was a great looking board. I read all about them, watched videos, and have been wanting one ever since. A lack of finances, ( and to be honest -skills) held me back. Even if you can find a good quality board used, which is a task in itself, they usually are not cheap. I got a chance to water swap in about 2020 with a guy with an 8.10.and try it out. I did catch a couple of waves and it seemed to surf well, but I really struggled to stay on it even on a fairly clean day.  At the time my daily driver was a 9.4 x 33 173L Fanatic Allwave, so jumping on that 8.10 130L SPEEED was a drop in length, width, and volume. I even looked into getting one new at one point, but at the time none were available. Since then I lucked into a used 10' Style XL @ 137L as well as a used 8.8 x 32 Naish Hokua @140L. I generally ride the Style but have been spending time on both the past year or so, depending on conditions. The SPEEED however has always been stuck in my head as something I wanted to get. I have a older 9" McTavish Original prone board that has been THE prone board that works for me in most any conditions, and I had this notion that the SPEEED may be the SUP equivelant to that for me. A couple weeks ago a friend calls me and tells me there is a used SPEEED on our local craigslist. I checked and sure enough, it was still up there. A little older but in really good shape, what seemed like a fair price, and only about 10 miles from me. Needless to say, there is now a SPEEED in the garage with my other boards. It is the 8.10, and I am about 6'2" , 205 lbs & Low side of intermediate skill level. It may be a challenge but I am hopeful that it will push me to get better and that I can adapt to it this spring. Wetsuits go away in a few months here in NC so that should help. Weather has been bad and work has been busy so I am still really looking forward to getting it in the water and trying it out. I thought I would share with the Zone since I know you guys understand the addiction. My non-SUP surfing friends and coworkers just don't get it. Wish me luck!

5

Travel, Trips, Destinations / Good place to paddle - Pheonix?

« on: November 14, 2021, 07:08:03 AM »

Good day all!

Family and I are in Pheonix visiting our son. May have a few free hours one day and I was wondering if there was some good spots to paddle in/around Phoenix? Most of the group have never done it before so something safe and scenic would be optimal, but any paddling is better than none so most any beginner friendly place is fine. I can use any exercise I can get. Thanks in advance for any help/suggestions/info.

6

Travel, Trips, Destinations / Re: Va Beach

« on: November 03, 2021, 05:32:30 PM »

Thanks. I won't be back up there that soon. I'm in NC so if you are down here for the Carolina Cup maybe we will cross paths there. I don't race but may be there checking it out.

7

Travel, Trips, Destinations / Va Beach

« on: November 01, 2021, 06:16:30 PM »

I was up in Va Bch this past weekend and passed a car with what looked like a Sunova Speed on top. My son recently got stationed there so I will be up there periodically to visit. Hope to find a good SUP spot sometime when I am there long enough to look around. If there are any Zoners up there that would want to grab a burger/beverage sometime and talk about SUP/ surfing/ jeeps etc let me know. Or maybe I will see one of you in the water up there at some point.

8

Gear Talk / Re: 10' Sunova Style XL. Center Fin

« on: July 18, 2021, 06:19:32 PM »

Thanks for the info. I'll look that up. I put the stock center back in and have gone a few more times with it.  Been too busy to have time to play with it much. Will probably try the stock center and no sides next and see what that is like.

9

General Discussion / Re: Is anyone just SUP Surfing anymore?

« on: June 25, 2021, 07:13:28 PM »

I picked up a couple of used boards over the winter ( 10ft style & 8'8" hokua). Also have some friends wanting to try and I sometimes have to bring a spare board for one of them. Loading the car and being able to lock them up is getting to be a task. If I could go as often as I would like to I would want to find a van or something. Right now I am still working more than I want and surfing less than I want.

10

General Discussion / Re: Is anyone just SUP Surfing anymore?

« on: June 16, 2021, 07:54:41 PM »

I SUP surf most of the time, along with a handful of friends. Overall as a group I would say we are intermediate skill level. We all pretty much began as prone surfers and added SUP in the past few years. Love the long rides and higher wave count. If it gets big enough or the conditions cause us to feel too far out of our comfort zone we switch back to prone.
I lurk around here almost daily, just don't post very often. Check seabreeze frequently as well. I have been thinking the posts in here have slowed some also. I really enjoy reading these forums and appreciate all the knowledge and information you all share. It has helped me tremendously. I guess I should post more often & ask more questions. There is still a lot more for me to learn.

11

Gear Talk / Re: 10' Sunova Style XL. Center Fin

« on: June 10, 2021, 08:07:02 PM »

Thanks for the sugggestions. If I get a chance to try it over the weekend I'll let you know how it goes.

12

Gear Talk / 10' Sunova Style XL. Center Fin

« on: June 05, 2021, 02:26:04 PM »

Picked up a new to me, Style XL over the winter. I have ridden it a few times now and thought I would try changing the fins around a bit and see what happens. Switched to a similar sized but smaller base width McTavish center fin today with standard Sunov side bites. Did OK but couldn't tell much difference. Wanted to try a slightly smaller hatchet fin next but there is an uncomfortable amount of play when I install it. Have you had to shim a center fin before? If so, how did you do it?
Thanks, Tom

13

General Discussion / Re: Hello! Everyone

« on: May 02, 2021, 07:25:21 PM »

Welcome. Tons of info here and lots of knowledgeable folks willing to help with any questions. Enjoy!

14

Travel, Trips, Destinations / Re: March Cost Rica Trip - Input/Suggestions?

« on: February 22, 2021, 05:50:54 AM »

Thanks, we have rented prone boards from there before. I'll check it out for a SUP. I think that there are a couple of SUP camps there as well. I wonder if they would do some type day package and rent a board and get us to a good break. I'll have to look them up and shoot an email or something.

15

Travel, Trips, Destinations / March Cost Rica Trip - Input/Suggestions?

« on: February 21, 2021, 07:59:23 AM »

Morning All. Couple friends and I are booked for a week in Costa. ( Hopefully it will still happen) Nosara, Playa Guinoes area. We have been there a few times but have only prone surfed. I am thinking I may want to try to SUP surf there for a day if I can find a decent, reasonably priced rental board and maybe a less crowded, easy wave to ride. Our entire group paddle surfs as well as prone surfs but our skills are not great. Probably somewhere upper beginner to lower intermediate level. Any input/info/suggestions from anyone who has SUS there is welcomed and appreciated.

Tom