Topics

1

Gear Talk / Hankering back to my old Laird Pearson Arrow- what's the modern equivalent ?

« on: June 08, 2022, 06:26:33 PM »

Hi guys

I haven't done much sup surfing for the past couple of years and I'm longing to get back into it. I have posted on here about the mistakes of going too short in the past. For reference I'm 10kg overweight atm which isn't helping. 105kg 6'1 late 30s.

Currently riding a starboard pro 9'2 128L. It's lovely. But it's hard work atm. Even when I'm the right weight- cruising the line up and catching 8/10 waves like I could with my laird isn't possible.

Part of the lairds magic was it's length and shape. But also its weight. In the era of modern carbon boards- people shy away from weight. But actually I miss a bit of momentum when paddling for a wave enjoying.

With thought- the laird was nearly perfect for me. 10'6. 29 3/4" wide. 154L.

So- can I ask what shapes are out there now that's close to the laird ? I would happily lose a few litres- 140-145 would be ideal.

2

General Discussion / Does anyone have contact details for member AREA 10

« on: June 03, 2022, 11:14:53 PM »

Hi guys

I'm trying to reach Area 10. He used to be a v active and enthusiastic member on here and then he just disappeared. We don't live too far away from each other, we have exchanged pleasant PMs in the past.

Feel free to PM me. I'm happy to pass my contact details on as people may not want to give his details out to me- if they have them.

Thanks guys. I hope he's OK!

3

Gear Talk / Realising you have gone too small and in doing so- lost the magic of sup

« on: November 14, 2020, 01:24:30 PM »

Hi guys

I will keep this short- 36 yo- 6'1 95kg.

SUP surf for the past 5 years. UK waves. Reasonable power but not Hawaiian or Portugal power.

Ended up on a 7'8 111L JP slate. Zero glide. So tippy it was hard work. Far lower wave count. Spent most of my time sitting in the line-up. Have a performance shortboard of similar tippyness


So- it's sold- and I want to return to the things that I loved about SUP

high wave count
glide
sufficient stability to paddle for 2-3 hours even in chop with occasional sitting
ability to cruise the line up


I am prepared to compromise a little on most of the above for a board that turns nicely.

In my head- something around 9' 29" and 125-135L sounds a nice balance. A decent performance rail and tail and one that diesnt need monster steep waves to work well. Sadly- this profile seems quite rare to me. With most sups either being

Much higher volume for beginners usually achieved by making them v wide
Much shorter for easy slashing skiddy turns

Any suggestions would be excellent thanks. Hopefully I'm missing a peach of a board!

4

Travel, Trips, Destinations / SUP surf in Brazil- anyone been ?

« on: September 17, 2019, 02:25:48 PM »

Hi guys

We are planning a last min holiday in a couple of weeks. The GF wants to go to Brazil. As long as I can sup surf- I'm easy.

A bit of research says it's reasonable surf (probably good enough for my good intermediate ability)- but crowds are a question and ideally I would enjoy the company of a surf school as surfing solo gets dull!

Any advice would be excellent. If Brazil is a no go we are open to other locations but ideally direct flights only.

FYI we went to Bali last year. Lovely but it took a while to find some nice spots not ruined by tourists. And it was an awfully long way away!

5

Gear Talk / Starboard Converse as a backup wave board ?

« on: October 24, 2018, 03:42:40 PM »

Hi guys

Following on from my post about graduating too early to a small low volume board- I'm on a quest to get my wave count up.

Given it may well take me some time for the right board to come up- I have noticed a few starboard converse come up for sale cheaply and wondered what people thought of them ?

Are they real beginner boards that will frustrate me ? Or will they be my super easy board and an easy sell on ?

9' 30" and 137-143L (depending on the year) looks good on paper and will be a piece of cake.

Alternative view is it's too much of an over reaction the other way and I will just sell it again a month later when I find the right board!

6

Gear Talk / Admitting you have gone too advanced too quickly.........

« on: October 14, 2018, 03:21:48 PM »

Hi guys

After a fun but frustrating session today I think I have to admit I have gone a little too advanced on the board front too quickly.

I have been sup surfing regularly for 3 years. If there's surf I go. And living in the south west of England this probably averages once a week over the year, but more sporadicly- with no surf for weeks on end over the summer and multiple times a week when the swells are working.

Typical conditions are reasonable swell- chest to well overhead- 9-12s period, usually with surface chop and onshore or crossshore winds of varying strengths.

I'm 6'1 and 97kg. 210lbs. More on this later

Below is my board history

Jimmy Lewis Cruise control 11' 165L lovely board. Sold on after 6 months but served a purpose well

Laird 10'6 155L much more advanced than the board above. Lasted me 18 months. Rock stable by the end. But it was very heavy. Coped ok with big waves but it was a big beast to handle. Broke a lot of leashes.

Jimmy lewis stun gun 9'2 124L. tippy. Worked well in big waves but needed power, a steep wave and speed to really work. I never had a really good sesh on it in truth. It didn't turn that well either. I think with real speed it would have turned ok. Lasted 6 months.

Sunova Acid custom. 8'8 113L. VERY tippy. 29" wide and super thinned rails. On a wave I LOVE this board. It rips. The bigger and steeper the wave the better. Bought 8 months ago. Still using it as my only board. But it's TOUGH. My wave count has certainly dropped. It's at least halved since my Laird. maybe even more than that. I sit down and wait most of the time unless conditions are sublime. It's tiring. And hard work. My progress has plateaued because of it.

Unfortunately- my weight has crept up in the past year. I have gained 7kg/15lbs. I'm convinced it's made a huge difference to the sunova. Today's sesh was tough. Paddling wasn't super easy. Balancing was tiring and conditions were pretty darn good.

Long term I want to shed some weight and improve my fitness. But even if I do - it won't happen overnight and I need a board I can use when the sunova doesn't shine. Mainly Less steep onshore waves and when there's lots of chop.

I have read a lot about the tommo style boards- and do think one, along with a longboard, would suit me nicely. But everyone says I must ride them short - and I think the improvement in stability over the acid will be insufficient in. 7'6 tommo of a similar volume. I also would like to add a decent longboard to my quiver- but again this won't be a quick process.

I feel I need to take a step back and go back to a board between my acid and Laird.

Before deciding- here are some other boards I have tried

Jimmy Lewis Worldwide used abroad in powerful reef. not bad. Thick rails. Pretty stable actually. Didn't turn brilliantly but not bad.

SMIK Spitfire 8'6 and 140L. FAT rails and maybe 30.5-31" wide. Rubbish glide. Didn't like it at all. Used aboard for a few waves only.

So- it appears I need something with good glide and will turn. Something around the 9' and 30" wide perhaps. Maybe 130-140L.

Finally- im expecting this board to last me 1 year. After then- I will hopefully have lost some weight and be confident on the acid- and tommo or more advanced shorter board.

As this is a years plan- I will have to restrict myself to a second hand board. I can't afford to take the £500-700 hit in depreciation on a new sup.

So- I would be very grateful for some suggestions please. No right or wrong answers here. To a certain extent I will be restricted on what I can get second hand. Thus if a board design has gone from crap to great after a years revision please let me know.

Thanks guys. I know im doing the right thing- even if my ego doesn't like it! Haha!

7

Gear Talk / Starboard Hyper nut- anyone tried one ?

« on: October 01, 2018, 06:31:54 AM »

Hi guys

Looking to compliment my sunova with something more stable and there seem to be quite a few of these avaliable for sale used.

May I ask if anyone has tried one?

I'm suspicious by how many are for sale barely used. At the least they appear marmite.

Some real world experiences would be very interesting thanks

8

Travel, Trips, Destinations / Bali SUP trip- advice please - September 2018

« on: August 27, 2018, 01:08:02 AM »

Hi guys

I would love some advice for a fast approaching trip to Bali this Sept (8th-30th).

6'1 92kg intermediate. Mostly surf UK waves but went to Costa Rica last year which was a hoot.

I have read that the sun is fierce and the waves are even fiercer. Crowds are a big issue too which means super early starts.

Does the wind pick up during the day there?

Have never surfed a reef break but will spend the first half getting good at beach breaks I think. Final week I may have the courage for the gnarly reef breaks.

There's loads of info online about break type- but it's not clear just how busy is busy and which spots are more sup friendly??

I did find one excellent post here by Superpedro which has been very helpful. Balian looks like a great spot and I may be able to get up there for a day or two while the gf spends time doing yoga elsewhere.

Anyway- Any advice would be brilliant thanks

9

Gear Talk / SMIK Hipster Twin

« on: August 10, 2018, 08:23:53 AM »

Not much on here about this board. Does anyone have one?

Im a bit confused about where it sits in truth......

Being a twinny i thought it would be a more traditional alternative to a tommo board. Good volume, short and suited to weaker or smaller onshore waves.



https://www.smiksup.com/hipster-twin-fin

However- looking at its shape- it has quite a narrow tail. And the video the guys are in some very solid sized waves.

So- where does this board sit i wonder?

Opinions and experience appreciated. Thanks

10

Gear Talk / Naish Nalu Carbon Pro 10' Opinions?

« on: August 06, 2018, 11:24:00 PM »

There's not much info on these boards online. Had anyone used them?

From what I have read- they are high performance and less suited to nose riding. The earlier constructions were less strong but the latest are stronger.

I'm considering adding one to my quiver to tick the longboard box

Any advice or experience on the above would be great thanks

11

Gear Talk / Whybare the UK classifieds littered with Hypernuts?

« on: April 29, 2018, 07:32:41 AM »

Hi Guys

As above. There seem to be a huge number of these for sale in the UK- at least compared to any other surf sup or even other starboard model.

I must admit I have never tried one. But it makes me suspicious......is it because

Do they not suit UK waves?
Are they brilliant boards so everyone buys them, progresses and then sells on?
Are they very marmite and a lot of people dislike them?
Do people like the bragging rights of riding a 7'6 board- only to find the inevitable trade offs of such short length for intermediates or heavy paddles are not worth it?

These tommo boards do seem a bit marmite- is the Hypernuts the most tommo of them all- and thus the most polarised?

12

Gear Talk / Why do I keep breaking paddles SUP surfing?!

« on: April 15, 2018, 12:35:44 AM »

Ok guys this is getting silly!

In 2 years I have broken 4 paddles

Paddle 1- a cheap half carbon Loco paddle. Broke half way down on its first ever session.
Paddle 2- a plastic rental one broke after a couple of sessions
SIC 12k Carbon. Twice This has gone. Firstly This split near the bottom- goodness knows how but was repaired. And then recently it ended up stuck in the fins of my thruster setup and the wave torqued it- causing a total snap! Bit if a freak accident I supposed.
Naish 70% carbon- board flipped up in wind after a wipeout and the rail smashed into the paddle. Total destruction.

So- £50-350 paddles all seem to get mashed in my ownership. Is there anything I can do ? A fibreglass shaft appeals in some ways- but do they flex too much ? I love the stiff response of my SIC. What else can I do? Bring a couple of spares I suppose!!

In honesty I do seem to be quite hard on gear. Leashes break like nobodies business and I have had to repair a couple of boards.

13

Gear Talk / For those who dislike the slate/hypernut/tommo shape what alternatives are there

« on: February 01, 2018, 04:13:25 PM »

Hi guys

As above really. I think i have got my head around the concept of the tommo shape sup. Hopefully the below summary is correct.....?

super short for slashing style- less swing weight and no nose so no nose weight
straight rails generates speed
just throw it around and make the most of the mushy smaller waves

But- I do wonder if these boards really work? At the very least they seem quite polarizing.. ....

EBay is littered with Tommo surfboards- and hypernuts- so I wonder if they are a bit of a fad?

If so- has anyone really nailed the SUP groveller/fish design?

14

Gear Talk / Which is the most gentle paddle on your body and joints?

« on: January 17, 2018, 03:43:59 PM »

Hi guys

I love my stuff C.F. SIC paddle.......but this sup lark has got me thinking. I want to be doing this for another 30 years- and so I may as well try and look after my body as Best I can.

I'm trying to improve my paddle technique- which I'm sure is massive in injuries and wear and tear.

But what sort of paddle is the most gentle on your body?

Is there such a thing as *too* flexible?

Should the shaft and head both be flexible? And if so- equally?

Is CF able to be as flexible as plastic?

And whatever the answer is- is a paddle designed for supreme gentleness on the body- does it perform less well? I'm mainly interested in surf but DW etc too.

Everyone seems to be aiming for smaller head sizes. Is there such a thing as too small?

Would be interested in people's experiences

15

Travel, Trips, Destinations / Nosara- Costa Rica. Beach advice- big swell on the way.....

« on: December 18, 2017, 08:06:19 PM »

Hi guys

Would love some advice on Nosara. Been here a week and really loving the local beach break. Mostly waist-shoulder high and pleasant with reasonable power (despite the supposed 1.5' swell and 6'7s period.....the voice of sup rentals is quite poor here but I have a few options.

However- there's a big swell coming. 18s wave period and 3' I'm thinking it will be double over head. I fear the main beach break will be too tough for me to fight out there in a sup.

Does anyone have any advice on alternative beaches which will half the swell size? I'm trying to get a lesson in before the big swell hits. Hope I can source a board that gives me some confidence too. Most rentals are pretty poor except 1 spot which seems to rent mostly pro level stuff.

Thanks