Topics

31

Gear Talk / Surf Watch

« on: August 03, 2014, 09:21:22 AM »

RipCurl's new SearchGPS surf watch:

So, let's say you're an adequate surfer with some cash to spare. Should you buy Rip Curl's watch this October? Maybe. If you plan to take your game to the next level, it might be a worthy investment. In the right hands, the SearchGPS can be a powerful learning tool (and convenient way to track your undisclosed surfing sweet spots, right down to their GPS coordinates). Otherwise, as in my case, it's a $400 gadget that quantifies exactly how mediocre your wave-ripping skills are.

I don't need a $400 watch to tell me that! 

32

Random / small world

« on: July 20, 2014, 05:10:34 PM »

On my way back to the boat launch from a paddle around Alton Bay on Lake Winnipesaukee this afternoon, a woman swimming nearby struck up a conversation with me about SUP. She mentions that her cousins paddle, but in the ocean.
"One of them actually started some races, including a really long one from Plymouth to Provincetown. He started paddling to regain his balance after a serious illness."

I'm thinking, this sounds suspiciously like StoneAxe's story. "What's your cousin's name?"
"Babcock. Bob Babcock is the one that started paddling to regain his balance..."

"Oh yes, I've met Stoneax, er, Bob before, at the Wellfleet race last year! Very nice guy."

After some more conversation, she tells me "the oldest brother, Bill, who lives out in Hawaii" was the one that got them all into SUP to begin with. He designed some new kind of paddle too."

"You mean one of these?" I said, holding up my Ke Nalu Molokai" 

Small world!

33

Gear Talk / Fin for improved tracking and stability?

« on: July 09, 2014, 01:43:44 PM »

Hey Zoners,

I'm looking for some fin advice for my new 2013 Fanatic Falcon 14' board. I've been paddling it for a couple months now, and while it's quite fast (especially in flat water) compared to my old 11' cruiser, I find its tendency to yaw and roll in any side chop slows me down considerably and reduces my endurance.

I'm mostly concerned with performance racing and cruising in open ocean conditions or protected waters that still have strong currents and lots of boat wakes. Stability and tracking are more of a concern that pure speed, since these factors have a bigger impact on my ability to maintain a good pace over long distances than the fin's drag.

Would replacing the stock 9.75" RaceAce fin improve this board's stability and tracking in mixed/side chop conditions, and if so, could anyone suggest a fin?

Thanks!

I'm look

34

Gear Talk / Do I need a board bag/cover?

« on: June 08, 2014, 06:37:19 AM »

Hey Zoners,

I'm trying to decide whether I need a board cover for my HRS Fanatic Falcon. Is sun/heat damage a concern with this type of construction? I generally store the board inside, so this would mainly be for those occasions when I leave it strapped to my roof in the hot sun all day at work or when I won't be going straight to/from my paddling destination. The Victory Koredry covers look like they'd provide easy and relatively cheap protection in these situations, but if the board isn't really at risk of sun/heat damage anyway, then I wouldn't want to waste $100+ on one of those.

Thanks!

35

SUP General / Endless Winter

« on: April 19, 2014, 07:22:16 AM »

It has felt like winter would never end up here in New Hampshire this year, but I was still shocked after seeing a nice weather report and surf forecast this morning to find this on the Jenness Beach surf cam:


 

Please, Summer Sessions, replace that placeholder image with something more seasonally appropriate before you give someone a heart attack! 

36

Gear Talk / 2014 14' Naish Glide GS vs Fanatic Falcon HRS?

« on: April 17, 2014, 06:39:30 PM »

Hey Zoners,

I'm planning to purchase my first 14' SUP this season and am looking for some advice to help me choose one. My requirements are:

• Priced under $2K
• All-around board with decent performance in flatwater, downwind, racing, and cruising in a variety of conditions
• ledge-style handle
• durable construction

My other priorities are:

• Stability for my size - I'm 5'8, between 160-175 lbs
• Efficiency paddling against or across wind, current, and chop (most of my paddling is round trip, and I want to increase the range of conditions and distance in bad conditions that I can handle)
• Speed in mild to moderate flatwater and ocean conditions
• Downwind performance in mild to moderate conditions (much of my downwinding will probably be in relatively protected New England waters like Great Bay, Casco Bay, and nearby lakes and rivers on days that I'm comfortable heading out alone).
• Surfability - catching small to medium sized waves way outside at beach breaks like Jenness Beach and the Wall.
• Capable of handling bigger downwind conditions (I'd like to try it anyway!)

After reading lots of reviews over the winter with these criteria in mind, I think I've narrowed my choices down to the 2014 Naish Glide 14' GS and the 2014 Fanatic Falcon 14x27 HRS. I'm hoping to demo both before making up my mind, but since I probably won't be able to try them extensively in all the various conditions and types of paddling that I expect to use one in, I'd appreciate any suggestions, observations, or warnings from Zoners that have experience with these boards already.

What are the relative strengths and weaknesses of these two boards? Anything in particular I should pay attention to when demoing one or the other? Does one or the other sound like a better fit for my priorities?

Thanks!

BoardStiff[/list][/list]

37

Gear Talk / Soft replacement fins for AW 8'10?

« on: December 30, 2013, 02:11:15 PM »

After paddling around in circles for a while today, I got out and noticed I'd lost a side fin on my 8'10 Allwave.   

With the number of times the board has landed on my head, I'm thinking if I've got to replace a fin anyway, might as well replace them all with something soft or flexible, like the Pro Teck fins. Does anyone have any experience or recommendations for these and know if they're compatible with an 8'10 allwave? All the fins I own came with my boards, so I don't know much about how to find appropriately fitting and performing replacement ones.

I'm thinking either the SuperFlex or PowerFlex would make sense for me. The SuperFlex are soft all the way though, and say for beginners through professional, whereas the PowerFlex are hard in the middle and soft on the edges and say for intermediate to professional surfers. I'm definitely a beginner, more concerned with trying to catch a wave (usually waist high or less) and not hurt myself than really pushing performance, so the SuperFlex sounds like a better fit. The guy I spoke with at Pro Teck said that those are typically used for flatwater SUP rather than SUS, so I'm curious if anyone else has experience with these.

Also, the Fanatic site says my board has a 5-7/8" center fin and two 5" side fins. The largest side fins Pro-Teck sells are only 4.5", and their smallest longboard-style locking center fin is 7". (They have 4.5" center fins, but it looks like they only come in futures/fcs/lokbox fittings... would I need something like this adapter to use the 4.5" fcs center fin?). Do fins need to be the same size as the stock ones to fit in the same fin boxes, and if not, how would the smaller side fins and larger or smaller center fin affect the board's handling? Again, I'm not looking for maximum performance, but just want to make sure I don't make a change that will make me even less stable when I try to SUS. 

Finally, are there any soft/flexible fins besides these Pro-Teck's that anyone would recommend? And any local shops near NH Seacoast that carry the Pro-Tecks or similar ones? I'd love to replace my missing fin quickly so I can get back out on Saturday if the forecast holds. 

Thanks!

38

Gear Talk / Winter SUS - how to keep your head warm?

« on: October 08, 2013, 08:25:03 AM »

Starting to think ahead about how I can keep SUSing through the winter in NH this year. I'm not very good, so frequent plunging in and out of the water is the norm for me. The last couple years I've given up by early December, but this year I'm hoping to overcome some of the winter gear hassles that have frustrated me and stick it out. I figured out last spring that wearing liner socks under my boots makes it much easier to slip them off after a session, and I'm hoping that thinner gloves will keep me warm enough while allowing me to grip the paddle comfortably and get them off my hands easier after a session.

The next piece I need to figure out is how to keep my head warmer. I've been wearing a 5/3 hooded vest over a 4/3 wetsuit but still find the resulting ice cream headache whenever I go under to be brutal. Is there any kind of hood or hat or face mask that other northern SUSers find helpful for curbing the ice cream headache in the winter? Or is it just an unavoidable consequence of cold water SUS?

39

Gear Talk / Anyone used EQ Seals/Sorky Ear plugs?

« on: October 08, 2013, 07:42:19 AM »

Has anyone used these EQ Seals (formerly Sorky) ear plugs? They sound like a good solution to keep the cold water out of my ears during SUS in the colder months. Looks like they're available online for about $50 with shipping, which seems like a small price to pay to avoid getting my ears chiselled down the road, if they work. I'd love to hear feedback from anyone who's actually used them before I shell out the money though.

40

Technique / How to get into a wave on Allwave?

« on: October 01, 2013, 06:45:21 PM »

I've been trying to learn to SUS for the past couple summers on an 11'6 cruiser (no prone surfing experience before that) and have got to the point where I can pretty reliably catch a small to medium sized wave and ride it straight into shore, or occasionally enter at an angle or turn just enough to ride down the line if the conditions are just right.

I recently got an 8'10 Allwave and could use some tips on how to adjust to this board and continue to improve my SUS skills. I'm finding it particularly challenging to get into waves that I could easily catch on my longer board. On the cruiser, my technique was to stand in parallel stance right over the handle, paddle hard, as the wave approached, and lean forward almost like a downhill skier as the tail started to lift and take another stroke or two, and then jump into a surf stance as the board slid right into the wave.

On the Allwave, I can't seem to get the positioning right. Taking the same approach as on my cruiser, the waves seem to pass right under me. If I lean or step forward more, the stubby nose seems to plow into the water, slowing me down. If I lean or step back, the board just rides up and over the wave. The only thing that's helped any is trying to catch the waves closer to shore where the shortboarders are lined up, just as the waves are starting to break.

Is there something I can do differently that will make it easier to enter waves a little earlier? I'm sure more practice will help, but any tips to help me shortcut some trial and error would certainly be appreciated! 

41

Gear Talk / proper care and feeding of new Allwave?

« on: September 27, 2013, 07:46:14 AM »

I just received my new Fanatic Allwave (thanks, JimK!) and can't wait to get it in the water this weekend. I was impressed with all the reviews on the Zone that rave about the Allwaves' durability, but to avoid subjecting this one to any more abuse than it will take as I crawl up the SUS learning curve, I have a few questions about how best to care for it:

1. I'm leaning towards putting some clear helicopter tape on the rails to protect it from dings and scractches, especially from putting it down on its side on rough pavement in the parking lot at the beach. I know some Zoners say this isn't necessary on the Allwave, but is there any downside to doing so?

2. Are the Allwaves pretty resilient against being strapped down tight on the car roof? I use some strong 6 mm cord tied with a trucker's hitch to crank my board down tight against the padded roof rack bars when heading out for a quick session. Is this harmless enough, or should I be using flat straps?

3. I've seen some advice to sand down sharp fins on surf/SUS boards to avoid injury. The allwave fins don't feel all that sharp to me, but I don't have much experience to compare these to. Are the stock Allwave fins sufficiently dull out of the box to avoid injuries?

Any other tips to help keep my new Allwave ship-shape?

Thanks!

42

Gear Talk / Anyone tried taping fin?

« on: July 25, 2013, 07:55:22 AM »

I just read a couple of great threads in in this forum on how to tape a paddle to protect its edge. I've also seen lots of information on rail guards/tape to protect the board rails. But does anyone tape their fin to protect it? My fin is all beat up from banging it on rocks, rough bottom, etc when paddling in shallow water or surfing it into the beach. I'm thinking if tape works well to protect paddles, why not fins too? Has anyone tried this, or figured out without trying why it's a bad idea?   

43

Gear Talk / Board suggestions for 5'8" 170lb paddler?

« on: June 24, 2013, 08:28:01 AM »

Hey Zoners,

I've been SUPing on my first board, an 11'6" Oxbow cruiser, for the past couple of years, which has served me well as a general purpose platform for everything from light SUP surfing to flat water cruising and even some short distance recreational racing in the ocean like this year's Wellfleet SUPathon. Lately I've been thinking about replacing this board with a shorter one for SUS, and a longer board for everything else, and I could use some advice on figuring out what to look for/demo in a larger board.

I'm 5'8" and currently weigh about 170, though my weight has fluctuated between 150 and 180 the past several years (more on the high end of that range, but hopefully more on the low end in the future, as I get primal and increase my paddling . I use a KeNalu Molokai paddle and tend to have a slower cadence, in case that impacts the optimal board choice.

I'm looking for a board that will be fun to paddle in both flat water and open ocean, stable enough to be comfortable on longer fitness/cruising paddles (anything up to and including the CCBC), but efficient enough to be able to make headway in sloppy conditions, e.g. head/sidewinds, choppy waves, etc.

My current board is not a lot of fun when heading into the wind or in choppy seas, as the nose tends to dip under each wave or get pushed side to side easily, killing any momentum. So my top priority in a larger board is a size/shape that can more efficiently paddle through messy New England conditions. I'll want something I can race too, but I'm in it for fun and fitness rather than prizes, so a super sleek-but-tippy board wouldn't be a good fit for me. Basically I'm looking for something that will be fun and stable to paddle longer distances on year round in any conditions. It won't need to be great for surfing, since I'll have my shorter board for that, but I will need something I can get through the surf on when heading out from the beach, and the ability to catch some bumps when heading downwind would be a bonus.

So what do y'all think? 12'6 or 14'? Any particular models that I should try to demo before deciding?

Thanks!

Luke

44

Gear Talk / What to wear in New England, spring through fall?

« on: April 26, 2011, 05:58:22 PM »

Hello,

I'm new to stand up paddling and just ordered my first board. I'd like to get out on the water and start paddling as soon as it arrives, but I don't have a wetsuit or anything insulating for watersports, and water temps are still in the low 40s up here in New Hampshire. What do other New Englanders (or those of you in similar climates) wear this time of year? Is there a single weight/cut of wetsuit that will keep me comfortable now through fall, so I don't have to buy both winter and summer weight ones in the next few months?

I don't expect to be surfing or spending a lot of time actually in the water the next month or so, but I'll need something that will provide adequate protection from the cold water when I inevitably fall in while learning to SUP in the next few weeks. I'd appreciate any suggestions, especially for something low cost and flexible enough to get me through until fall, when I'll look for real cold water/weather gear if I decide to keep paddling through the winter.

Thanks!

Luke