Who else is riding 6'10's

[Reid SUP'd]

So I took took out my 6"11 X27 twice so far

The first day it was 2-4ft and very choppy, def. not the best day to try a board like this for the first time, I was able to get up and paddle around but catching waves standing was difficult as the board would go underwater with the chop,  I wound up ditching the paddle on the beach and prone surfing it, this board is super fast, leaving the water, I had that sinking feeling of "why the hell did I get this board" similar feeling I have had before.

Well, yesterday was totally different, very glassy light offshore and 3-4ft, these boards can only be ridden in very clean conditions, I had a blast, sooo much speed so easy to turn and still very challenging to balance on for a long time, you def. have to stay seated or kneeling until sets start to come in.  

For a short period I had it dialed in pretty good, for me I noticed standing up in one fast fluid motion was best, waiting for the nose to re-surface and quick short strokes is necessary, I'm looking forward to a great relationship with my slender little SUB!

[colas]

these boards can only be ridden in very clean conditions

Note that you mean "these boards" as in "these NARROW boards". My 6'6"x33" is my stablest board in the chop...
Actually, sub-7' boards can be VERY different in feeling, the short size amplifies the different shaping options... 

Kudos for going this route anyways. I have only used boards as narrow as 28'5" but it is a very good school to boost your balance...

[Reid SUP'd]

colas - 33" is a bit too wide for me, now i will look at my 7"8 as my 'bigger' surf sub when its choppy

i don't think you can get those gong boards in the states? can you?

[soepkip]

The Caribou is much stronger, but a tad heavier. Basically it is a Bamby construction (bamboo sandwich), with an added layer of carbon on the top & rails ( carbon wraps up to 4" underneath). The weight listed on the board descriptions is accurate at 5% (without pads nor fins).
On the thin 9'+ longboards, the carbon is necessary to give strenth and precision. On the ShortSUPs, it will help a lot the durability.
The weight is not really a bad thing on the ShortSUPs, as it does not induce a noticeable swing weigth for non-competitors and help smooth your moves. Lightness is much more important for 8'+ boards

For your weight, you will need at least a 105l board. 95l is doable, but barely.
The Gong ShortSUPs differ on the kind of sensation you want to get:
- 5'11" & 5'9" for extra skatability in 0.5-2' waves
- 6'3" & 6'4" with its rather straight rail line will be at ease driving curves at full speed without being squirelly. These boards are driven on the rail at speed, so the rail outline is important.
- 6'6" & 6'8" with its curvy outline will favor a more vertical surfing, tighter turns in the pocket
- 6'9" & 6'11" is a "wombat" shape: a mini-longboard: the glide of a longboard (very low rocker) with some agility of a shortboard, but less tight turns, more for horizontal than vertical surfing. I am in love of this shape :-)
- 7'2" is an eay board for paddling and take-off, with volume centered under the feet for tighter turns. An easy board for all conditions.
- 7'4" an easier board, but with volume spread on its length for better stability but you will have to move around more on it to drive it.

The Bamby shapes are a bit easier (more rocker, stability, forgiveness in rails). The Caribou version offers more performance. For instance the 6'9" has 1" less nose rocker than the 6'11"

You will have to learn a new technique.
5'11" & 5'9" will be the hardest
6'9" 6'11" 7'2" 7'4" will be the easiest
But they are not "alien" boards for teenagers. Everybody is able to use them after some practice. You have some english feedback here: http://www.gongsup.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2229

I was thinking about a Naish Hokua 7'8 and now I am looking at a Gong 7,4 which is more than 3 inches wider than the Naish!
The 7'2 is tempting but to much a gamble with only 104 liters (I am 85 kg/1.89) coming from a Starboard PR

I have been reading the (french) Gong forums but its not easy..

The Gong sups are very reasonably priced in France but unfortunately they are more expensive  in other countries...

Gong has also got some very affordable paddles but it is not clear to me which of them is best suited to shorter sups...
http://gongsupshop.com/epages/box1707.sf/fr_FR/?ObjectPath=/Shops/box1707/Categories/%22SUP%20Pagaies%22

[colas]

Reid, alas no, as Gong has trouble producing enough boards for the French market already... You can order them and try to find a way to get them shipped, but it will be expensive. Gong at some time was looking for distributors in other countries but have put this action on hold as long it cannot ramp up its production to be able to satisfy at least its home market...

soepkip, you can also post your questions in english part of the the Gong forums if you want feedback from more users.

Note that, however, not having a molded process anymore has sparked the creativity of the Gong shaper, Patrice Guénolé, and he is now redesigning all the shapes for the next container, as well as adding 2 high-performance ultralight constructions in 100% carbon PVC sandwich. But I guess that means early december.
The 7'2" is definitely OK for your weight. If you are in cold waters with a lot of rubber the 7'4" may be easier.

For the paddles, for ShortSUPs you want:
- a short length: your height. You want this because you bend your knees a lot for balance, and surf closer to the curl.
- as much instant power as possible, in the Gong paddles this means "Kenu" or "Surf"

[soepkip]

soepkip, you can also post your questions in english part of the the Gong forums if you want feedback from more users.
Note that, however, not having a molded process anymore has sparked the creativity of the Gong shaper, Patrice Guénolé, and he is now redesigning all the shapes for the next container, as well as adding 2 high-performance ultralight constructions in 100% carbon PVC sandwich. But I guess that means early december.
The 7'2" is definitely OK for your weight. If you are in cold waters with a lot of rubber the 7'4" may be easier.
For the paddles, for ShortSUPs you want:
- a short length: your height. You want this because you bend your knees a lot for balance, and surf closer to the curl.
- as much instant power as possible, in the Gong paddles this means "Kenu" or "Surf"

I have seen the English section of the Gong Forum and will post my questions there this weekend.

I wear a full wetsuit including shoes most of the time so perhaps the 7'4 is the wiser choice.
I can always move to something smaller next year.

Would you also advice a paddle length of +0 for the 7'4 Shake?
I am using +20cm now on my Pocket Rocket....
And I was thinking to get the Fluid, because I thought a smaller blade is better on a small board....

[Dwight (DW)]

Would you also advice a paddle length of +0 for the 7'4 Shake?
I am using +20cm now on my Pocket Rocket....

I disagree on the short paddles for short boards......
It robs too much stability. Very important when you are pushing the limits of what you can stand on.

You have much better balance with a normal length paddle (+20cm). I actually increased to a +20cm paddle length on the recommendation of my local breaks best SUP surfer. It helped my balance a lot.

Use the paddle you already own. Then borrow the paddle of someone shorter than you, and watch how badly you struggle to stay upright 

[colas]

On ShortSUPs we advise
- a Short length +0 to keep your knees bent and your torso forward to help on take off, and to fit better in the wave face in tigh turns. On a 7'4" you can use up to +10 however. Some experts use -10cm paddles. I use a +0, or a +7 if I want to rest a bit and ride cooler. See my 100kg on the 6'4" at http://www.gongsup.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=30790#30790 you can see how much I am bent and need a short paddle (the one I used there is too long). You can see also that you do not need the body of a young semi god to paddle on a 6'4" :-). You need to have bent knees to manage weight transfers front/back to take off in real waves.
- the most powerful blade possible, because you cannot get momentum while paddling, and must rely on 2 big paddle strokes to take off. And the powerful blade helps a lot to lay on it for manoeuvers (but you want a blade shaped so that it glides on the wave face without slowing you). Again, a 7'4" has some glide and you can use a medium power blade. A bit of volume in the blade helps a lot for balance, at the price of efficiency.

You can choose to jump directly to a 6'x board or go through a 7'x. I guess it depends on your experience. If you are a Shortboarder, I would advise going directly to a 6'6", to get the reward of a real Shortboard behavior (front foot drive). If not, going through a 7'x will be easier to not have too many things happenning at once.
These boards are in such high demand that they resell instantly anyways.