Ok, an Allwave or a Widepoint?

[eastbound]

https://www.goofboard.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=frontpage&Itemid=1

[kawika]

This is an old thread, but the topic is always current.
I notice that a SUP company in Santa Barbara has used this thread to insert multiple commercials for their product.  OK, we live in an age of greed, hype and hyper-commercialism.
But this really got me: "Seriously, support your Local Shop.  Really hard for the Little Guys to make it .  You already have a rapport with them, they should work with you."
Really.  Hard for the Little Guys to make it.  Why do you suppose that might be?
Maybe my attempt to work with the Little Guys could explain some of it.  Here's the short version:
SB SUP owner set me up for a 400-500 mile round trip to finalize specs and order a custom board, and then he failed to show up.  His employee declined to call him, and gave me no explanation.  The owner had my email address.  He had my phone number.  He knew that I would be driving over 200 miles each way to come up and try to order one of their boards.  He knew I had to make it a quick, one-day trip due to other commitments.  Did anyone phone in advance to let me know that he would not be available after all?  No.  Email?  No.  Apology or explanation once I was there?  No.  Anything like, "he's not in, but I can work with you on it "?  Nope.  I test-drove a similar board anyway-and they charged me for the "privilege."  It was mediocre at best.  Then it was hard and time-consuming to get them to destroy my credit card and driver's license information which they had photocopied.  I see no point in dealing with a shop that has mediocre product and refuses to cooperate with customers.
Just one man's experience, but it says a lot.
I now have two off the rack SUP boards (one from Bru, the other from KM Hawai'i) and they are excellent.  And no one jerked me around.