Portal Surf Designs

[NorthJerzSurfer]

Hey Mr. Big- any update on your Portal board? 

[mrbig]

Radio silence from Erik..

[eastbound]

what're you doing pad/stomp-wise, biggie??

[Paddle On]

Portal Barra 7.11

Driver:
   •   Solid intermediate, working my way to advanced
   •   6’2”
   •   205 lbs

The Board:
   •   The handle is adequate
   •   Too for towards the back by ~1”
   •   Not great for long distance carrying
   •   The deck feels good
   •   Easy to stick on pads
   •   I used the FCS dimple and it is hands down the best decking material ever! My pattern fits me perfect also
   •   Has developed foot dents which are very comfortable
   •   Weight – it felt heavier than I thought it should so I weighed it and compared it to my other boards (production carbon) and it was right in there. I do want/need stronger construction
   •   Infinity RNB - 7.11x 28x98 = 14.7 lb
   •   Barra - 7.11x28.5x107 = 15.3lb
   •   Infinity B-line - 8.5 x30x115 = 15.6
   •   Fin box
   •   I love FCSII
   •   Using Performance XL fins
   •   Price – awesome value!

Performance:
   •   Learning – this may be obvious, but I am finding that smaller the board the more my bad habits come out. Need to step up my paddling form or it will throw me. I need to concentrate and hit my foot position on standing. Paddle ready for the easy pump
   •   My ratio
   •   Everyday board, B-line 115L – 1.23L/Kg
   •   Barra – 1.15L/Kg, which is a huge step for me
   •   Also, we really need to account for height ratio, if I bend down even 2 inches I am way more stable
   •   Stability
   •   After half a dozen sessions I have found my perfect foot position, toes right before the drop off, front foot about 2” in front of back foot
   •   When I nail this foot position I can stand really well in soupy, windy conditions
   •   The extra nose scoop really, really helps to recover when the nose sinks and when getting up to speed paddling, why don’t other boards have this?
   •   I am amazed and stoked that I am able to stand most of the time between waves, even in challenging conditions!! This is after only 8 sessions; even my friends were giving me huge props after giving me total shit for falling so much at the start.
   •   The Ride
   •   10 days in Bali, the first 4 days were really big, 2x OH. I only rode the Barra a few waves as I had not even figured out the board and conditions were challenging. I did ride a few waves and it was really fast and stable, but I did not really make any moves. Now that I am getting it wired I wish I could go back in time.
   •   Took me a bit to learn to stick my front foot center and pretty far forward and then I could catch and even chase down most waves
   •   It does take more effort for me to stand and catch the wave than my B-line.
   •   Late drops, I made more than a few that I never could have made before
   •   I got my first hard hack off the top
   •   I got my first ever floater and finished standing the whole way!
   •   I was able to keep up speed in the slower sections and race around white water and make it to the next section
   •   The board does not feel stiff at all and absorbs all the little bumps. This could be due to the fact that I am used to production carbon boards? I love the feel on a wave.
   •   No twitchy feel
   •   I am pretty hard on rails and tend to bump regularly with my paddle, this never happened on the Barra, I have no idea why, outline?

I have been trying to figure the best way that I can describe the board. Here is my best analogy. You know when you are driving an older car, you can feel the bumps, need to slow for curves and hear the wind, well the Barra drives like a new high performance car, you are going 90mph without even noticing it, taking turns with ease, barley feeling the road. Smooth!

My bottom line is that in just one week riding the Barra, my SUP surfing has jumped to a new level and this is just the beginning. I am super excited to ride it at my home breaks and continue my learning curve. I really can’t give a full assessment until I have ridden it for a month or two at home, but my first impression is pretty good!

[Paddle On]

pad progression - i put the pads on based on the handle. it was close, but know that your front foot, in my case right as i am goofy, will need to be a bit further forward so i added more padding. also i use my right hand to stabilize the board so it is extended even further.

i am super stoked on my customized functionality. as i have been playing with foot position, which is super critical as i am about 1.15 guild factor with wetsuit on, when ever i have it just right, i look down and my feet are always where pictured. i have found that the pad pattern makes is really easy to see this at a glance. and the direction i placed strips work great!

i really like how it turned out and wish more boards came without pads.

[eastbound]

thx much for the pad pics and explanation

[mrbig]

Called up Erik and had a great conversation. We are probably going to the original short Barra plan.

The width I need might not work on the Long Barra, but would be fine on a geezer short chunkadelic.

Many guys would just make the width no matter what the effect might be on performance.

All of his recent testing on a B-I-G (joke) 122 liter 8'3" would work for me. He now understands my needs are for wider than the average bear, but not needing literage.

Specially in summertime!

We shall see how it all plays out!😁

[805StandUp]

Heard this great podcast a little while ago and wanted to post it but didn't see it linked on the website right away.  At the beginning of the podcast, Erik mentions hew is hosting a Portal week with Blue Zone in Costa Rica June 23-30 with him and Chase where you take home a custom Portal Barra... sounds like a nice souvenir.

http://bluezonesup.com/2018/04/16/fisher-grant-chase-and-erik-from-costa-rica-fisher-joins-portal-why-you-should-surf-without-a-paddle/