Admitting you have gone too advanced too quickly.........

[mrbig]

A10, Went to the gong site! Unavailable!😥

[TallDude]

I've put on 20 lbs over the past 3 years or so. I've been holding steady at 245 lbs for about two years. With my new job(s) and schedule, my workouts and surfing are less than they were 5 years ago. I don't see things changing. I'm not good a dieting, because I've never had to. Now I have to, so I eat half of what I did, and probably workout 2/3 of what I did. That being said, I out weight my boards now. They sink now, but didn't as much back then. I'm looking at something like a Creek, a WarDog Stoke or maybe an RNB-ish shape in the 9' x 32" wide 150 liter range. Something a little wider with a pulled in tail and quads. Something that's easier to stand in a choppy lineup with, and turns more like a short board. 

[Area 10]

A10, Went to the gong site! Unavailable!😥

Wow that was quick - it was available just before I posted!

[supsean]

now re my barra 8'23" x 29, i am only 3 sessions in--bet is, once ive got 10 sessions under my belt, i will have no issue with 3 hr+ sessions on it

Hi Eastbound, how many liters in the Barra?

[Dwight (DW)]

A10, Went to the gong site! Unavailable!😥

Wow that was quick - it was available just before I posted!

Works for me now

https://gongsupshop.com

[mrbig]

Yep! Whomp there it is. Has anyone ridden one or knows someone who has?

[Area 10]

Yep! Whomp there it is. Has anyone ridden one or knows someone who has?

I haven’t ridden that particular model Gong. But I own two Gong SUPs currently (including one that is the same construction as this board) and have owned three others in the past. The Gong shaper, Patrice, is a gifted shaper and a really superb surfer, who rides his own products a lot. His boards tend to be oriented to the real-world conditions we get in Europe, and are quite advanced, performance-wise. For instance the nose and tails on these SUPs (as you can see from the pictures) are thinned-out, and the rail shape is pure surfboard.

This construction of my board that is made like this one seems to be very solid, and the fit and finish is excellent - actually, the durability and general appearance of my board puts many big-brand boards to shame. Yet they are literally half the price, or less, because they sell direct rather than through a distribution and retailer network.

The only downside of buying one of these is that the customer service standard of the couriers they use to deliver in the UK (Geodis) is pretty dreadful IMO: It’s hard to track your board accurately or communicate with them. DHL etc they are not. But the upside is that they are cheap, and my board did arrive undamaged. My communications with Gong themselves were very helpful and prompt.

I’m tempted to try one of their light, top carbon (Kevlar-reinforced) paddles, for surf. Again, they are so cheap that it’s hard to see how I could go far wrong. They are about the same price as e.g. the fairly heavy Starboard adjustable that has minimal carbon in it that I bought this summer. The Gong paddle handle looks comfy and the design looks sensible. If I get one I’ll let you know what it’s like.

[devon_sup_surf]

Where do you live Area 10?

I do like Gong. In fact their website puts me off more than anything. It's hard to navigate and the sheer volume of boards they have avakiable is overwhelming.

're paddles- I happen to have one of their carbon ones. I paid £150 from memory- it was reduced from around £180 I think. it's good. light strong and seems robust. My stroke rate isn't as high as I would like with it though. I like a small head and they only do a medium.

[Area 10]

Well, the Gong carbon pro 7” paddle is 83 sq ins, which won’t be too big for most people. Incidentally, I recently went from using a 81 sq inch v-drive to a 71, and noticed very little diffference. The 71 doesn’t slip at all, for me. It’s making me wonder how much smaller I could go. I reckon 61 might certainly be possible, maybe even less, if someone made such a thing. It’s mostly about the technique, I think. I wonder if a lot of the pros I see with 91 v-drives could actually be using a much smaller blade.

[eastbound]

barra is 8'3" x 29 x120 liters--weighs 14.8 lbs, w/out fins

[eastbound]

and, to be fair, that barra weight includes a pad--octopus surf stomp, and front traction patchwork @ 3mm--a thin light pad setup, vs typical factory pad

[yugi]

A10, Went to the gong site! Unavailable!😥

Wow that was quick - it was available just before I posted!

still is

[yugi]

... their website puts me off more than anything. It's hard to navigate and the sheer volume of boards they have avakiable is overwhelming.

...

So true

[yugi]

...
 I recently went from using a 81 sq inch v-drive to a 71, and noticed very little diffference. The 71 doesn’t slip at all, for me. It’s making me wonder how much smaller I could go. I reckon 61 might certainly be possible, maybe even less, if someone made such a thing. It’s mostly about the technique, I think.
...

which is why I don't believe tests that presume/asume paddle slipage in the water as a baseline

[APPST_Paddle]

Along the same lines as this post, I'm the poster boy for swapping boards out (luckily there's still a decent 2nd hand market here). I generally error on the other side of not going down drastically enough and then regretting it. It's a mix of losing weight and just progression.

Case in point, a year ago I went from a mid-8' board at 128L down to a slimmed down version 8'8" at 110L. Loved the board from the start, still do in bigger surf. The issue is I know I can paddle a smaller board and be fine stability wise in any conditions.

So, I basically fill my quiver to ensure I maximize the board for the conditions. I basically keep 3 boards - a longboard, a shorter/low rocker board for mushy, slow EC waves, and a board for travel/stronger surf.

The 8'8" fits into the last category, so my question is, if you are comparing the same board, how much is just length holding back progression. I'm thinking of sticking with it for awhile as the added length helps both in terms of glide/stability and from a mental standpoint I don't have to work to stay on the board or manuever. For those that have continuously dropped down in volume, is there a spot where you feel like in bigger surf (overhead ground swell) that having a bit larger of a board helps?