Author Topic: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP  (Read 20056 times)

LBsup

  • Sunset Status
  • ****
  • Posts: 297
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #30 on: February 02, 2019, 12:59:15 PM »
It’s been around 8 years since I’ve gone from regular surfing to SUP surfing.  In NJ I can surf sup around 4 months of the year without booties and have never gotten my toes stuck in the insert handle.  Has this happened to anyone?

Well yes, I have, that's why I mention it. Used to bug me all of the time with my 8'2 widepoint. A lot depends on the size of the board and your style.
I figured it happened to you.  I was wondering if it happened to anyone else.  Glad the liftsup is available for you.
Black Project Texcarbon, 85 blade, 69
8’10 Sunova Ghost, 137L

eastbound

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2995
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #31 on: February 04, 2019, 08:34:20 AM »
so LBsup--seems you gave the sunova boards a try (youve been able to demo plenty of em-wow!), but moved on, given your dislike for the handles. cool that.

now you say youre happier than ever with your JL board (incl the handle). cool that, too.

why the need to continue to post about your dislike for the sunova handle?

if the handle's a non-starter for you, why havent you just moved on?

why are you investing in trying to get others, who say they are fine with the handle, to hate alongside you?

maybe you covet more sunova boards, but cant get past the handle, so youre trying to pressure sunova to change?

so, if the handle were ok, you'd go back to sunova from your happy berth with JL?

reminds me of ragging about the ex-wife--let it go.......

enjoy your JL board and its handle! why sweat a handle you happily got rid of a long time ago?

i love all my boards, whatever their handles! such a minimal piece of what a board does--and i deal with shorebreak all the time with my creek--NBD--board rides awesome!



Portal Barra 8'4"
Sunova Creek 8'7"
Starboard Pro Blue Carbon  8'10"
KeNalu Mana 82, xTuf, ergoT

PonoBill

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 25864
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #32 on: February 04, 2019, 08:51:45 AM »
Really Eastbound? Do you try to shut down conversations like this in real life? Are you confusing my tirade with LB's one-liners. You just spent five times as many electrons explaining why he should move on as he did expressing an opinion. Finally, note the title of the thread.
« Last Edit: February 04, 2019, 08:55:02 AM by PonoBill »
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

LBsup

  • Sunset Status
  • ****
  • Posts: 297
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #33 on: February 04, 2019, 08:59:11 AM »
EB, you seemed to be the one to keep it going by asking me if I owned a Sunova!  Why don’t you move on?  My last post was asking if anyone got their toes stuck in the insert handle, that was surprising to me.
Black Project Texcarbon, 85 blade, 69
8’10 Sunova Ghost, 137L

K-541`

  • Rincon Status
  • ***
  • Posts: 238
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #34 on: February 04, 2019, 09:15:06 AM »
Handles funny stuff, when I first started in 07 most boards didn’t even have a handle you just chucked it over the shoulder and  prayed the wind was light. When the first handles did start to come stock on boards they were not that great,shallow,narrow,and prone to making your fingers cramp.
 When I ordered my speed 4 years ago the last thing I thought about was the handle things like volume,outline and most importantly rail refinement were on the top of the list.

PonoBill

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 25864
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #35 on: February 04, 2019, 09:31:40 AM »
I spent a lot of my business life as a marketer. One of the many lessons I learned is that everything counts. Its why the most successful products are iterations that fix the dipshit stuff that people don't like, You can do all the big stuff right and then screw up on the trivia. The Chevy Volt is being discontinued--GMC doesn't make money building it. Too complicated and too much of the car is built by other suppliers. Fantastic car though. When people who took a test drive were questioned about why they chose not to buy the car, the most common answer is that the liftover height for putting things in the back is too high. Imagine how the engineers felt about that. All that amazing technology, and people don't buy it because they don't like the lip on the hatchback.

People have strong opinions about handles, including the opinion that handles don't matter.
« Last Edit: February 04, 2019, 09:43:31 AM by PonoBill »
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

mrbig

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2465
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #36 on: February 04, 2019, 09:37:59 AM »
Random observation meaning nothing.

Recently saw a new face on a sup paddling out at Second Beach.

Board junkey and local yokel that I am we had an interesting conversation about his board.

Surrator edge, no pad, NO HANDLE, more pressure dings than you could imagine.

Turns out he was from Maui and the board was shaped by Terry Chung.

Laird put the surrator into production and we know that story.

The fact that that sucker had NO HANDLE didn't matter. Not in the least..
« Last Edit: February 04, 2019, 09:40:10 AM by mrbig »
Let it come to you..
SMIK 9'2" Hipster Mini Mal
SMIK 8'8" Short Mac Freo Rainbow Bridge
SMIK 8'4" Hipster Twin
King's 8'2" Accelerator SharkBoy

robon

  • Teahupoo Status
  • ******
  • Posts: 1155
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #37 on: February 04, 2019, 10:11:03 AM »
The liftsup handle is pretty much a no go for me, but fortunately the Sunova boards I'm interesting in don't have it, so that's a plus. I do agree with what PB has stated though and for many, it simply does matter.

I can draw a parallel with mountain biking. A couple of manufacturers have proprietary rear suspension designs with cable actuated levers that change the amount of rear travel the bike has on the fly. The extra lever clutters up the spacing on handlebars and it's harder to get replacement parts. This cable actuated travel system fad died for front suspension, and now companies are doing it on the rear? I just won't get a bike that has proprietary suspension and when you are paying a lot of for something, you want that choice, and it's unfortunate because these bikes would have a far broader appeal to more buyers if they just didn't have that design, and thousands of people have commented on biking forums just like this one as to why they don't like it, but may have otherwise bought the bike if didn't have that proprietary design.

The mtb example is not that dissimilar to Sunova using the liftsup imo. It's something that most people just don't want on their boards. With that said, I like the solutions people are trying out that seems to help.
« Last Edit: February 04, 2019, 10:13:37 AM by robon »

Badger

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2662
  • Seacoast NH
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #38 on: February 04, 2019, 03:42:15 PM »
I love following this topic. This is the best thread happening in the forum right now.

.
Kalama E3 6'1 x 23" 105L
Axis HPS 980 / PNG 1300
Sunova Flow  8'10 X 31"  119L
Me - 6'0" - 165lbs - 66yo

WhatsSUP

  • Peahi Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 983
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #39 on: February 04, 2019, 04:43:52 PM »
IMHO, I'm surprised to read just how many folks are that critical of the lift handle in Sunova's or any other board - I've got this type of handle in two SUP's I own.  (To me) the handle is such an immaterial part of SUP'ing and merely serves (again, to me) to get the board to/from water to vehicle. 

I surf year round in New England and even now with heavy winter gloves this type of handle has NEVER been an issue....am I'm missing something as far as folks pulling out the handle and using it while in the water in an attempt to get back on the board of something? Are people getting there crank caught in it while prone padding?  WTH.......   

 8) :o 8) :o

Jimmy Lewis B&B Flat nose 10'1"
Sunova Creek 9'4" 
TAVA 11'2"
NSP Element 11'
KeNalu Wiki paddle
Kialoa Insanity paddle
Misc other paddles

eastbound

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2995
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #40 on: February 04, 2019, 05:26:46 PM »
l
« Last Edit: February 04, 2019, 05:52:55 PM by eastbound »
Portal Barra 8'4"
Sunova Creek 8'7"
Starboard Pro Blue Carbon  8'10"
KeNalu Mana 82, xTuf, ergoT

Area 10

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 4057
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #41 on: February 04, 2019, 06:54:52 PM »
IMHO, I'm surprised to read just how many folks are that critical of the lift handle in Sunova's or any other board - I've got this type of handle in two SUP's I own.  (To me) the handle is such an immaterial part of SUP'ing and merely serves (again, to me) to get the board to/from water to vehicle. 

I surf year round in New England and even now with heavy winter gloves this type of handle has NEVER been an issue....am I'm missing something as far as folks pulling out the handle and using it while in the water in an attempt to get back on the board of something? Are people getting there crank caught in it while prone padding?  WTH.......   

 8) :o 8) :o
If you surf a spot with a heavy shorebreak that means you often have to exit in a hurry or risk your board and you getting dinged pretty bad, then the liftsup is a disaster. Even if you can get it open in a hurry with gloves on, if the board gets taken when you’ve got hold of it, it could break your wrist.

And it’s really surprisingly uncomfortable to carry with over long distances anyway.

It was a nice idea, but moving parts in something that goes in the sea, and where there is sand, was always going to invite problems. I had a Surftech Gerry Lopez 14ft downwind board a few years ago, that had a LiftSUP handle. I needed to grab the handle in a hurry to avoid a head-high shore dump in 35 knot winds. The handle just would not open. So I had to dive away from it. The board took me right up the beach by the leash, and the leash got trapped round a sharp rusty sea defence, and for a while I had the pleasure of being thrashed by the waves all round and over this rusty piece of metal. I could have died. All because that stupid handle would not open. I sold the board straight afterwards, and I have since twice refused to buy Sunova boards that I definitely would otherwise have done, because they had that dumb, dangerous, uncomfortable handle.

Badger

  • Cortez Bank Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 2662
  • Seacoast NH
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #42 on: February 04, 2019, 07:16:55 PM »
The LiftSUP was a major source of irritation for me.  I wear 5mm three finger mitts six months of the year. It is absolutely impossible to get the handle out while wearing them. The knotted string worked but was also an irritation trying to grab the thin string while getting hit by waves.

It was a bit easier with 3mm gloves but I had to use my pinky finger to get the handle out which was a hassle.

It wasn't too bad with bare hands during the three months of summer. It's easier to get the handle out from one side of the board than the other. If you happen to be on the wrong side, it's a little more difficult because you have to contort your hand a bit.

The LiftSUP was a big enough problem for me to replace both handles with the SUP GRIP handle. I think it cost me about $30 for each board to do it myself.


« Last Edit: February 04, 2019, 07:26:09 PM by Badger »
Kalama E3 6'1 x 23" 105L
Axis HPS 980 / PNG 1300
Sunova Flow  8'10 X 31"  119L
Me - 6'0" - 165lbs - 66yo

robon

  • Teahupoo Status
  • ******
  • Posts: 1155
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #43 on: February 04, 2019, 07:59:50 PM »
I have had to help unjam more than one liftsup on the beach. Two friends with different brands of boards had the same problem and the handle wouldn’t come out. The first version of the liftsup was tighter I believe and this isn’t an issue anymore?

SaMoSUP

  • Peahi Status
  • *****
  • Posts: 685
    • View Profile
Re: Any one find a creative solution to the LIFTSUP
« Reply #44 on: February 04, 2019, 08:45:27 PM »
I've got the LiftSUP handle on my two Sunovas (Acid & Insane) and my custom BARK raceboard. No problems with it since I'm not in cold weather.

There's a long thread on the zone about tail handles. Isn't that a creative solution to the issue of dealing with shorebreak etc?

 


SimplePortal 2.3.7 © 2008-2024, SimplePortal