Tom Carroll Outer Reef MX surf report

[surfinJ]

The extra width won’t hold you back on normal surf. The only time I’ve felt any hindrance is in the big stuff, +2x overhead. Then the width starts to act as a sort of friction that keeps the board from dropping in.  Hung up in the lip in a bad way.

[Area 10]

Yeah, having a large planing surface area on a surf shape can be an advantage for wave catching in small-medium conditions; it means that you can dig deep without submerging a rail, and get some surprisingly good initial acceleration. It’s maintaining a good speed over a long distance that is hard with a wider board, rather than very short-distance acceleration under a short furious high-cadence burst of maximum power, like you do when scratching for a wave. And then once you start planing, a big surface area can have huge benefits in marginal or fat/slow conditions.

Big boards are a lot of fun IMO. Most people where I surf (where surf quality is poor) don’t like them because they take more skill to turn, and the sheer volume scares them in bigger conditions. But if you have the skills and nerve, they are a gateway to a huge amount of fun. And there is something magnificent, to my mind, in watching someone control easily a big board and the sheer glide they can give. If Pipeline was my local spot, and I was 18 yrs old, I’d probably feel differently. But it isn’t, and I’m not, and mostly what I see around me is people struggling to get into waves they could have made easily if only they had a “man’s board” like this Outer Reef

[Badger]

I think the beveled rails have a lot to do with how quickly this board planes and how easily it turns. The double concave adds speed once on the wave. It seems to have the glide of a longer board and surfs like a shorter board. I was surprised how confident I felt on the wave.

.

[Wetstuff]

Badger,  I like the dimensions and the outline.  Glad it works for you.  Good for TC also, maybe you will help him get some traction.

Jim