Author Topic: All advice welcome  (Read 3776 times)

Supgirl67

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All advice welcome
« on: May 11, 2021, 01:20:22 PM »
Hi,
I'm looking for info on Inception ECS SUP and the Quatro Glide. I'm an intermediate paddler and I need a board shorter than 11' due to storage issues. I'm not interested in racing or surfing, but may wanna try some small beginner waves at some point. I'm wondering if a 9'6" would be too short/unstable for me. I usually spend hours at a time out on the board and use a bungee system with a deck bag to bring essentials.  I'm open to any suggestion for other boards. Due to shipping issues/shortages, I'm having a hard time finding ANY board at all that meets my requirements and is available.

All input is welcome!

Dusk Patrol

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #1 on: May 11, 2021, 07:16:32 PM »
Hey, welcome...
Based on what you describe as your use, consider looking at what’s called a hybrid shape, which will have some accommodation for some speed or all water capability. For example the Starboard ‘Go’  line has a nice concave bottom, or the Surftech  Chameleon has some ‘bow’ shape to its nose. Both have sizes under 11’.

The ECS board is not very well known in the states. It looks like a decently made but standard big surf shape. I think of the Quatro Glide as a dedicated surf sup.
 
Is 9’6 good for you? That’s really surf sizing, not cruising/touring around sizing. For the latter it would be best to get as long a board as your storage space allows.
Board size also depends on your size.
RS 14x26; JL Destroyers 9'8 & 8'10; BluePlanet 9'4; JL Super Frank 8'6

PonoBill

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #2 on: May 11, 2021, 10:27:45 PM »
How tall are you, what do you weigh, where are you paddling, and how old are you. Yeah, I know, rude, but necessary information to make a reasonable response. Not racing or surfing generally means you are mostly flatwater paddling and not trying to go fast. To have fun in small waves, you need a suitable board and it's probably not a cruiser. And what do you mean by intermediate? Do you have a good stroke, can you turn sharply, are you looking to get better?

I'm 74, 6'1" and about 225#. I live in Hood river and Maui, and I've done a lot of racing, surfing, downwinders, and putting around. These days I foil surf and wingfoil. If I could only have one board it would be a 12'2" X 25" Starboard (out of production for at least ten years) or a SIC Ku Nalu, which is the same board, only custom made and hollow. That's too long for your 11' space, so I'd be looking at longboard shapes with minimal rocker, something in the 10'4-10'6" range and perhaps 26 to 29" wide. That's for me. If you're smaller, lighter, and younger you could go shorter and/or narrower. If you want to surf, go a little shorter, if you want to go faster, or perhaps downwind, go narrower.

The two boards you mention are very far apart. The Quatro Glide is a tubby little pumpkin seed intended for surfing--only. Its name is a misnomer--it will NOT glide. I've never heard of the ECS Inception, but from the pictures, it's a nondescript beginner board. The 10'6 is 33" wide. It might be fun to surf in little mush, but as a flatwater board, it's going to suck almost as badly as the Quattro.

« Last Edit: May 11, 2021, 10:40:47 PM 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.

Supgirl67

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #3 on: May 12, 2021, 03:19:49 AM »
Thanks for your help. I'm 5'4", about 130 pounds, and 54 years old. You guys confirmed what I was thinking regarding the Quatro. The Starboard Go is also a contender and I hear good things about it.

Old School 213

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #4 on: May 12, 2021, 11:13:24 AM »
Your the same dimensions as my wife. The board she landed on was 10'0 or 10'6 x '28 SUP Sports One World. Her balance is not the greatest so she prefers my 10'5" x 32" Starboard Wide Point. Both of these boards are out of production and SUP sports is, I think out of business. The takeaway here is size (dimensions) and utility. Both boards are quite acceptable for flat water paddling and the Wide Point surfs well but it's still like surfing a sidewalk compared to prone surfboard. The One World I've only had in waves once and did well but I didn't have a preference for it, maybe because it was hot pink? If you're only paddling in flat water then a narrower board is called for as PBill mentioned but in surf you'll enjoy the added stability of the extra width.

Take a look through Starboard's website: https://sup.star-board.com/paddle-board/hard-paddle-board/#!/surf

and Surftech: https://surftech.com/sup/

You'll see all of the various flavors there. Don't be afraid to come back here and ask questions.

Dusk Patrol

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #5 on: May 12, 2021, 11:37:27 AM »
... and check out the SIC Okeanos (11x28)
or even the SIC Bullet (11' x 27.75)
 
Either of those can handle whatever water you might find yourself in... but both are further away from the trad surf shape... 
« Last Edit: May 12, 2021, 11:39:23 AM by Dusk Patrol »
RS 14x26; JL Destroyers 9'8 & 8'10; BluePlanet 9'4; JL Super Frank 8'6

PonoBill

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #6 on: May 12, 2021, 12:39:59 PM »
I paddled a 12' Okeanos and was surprised at how fast and stable it was. I suspect it has that somewhat magic rocker that Mark Raaphorst put into most of his boards. Raceboards in small surf are just silly fun once you get used to turning them--and more importantly, stopping the turn once it's initiated. They tend to just keep turning until they get sideways on the crest. I suspect that board would be a blast at 11', and even more stable at 28" wide. You can get into waves before they even think about breaking and zoom past a lineup of people struggling and failing to catch anything. Bill Boyum and I used to take our Maliko boards (17' SIC Bullet V1) out on dinky days on the north shore. What fun. I need to do that again. Foiling is a little too addictive. Which reminds me, the wind is coming up. Gotta go.
« Last Edit: May 12, 2021, 12:43:41 PM 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.

Supgirl67

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #7 on: May 12, 2021, 04:27:14 PM »
Thanks so much for the suggestions.  I am also looking at the 10'2'' Starboard Go and am leaning that way now.  Some have said that it's overpriced and not very durable, but I like the new shape on the bottom. Also, I have my eye on the SIC Saber at 10'6", but the available inventory stinks. I'm in NJ and have been working with one of their retailers (who has been great, but honest in saying that he can't say for sure when his SIC inventory will arrive).  I'm willing to travel about 3 hours to go to another shop if I can find the darn thing!

Night Wing

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #8 on: May 13, 2021, 06:24:05 AM »
@ Supgirl67

This is going to be a l-o-n-g post.

I've been watching this topic thread, but once I read your weight is 130 lbs, I am closer to you weight wise at my 138 lbs than anyone else on this site although I'm 5'8" in height. I'm a small guy due to my small skeletal structure. The middle fingers on both of my hands are only 3" in length.

I do a lot of flat water paddling for plain enjoyment and most of my paddling sessions last between 90 to 120 minutes. I have two long sup models which are a Sup Sports 11'1" x 30" x 4.5" @ 173 liters "One World" and a Blue Planet 10'5" x 32" x 4.5" @ 190 liters "Duke". Both of these boards have 5 fin boxes. Both of these boards can be ridden with one long single fin for flat water paddling. Just keep in mind both of these two models are no longer being manufactured.

The long 9" single fin in the long center fin box makes both boards track straight. However, the long single fin makes it harder to turn left or right so that is a trade off. When the wind comes up to around 12 mph or higher. It is easier to paddle my 11'1 board because of the 30" width. But if the wind makes the water very choppy, my 10'5' board is more stable at 32" to paddle. Again, trade offs.

Since I weigh 138 lbs and with two surgically repaired right and left shoulder joints, my surgeon told me to get rid of my 85 paddle blade and go with a 75 paddle blade. This makes paddling on flat water with a good breeze easy on my shoulders and also it is easier to paddle both boards.

I use a woman's paddle because of my small frame. An adjustable 65"-84" length Naish "Alana" 75 with a small diameter shaft.

https://www.naishsurfing.com/product/alana/

I've been flat water paddling with this paddle in mostly not very windy conditions and I've been steadily coming down in length. For quite some time, I've been using this paddle at 70.5" in length. But since this Spring has been very windy, with wind speeds steady at 15 mph, I started to notice this length when paddling upwind, it was tough. I needed a faster cadence so I started to lessen the length.

With these same windy conditions for flat water paddling, I am now using this paddle at 66.5" in length. I can even use this paddle length to surf some waves although I do like to surf waves with this paddle at 65" in length.

BTW, I can paddle a straight line by paddling on my right side, since I'm right handed. The only time I paddle on my left side is when I want to turn the board to the right and it is much easier to do it this way using a semi surf stance. I quit using a parallel stance a long time ago.

Now to surfing.

Where I live on the upper Texas coast, the best place for some good surfing waves is at Surfside, Texas. There isn't a free webcam down there, but the waves at Port Aransas are very much the same which you can see at the link below for comparison sake.

https://hdontap.com/index.php/video/stream/texas-seagull-condos-live-beach-surf-cam

Both my One World and Duke sups can surf calf high waves, knee high waves, thigh high waves, waist high waves, chest high waves and head high waves with no problems because both boards have 5 fin boxes. With 5 fin boxes, I surf both boards with a 4 fin quad setup. Basically 2, 5" front side bites and 2, 4" rear side bites. This fin combination produces speed to handle tiny to small waves.

There are no bungee straps on either of my boards. But if you want to put some bungee cords on a sup, just use some suction cup bungees like at the link below as an example.

https://www.amazon.com/Suction-Cup-Tie-Downs-pack/dp/B001803PXU

With all of the above said, I'm going to list this board for your consideration. A Blue Planet "Easy" model at 10'2" x 32" x 4.5" @ 179 liters which can be found at the link below.

https://www.blueplanetsurf.com/102-x-32-x-179l-easy-2020.html

It has a slightly pulled in nose which will be good for flat water paddling even when the lake water gets choppy and it can be surfed in just about any wave conditions (except for extremely high over head waves) with a nice kick tail pad and 5 fin boxes. And the pad which covers the deck is very comfortable (at least it is on my Duke).

And you can see this board surfing in the video below. There is woman surfing this board in the video too. The video is best seen in full screen mode and 1080p HD for the high definition setting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuMD1dGdGNc

BTW, I hope you find the info in this post helpful.

« Last Edit: May 13, 2021, 06:30:43 AM by Night Wing »
Blue Planet Duke: 10'5" x 32" x 4.5" @ 190 Liters (2 Dukes)
Sup Sports Hammer: 8'11" x 31" x 4" @ 140 Liters
SUP Sports One World: 11'1" x 30" x 4.5" @ 173 Liters
CJ Nelson Parallax: 9'3" x 23 1/2" x 3 3/16" @ 78.8 Liters (prone surfing longboard; Thunderbolt Technologies build in Red construction)

Dusk Patrol

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #9 on: May 13, 2021, 12:03:24 PM »
My experience with Blue Planet is that they make a quality, well designed board.
« Last Edit: May 13, 2021, 12:06:39 PM by Dusk Patrol »
RS 14x26; JL Destroyers 9'8 & 8'10; BluePlanet 9'4; JL Super Frank 8'6

Supgirl67

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #10 on: May 13, 2021, 01:31:33 PM »
Thanks! I'm using a QuickBlade Trifecta, which I guard with my life because it's so light and perfect for me. I looked at the links you sent and that Blue Planet 10'2" looks kinda perfect for my needs. Any idea if they have any in stock? I'm not having any luck actually finding a board, even if I do narrow it down.

Night Wing

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #11 on: May 13, 2021, 01:53:32 PM »
@ Supgirl 67

Blue Planet, at the time of this posting, has six (6) Easy's in stock in Bamboo Rasta color. How do I know this? Easy (pun intended).

Robert puts all of his inventory on the board models he sells online. I ran across the link to his inventory a few years back and like a packrat who keeps things, I bookmarked it for future reference. The link is below. It is on a slow server so be patient. The page will show up and the inventory page is updated daily.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16mKsrbMifP3X4mIcInd4LK0knjG5QsS4IWbPZlnD2uU/edit#gid=1648521327

BTW, I Iike to surf "small easy" waves which are fun for me so I surf a few miles up the coast from Surfside, Texas. The waves are much bigger at the Surfside and Quintana jetties. And those waves there are just like the waves down at the jetties at Brownsville, Texas.

And I just so happen to have a live streaming webcam of those bigger waves, at the Brownsville jetties, when the wind is blowing. Of course, best seen during the daytime. You can see them and hear the wind blowing, if the wind is blowing, at the link below. Sometimes, you can hear the call of a seagull flying by.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqgSVV36wNI

Best seen in full screen mode and in 1080p60 HD definition setting.
Blue Planet Duke: 10'5" x 32" x 4.5" @ 190 Liters (2 Dukes)
Sup Sports Hammer: 8'11" x 31" x 4" @ 140 Liters
SUP Sports One World: 11'1" x 30" x 4.5" @ 173 Liters
CJ Nelson Parallax: 9'3" x 23 1/2" x 3 3/16" @ 78.8 Liters (prone surfing longboard; Thunderbolt Technologies build in Red construction)

Supgirl67

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Re: All advice welcome
« Reply #12 on: May 13, 2021, 05:55:09 PM »
Thanks for the ordering info!

 


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