VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

Ned wrote:
Where did everyone get their boards?

i got mine at OR sports. you pretty much need to buy new as there is almost none in the used market. what is out there generally shows up on BWD!

downwind dave wrote:
i got mine at OR sports. you pretty much need to buy new as there is almost none in the used market. what is out there generally shows up on BWD!

Great store... know them well.

Fanatic SUPs at Gorge Surf Shop, Hood River....where I got my 8'10" 145L AllWave. Phone Adam to pre-order

Or here:

http://www.2-rad.com/category_s/150.htm


I am thinking of a 8'5" Fanatic ProWave next year......109L

8'5" x 28.75"

Is that small enough tony???

Keith

That is for sure the right progression path Keith in my opinion. I am not sure there is anyone of us on smaller boards that haven't had an 8'6" 110L ish board.

It could actually last you more than a year of progression too....Bonus!

Coastline has a couple naish sups in the 8' range.

KC7777 wrote:Is that small enough tony???

A gentleman never tells.

Honestly though, I like the volume but too long, look for something closer to 8' IMHO.

KC7's how about the new 2015 8-0x29" SB Pro in brushed carbon 111L. I'm not biased but Starboard makes the best Sups:
http://star-board-sup.com/2015/products/pro-8x29/

You'll probably have a line up of buyers for it too in 6 months when you're ready to sell

As a counterpoint to the going small contingent, I'd say be careful going too small too fast, especially if you are older, bigger, balanced challenged, no surf background etc. Falling off all the time is no fun and if you can't stand up you can't catch a wave. And if you don't catch a wave you don't progress. I tried Red Barons 8 ' 110 L. Starboard and it was hard to stand on, especially with 2 fins missing. Too much work for me, even in glassy conditions. Longer boards paddle faster which means you paddle out faster which is nice in a shore break. Plus you will be able to paddle into a wave easier with the extra board speed. Try before you buy, if possible, or really check out the board to get what works for you at your present skill level.

Also depends on where you surf. Huge difference between south and north island conditions/spots. Ie. no shore pound etc...

Eastside is totally right. Even Tony admitted that having a slightly bigger board for the SUP contest would've been better. We all agreed. Saying that, I don't think one of us would've been trying to surf in those conditions unless it was for a contest and you had to. I wouldn't have bothered going out once the wind came up even if I did have a bigger board...sucky conditions are sucky no matter what the board.

If I surfed only in Tofino I would likely have a bigger board than my 8'0 92L Kazuma board. I just needed a little more glide to be able to get out through the break. I didn't find the smaller size an issue in catching the waves, it was really the getting out part that got really old really quick for me.

To be totally stable in Tofino conditions you'd need something in 29-30" wide range or you just wait for the wind/chop to go away or surf early in the morning or in the evening. The 8'0 at 29" wide that BWD is talking about seems to me would give you the extra stability from the width and bit more float.

i think you tend to develop balance skills faster on a SUP than the surfing skills, so I'd actually suggest going a step smaller than you think you can paddle. Short term frustration for a leap in on wave performance. Not everyone enjoys the challenge of this route however

Tofino definitely punishes low volume riders on the way out. I just accept I'll take more on the head, grit my teeth and bulldog out. But when you have a channel to paddle out, is niiiice!

I'm loving my L41 Simsup so far! 7'8" x 30" @119 lt. I'm ~185lb, never sup'd. Have had it out about 5 times so far at JR, in everything from ankle biters to 6'. I was really surprised how stable it seemed, and was catching rides day 1. Yes, at that length there is very little glide and you get about 3 strokes per side max. It is super easy to catch waves, fast and floaty. I'm not ripping it up, but am making front and backside turns to position where ever I want to be. I've no regrets about going so short and with the extra volume/width it's made it a very easy learning curve for surf sup. Heading to LB this weekend, so I'll see how it performs there compared to the S Isle conditions. pics are here on pg3 http://bigwavedave.ca/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... c&start=30

Robin shows us that it is the width and not the length that makes the difference. Thanks for finally clearing that up for us all. : )

Mark, you know it's always been about girth! That was what I was going to name my son if I'd ever had one!