pros surfboards -- wider nose?

[oceanbreak]

was watching the hurley pro and noticed that a lot of the pros use really short thin/light boards with wider noses than my 6'10 shortboard. was just wondering if its a trend and will it be good for the small 1-3' florida waves?

[drowningbitbybit]

Not sure about what the pros are doing, I don't think that's remotely relevant for Joe-Average, but from a "normal" surfers point of view, having some volume up front makes paddling a lot easier on smooth water, although it can mean you end up "pushing" water if its a bit choppy.

Having the volume up-front means you can get your chest and head a little closer to the nose so it makes catching waves a good deal easier, which is ideal for small or weak waves. We're not talking like a fish or a longboard here, but a noticeable difference over a skinny-nosed shortboard.

The disadvantages are that it may turn a little slower (but only at the top end of the skill level so it makes naff all difference to me), and the fat nose can mean very steep drops are a bit sketchy - but that shouldn't be an issue on small Florida waves

[oceanbreak]

Thanks man. I've noticed the trend lately is shower but fatter boards. i have a 6'10 thin board that was made for PR surf. Should i trade it for something a little smaller and wider or should i ride this one in fl waves?

[IB_Surfer]

The pros are going as small as possible. It's not that the nose is narrower, it's that they are having it cut back as much as possible. In essence, if you are a pro and you know that your shortboard is 5'10, you can take off the nose and have it reshaped so you can have less nose volume and still have about the same glide.

Here is a good explanation of it, though I don't think you necessarily need an AM board to get the same results:

http://www.cisurfboards.com/surfboards/ ... ly-slater/

[hit_the_lip]

The thought is, is that you can put the same amount of volume from a 6'1 standard thruster, into a board thats 5'6-5'7. But the 5'7 will be slightly wider and thicker. There won't be any loss in paddle power or glide. In fact, the shorter board paddles better. A shorter board is better for the pros, because they can fit the board into tight spaces where a standard shortboard cannot go. Many of the pro's are surfing these hybridy models like the weirdo ripper, neckbeard, #4, and the new flyer, etc. And they ride them short.