Background info:
21 years old, 5'11 150lbs in decent shape. Goofy footer. Have a right shoulder injury from wakeboarding which led to 2 scrap tear surgeries after 2 dislocations from wakeboarding i generally have loose joints and am very flexible. Doesn't effect my surfing except on rare occasions.
I live in Half Moon Bay Cali and ave been surfing for about 6 months now. Took a month off in April due to breaking my rib at my local break, but besides that have surfed a minimum of 3 days a week, on average I hit the water 6 days a week when weather allows it.
Last fall I started surfing on a wave storm teaching myself at the princeton jetty in hmb and Linda mar in pacifica. After two months (December) I was consistently catching waves making turns and steep drops (I miss winter swells). With some advice from a buddy of mine from SD I grabbed a used 6'10 freeline in Santa Cruze and got up on the first wave. Turning came naturally and now I am able to do multiple turns, pump, and make critical take offs which is one of my favorite things haha. I paddle out in everything from 1ft windy mush and 6 ft. Would go out on bigger days but summer is not allowing it and my board has to much volume to duck dive some closeouts. After 4 months of surfing on the green machine I went to SC with my friend from SD and we surfed steamer. He was ripping the hook while I caught a few in the normal lineup and had a blast, but was definitely feeling a little annoyed by the heaviness and overall volume of my board. I hated getting worked because I couldn't dive deep enough with my board also the waves were all rights and as a goofy footer my rights are a little sketchy in shoulder high waves. My current board is 6'11 and 24 in wide (not 100% sure on width I think that's what I measured it as last week) and has a lot of volume pics of it below.
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Ok long story short, I think I am ready to make the jump to a shortboard. I am very confident in my surfing on both boards I own and am not afraid to work my ass off. I live near a shaper who gave me some advice on fixing a ding yesterday and am going back after work to get his opinion. Posted here first because I have learned a lot from reading this forum and find it really helpful.
I know all about different fin set ups and how things like board size/volume can help with paddling etc. but I do not see much on what boards are decent for someone just starting on a shortboard.
What are the best models for someone in my situation/skill level? I know the brands, just need some more direction on what makes a decent first time shortboard. Recomendations? I would have one shaped, but I can't afford spending more then 550$
Also any pointers or just general critiques on if I should be making this change or not? I was actually surprised in how fast I seemed to improve in the water and was/am really reluctant to pull the trigger on another board haha.
Thanks!
Here's some pics of my board and me surfing a few months ago on a small day at the jetty. I surf much bigger waves this was just the only day I've had my gf bring her camera haha.
