Surfing Waves

I am new to the sport. Have never surfed before. I'm looking to buy my first board, but am a little unsure on what will best suit me. I have read that longbards and fun boards are the best 2 for beginners. But which one should I buy a 9+ foot longboard or a 7-8 foot funboard??

Drew

how big are you? i'd personally go with a ~9' longboard. it'll just make it easier

I am 5'10'', 175...In good shape.

Long board..

I have only been surfing myself for about 8 weeks progressing well I brought a 9'3 and love it they don't feel that big once you get used to them.

Now some of the real surfers may not agree with this but I look at it this way mini mals are nothing boards they don't have the high performance of a short board and don't have the full benefits of a long board long board and short boards are 2 different disciplines in surfing mini mal is a weird in between.

I guess there good for a progress board I will rather try to go to a fish but the only reason I see there use if for females or smaller male, my wife she is small and light and struggles with my board due to the weight so for her a smaller mini would be better for her.

But for me long boarding is long boarding you also need to consider you local break for my local break does get some good swells but most of the time its small maybe 2-3 foot and perfect for long boarding so it was good investment and wont just be used for learning it will always be used even when I progress to a short board there will still be heaps of days i will be on my long board.

the smaller you go the harder it will get.

As is say maybe my view on this is wrong but I cant see any real advantage for myself getting a mini mal I have not seen anybody doing anything on a mini mal that cant be done on a long board.

I am 95kg 6'1 and having a long board has made the journey so far some much more fun and a bit easier I love riding long boards.

Dont buy anything yet.

Go for a few lessons on rented boards, then beg, borrow or steal some more boards and THEN think about buying one.

have a look at my newbies guide for some info on my feelings on the subject (get a longboard, love your longboard, keep your longboard)

following on from phillwilsons comment, take out the leash plug bung and its perrrfect for other antics

You'll have more enjoyment and less frustration on a longboard. Borrow/rent for a while, then buy one. Only drawback is that longboards add more of a challenge to transport via car or plane. If you live at the beach or have a large van or truck then its a non-issue. Just something to consider though.

Here's another thing to think about- if you're ever out in surf that you honestly need to duck dive, you wont easily be able to with either a funboard or a longboard. But at least with a longboard you'll have the paddle speed to get yourself out of trouble and past the break.

Are you in the U.S. ? If not where?