Surfing Waves

I just got a new 10’ Takayama model t. I know it is well suited for smaller waves which is beneficial for living on the east coast. However, if I decided to take it out on an infrequent head high to couple foot overhead day, how should I expect it to perform in those conditions?

How do you perform in those conditions anyway? The board will translate into whatever you are capable of!

saltdog77 wrote:I know it is well suited for smaller waves which is beneficial for living on the east coast.

Your talking about size, but what about shape and conditions ? Model T does well in Point Break and clean down the line open faces. Not on beach break. They have a specific model just for that. I wouldn't ride a flat rockered, big tailed single fin in beach break ( and especially not a 10 footer ).

saltdog77 wrote:However, if I decided to take it out on an infrequent head high to couple foot overhead day, how should I expect it to perform in those conditions?

Guys used to ride macking Pipeline with big heavy board with monster single "D" fins back in the 60's, so I'm sure if you can, the board can.

Thank you for your feedback. : ) Out of curiosity what was the tak model you referenced as being good for beach break? What size do you think would be good for such a model (I’m 6’1 195 lbs)?

Jaffa1949 you make a good point. If the surfer sucks it doesn’t matter what board he rides. I tend to do well in good conditions. I’m not JJF or anything but I’m not a novice either at short boarding. I longboarded some head high waves last summer and surfed well for my ability level. I have shortboarded most of my life and want to transition to being predominantly longboarder for a couple reasons. First, the waves where I live are small most of the time and a longboard makes the most of those conditions. Second, I want the thrill of trying something new to me and the challenge of climbing the learning curve with a new style of surfing.

What I was trying to get at with my question about the model t performance was more like how would it likely “feel” in bigger and better conditions? For example would it feel sluggish or would it gain so much speed it’d feel like a rocket? Etc

saltdog77 wrote:Thank you for your feedback. : ) Out of curiosity what was the tak model you referenced as being good for beach break?

Oddly enough the name of the board is "BEACH BREAK".

saltdog77 wrote:What I was trying to get at with my question about the model t performance was more like how would it likely “feel” in bigger and better conditions? For example would it feel sluggish or would it gain so much speed it’d feel like a rocket? Etc

Very Very sluggish.

Gotcha thank you!

I did a YouTube search on "10' Takayama surfing" and found this vid along with others. It might give you some ideas.

Lol Rinkydink. I watched the hell out of that video before I bought the model t. Kai kills it on that thing!!

saltdog77 wrote:Lol Rinkydink. I watched the hell out of that video before I bought the model t. Kai kills it on that thing!!

That's good. I'd recommend taking note of the waves he's riding. In other words, what kind of waves seem to be perfect for that board? I'm sure Kai took a look at the conditions that day and said to himself, "You know, these waves are perfect for my Tak model T." So, the question you might want to investigate is whether you have access to similar waves. I'm sure if you added 3 feet to the waves in that video the board would still glide like a dream.

RinkyDink wrote:I'm sure if you added 3 feet to the waves in that video the board would still glide like a dream.

Add 3 feet and some chop to the surface and that board might not work at all--perhaps it lacks the rocker for those kinds of conditions. I don't know. I'd look for vids of that board in swell conditions you're curious about.

RinkyDink wrote:I did a YouTube search on "10' Takayama surfing" and found this vid along with others. It might give you some ideas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--hMuBAEkWA

Those waves are so small and fat he almost can't make them work....

Big H wrote:

RinkyDink wrote:I did a YouTube search on "10' Takayama surfing" and found this vid along with others. It might give you some ideas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--hMuBAEkWA

Those waves are so small and fat he almost can't make them work....

I might be a heathen, but those look like great little longboarding waves to me. If I wanted to learn how to noseride, I'd want waves like that.

Waves that size in the Waikiki basin right across all the breaks are great fun, longboard skill academy. Most Hawaiians spent their menehune days here.
Different swell entirely different set of breaks= bring an A game and etiquette, and drop your ego.

saltdog77 wrote:I just got a new 10’ Takayama model t. I know it is well suited for smaller waves which is beneficial for living on the east coast.?

Saltydog, have you tried it, yet? How do you like it?

billie, unfortunately that's a different dog, I mean a forum member... It seems like a nice, solid board for the point breaks around where I am, though.

O I C, Salty!
Hopefully, '77 will tell us how it works in the sea.

billie_morini I've had the opportunity to ride it several times. I'm enjoying figuring out the idiosyncrasies of the model T. It's the first time I've ridden a classic longboard. One thing I've noted is when standing near the middle of the board and I set a line it glides like no board I've ever ridden. Another thing I've noticed is when I walk up to the the nose its like stepping on an accelerator and the board takes off dramatically. Lastly, I thought that if I so much as pointed a 10 foot low rocker board such as the model T towards a wave I would catch it. Surprisingly, that is not the case. I have found for me that taking off far on the shoulder is nearly impossible. I really need to get the Tak in the peak or close to it to catch a wave. I'll report back when I have the chance to get it into some meatier waves and let you know my experience.

Appreciate your summary, Saltdog77! All very interesting!

saltdog77 wrote:billie_morini I've had the opportunity to ride it several times. I'm enjoying figuring out the idiosyncrasies of the model T. It's the first time I've ridden a classic longboard. One thing I've noted is when standing near the middle of the board and I set a line it glides like no board I've ever ridden. Another thing I've noticed is when I walk up to the the nose its like stepping on an accelerator and the board takes off dramatically. Lastly, I thought that if I so much as pointed a 10 foot low rocker board such as the model T towards a wave I would catch it. Surprisingly, that is not the case. I have found for me that taking off far on the shoulder is nearly impossible. I really need to get the Tak in the peak or close to it to catch a wave. I'll report back when I have the chance to get it into some meatier waves and let you know my experience.

I imagine that your problem with taking off on the model T is position on the board when paddling. Flat bottom boards are more sensitive to position. Just a guess not really a longboarder but I would imagine a few inches forward would make it better