Volume or skill

[Timbro]

I have a new board I’m struggling with and I’m wondering if it’s me or whether I may actually have too much volume. I get good surfers can probably ride anything but there must be a sweet spot?

172cm 65kg
Board is a retro twin fin fish quite wide in the middle with a lot of volume at front of the board 5 8” 35L

Only two times I’ve surf it the waves have been quite fat and gone from fat to breaking almost instantly so it may be that I’m just crap in those conditions. But I seem to either end up missing the wave or trying to take off later sonas not to miss and getting sucked up the face so my pop up is pretty much as the wave has broken already underneath and in front of me. Only time I really felt it catch a wave it shot forward so fast I was taken by surprise and ended up body boarding.

So is this just me or can too much volume have an impact? Surely more is always easier to catch waves?

[jaffa1949]

What level,and how capable were you before you got the new board?

The board sounds totally unsuitable what were you riding before?

Sounds like a beachbreak! Sound pretty much like a beginner level, unsuitable board , and sudden wave change syndrome!

[oldmansurfer]

Dude.....surfing 2 times in crappy waves doesn't mean a thing. But if you want to surf crappy waves them more volume might help but a longer board would probably help. Volume is not so important to me. I think it is important if you are doing duck dives but otherwise it's incorrect to think volume by itself tells you anything about how a board will work. A 5'8" board sounds really too small for most beginners.

[dtc]

the latest surf simply podcast talks about this exact issue - around 57 min in

In short (no pun intended) volume helps you catch waves. If you are missing waves then its not due to having too much volume. It is possible that the volume/distribution of volume results in the wave catching you quite quickly and you sling-shotting down the face faster than you would like. But that is, really, the board catching the wave too easily.

When you are up and surfing, then possibly too much volume can be an issue. But for catching waves, there is no such thing as too much volume.

[Timbro]

Thanks all very helpful. Had a other go and it’s better think it’s just down to it catching slightly differently to what I’m used to. Pretty much always my answer is paddle harder and take off later which seems to be working

[oldmansurfer]

Yeah that is the way to use shortboards. If you are on mushy small waves you need to be at the peak when it's breaking or it is really difficult to catch them on a shortboard. Once it has broken the wave offer no assistance in catching it.