Surfing Waves

First off, I'm 6ft and weigh 90kg (198 lb) - soon to be 80kg (176 lb) after I get a daily paddle in

I'm looking for a beginner board - thinking of a Mini Mal after all the reading thus far.

What's important to me is that it should fit in the Ford Focus Sedan with the seats down (access from the trunk). Other than that I want a bit more maneuverability than a long board offers and want to be able to get out in most conditions including small swell.

Luckily I have some great variety of surf near home (Nahoon Beach and Reef) in South Africa, so just need a suitable beginner board for my size.

Given that I'm over 40, I'm not likely to ever go back to my 70kg nimble self lol. I do plan on dropping some KG over the next few months though. I'm fairly fit and have decent upper body strength so not too fussed about the paddle side of things. I may also consider the 5-7km run to the beach from home when I'm fit enough but that may not work with a mini mal? Anyone done it? In my younger day I did it with my waveski and paddle but that was a lifetime ago

Any advice is very welcome! I'm mostly keen to know what size I should be aiming for.
Cheers!

For your size, age and ability I would recommend roof racks and a longboard. Don't fret over manuverablity....you have bigger fish to fry first.

Running to the beach with a board? Hoo-aaah! That sounds too much like work! Save your energy for the fun bit (surfing) unless you enjoy running 5-7km (each way?) with a board.

As a late starter and pretty big for surfing, you should get a big board and not a board that fits in your car, as Big H suggests. No point getting something that detracts from your ability to learn just so you can drive to the beach more easily and then get frustrated at not learning.

but if you absolutely must get a board that fits, get the longest, widest and thickest one that does. I dont know what length you can do, but over 22 inches and as close to 3 inches thick is what to aim for. Volume (float) is your friend.

After you have surfed that for maybe 250 hours, then you can consider what next board suits what you are after - more turns or more glide or small waves or whatever. 250 hours might not seem like much, but if you are surfing 3 times per week for 2hrs a session, thats a year more or less. In that year you will learn to love (or hate) your board.

Also dont be too confident about paddling. Nothing you do in the gym really relates to paddling - only swimming is close and its still not a direct substitute. You may find that your first 25m non stop paddle leaves you puffing like asthmatic loud puffy thing. Nothing you do in your daily life equates to paddling

I'm the same size as you, started at 48 yrs,( just over a year ago) and have a mini- mal.

My thoughts are this: the mini- mal is not long enough to paddle into waves early, and too big to get in late or anything fast and pitchy that's over 5 feet. It s just not forgiving to the beginner unless the surf is super small.

It's a board you will outgrow quickly. A longboard you will ride for the rest of your surfing days.

Opinions on this may vary....

JJGreenberg wrote:My thoughts are this: the mini- mal is not long enough to paddle into waves early, and too big to get in late or anything fast and pitchy that's over 5 feet. It s just not forgiving to the beginner unless the surf is super small.

The dreaded worst of both worlds....at your size an additional "worst" is that a mini mal won't have the glide of a bigger board, and will undercut your ability to race out back between waves as fast as you could on a longboard, and is too big to duck dive so in the end on larger days you'll find yourself caught inside more than you would on a larger or smaller board since it takes more work to escape.

Big H wrote:The dreaded worst of both worlds....at your size an additional "worst" is that a mini mal won't have the glide of a bigger board, and will undercut your ability to race out back between waves as fast as you could on a longboard, and is too big to duck dive so in the end on larger days you'll find yourself caught inside more than you would on a larger or smaller board since it takes more work to escape.

So true. Wish I had understood that in the beginning.

Wedwo wrote: Other than that I want a bit more maneuverability than a long board offers.

Yeah, those longboards can really be handful at times.



If you lay the passenger seat all the way back ( take off the headrest first ), can't you put the nose of the board into the well where your feet go ?

When they say go for a longer board listen.

Like you I wanted something that I could fit inside my van (8'3" would be the longest at a squeeze) and I was worried about manoeuvrability.

After another few sessions on my 8ft foam mini mal either catapulting or dropping off the backs of waves I was watching a couple of long boarders and they seemed to be able to catch the waves that bit earlier so I decided to go for it.

I now paddle a 9'2 board and I have to strap it onto the top of the van and it is a pain to walk down the beach with it but once I'm in the water it's awesome for my level.

I have found paddling out the back a lot easier and now I can even make it out in between sets when my timing is right, if I do get caught out I have found I don't mess up my turtle roll as much as I did with my foamie.

Once I'm out the back I have found that instead of catching and riding 1 in 10 waves I am catching and riding 1 in 3 and can now start to concentrate on what to do next. Don't get me wrong I am still nose diving occasionally and dropping off the back but nowhere near what I was. Out of 10 waves I would drop off the back of 4 nose dive 3 mess up my pop up or just fall off another 2 and finally catch a wave which by this point I was that happy to just catch a wave that I forgot about doing anything else.

Now I'm catching more I have found that I am trying to turn a lot more but I'm already doing more with it in 5/6 sessions than I have with my foamie in over 6 months.

I'm now back to getting excited about going out every time again where as anything over 2ft I was starting to dread nosediving all the time and spending hours paddling to get out the back. I went out in 4-5ft over the weekend and had a storming session and caught loads and even trimmed down the line (then got exited did a little dance and then fell off!)

Millsy82 wrote:When they say go for a longer board listen.

Like you I wanted something that I could fit inside my van (8'3" would be the longest at a squeeze) and I was worried about manoeuvrability.

After another few sessions on my 8ft foam mini mal either catapulting or dropping off the backs of waves I was watching a couple of long boarders and they seemed to be able to catch the waves that bit earlier so I decided to go for it.

I now paddle a 9'2 board and I have to strap it onto the top of the van and it is a pain to walk down the beach with it but once I'm in the water it's awesome for my level.

I have found paddling out the back a lot easier and now I can even make it out in between sets when my timing is right, if I do get caught out I have found I don't mess up my turtle roll as much as I did with my foamie.

Once I'm out the back I have found that instead of catching and riding 1 in 10 waves I am catching and riding 1 in 3 and can now start to concentrate on what to do next. Don't get me wrong I am still nose diving occasionally and dropping off the back but nowhere near what I was. Out of 10 waves I would drop off the back of 4 nose dive 3 mess up my pop up or just fall off another 2 and finally catch a wave which by this point I was that happy to just catch a wave that I forgot about doing anything else.

Now I'm catching more I have found that I am trying to turn a lot more but I'm already doing more with it in 5/6 sessions than I have with my foamie in over 6 months.

I'm now back to getting excited about going out every time again where as anything over 2ft I was starting to dread nosediving all the time and spending hours paddling to get out the back. I went out in 4-5ft over the weekend and had a storming session and caught loads and even trimmed down the line (then got exited did a little dance and then fell off!)

Nail on the head!

Millsy you now understand why we advise the length option, more waves successfully ridden means means more learning on the face. Good to hear!!!!

waikikikichan wrote:

Wedwo wrote: Other than that I want a bit more maneuverability than a long board offers.

Yeah, those longboards can really be handful at times.

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If you lay the passenger seat all the way back ( take off the headrest first ), can't you put the nose of the board into the well where your feet go ?

Yeah yeah, bloody show off
If you're confident I'll be doing that after 6 months then long it is

But seriously, thanks for the input. Sounds like a long board is what I'm after.

Reading the advice here I'm with you all in that I want to make enjoying myself priority 1 and fine tuning skill #2. It stands to reason that 2 will follow naturally after 1 since I'll be in the water more.
Case closed
Thanks a ton, you've all been super helpful!

Wedwo wrote:Yeah yeah, bloody show off
If you're confident I'll be doing that after 6 months then long it is

Well, I wish that was me in those photo, but I can't do those moves ( yet ) and I've been surfing for 20 years. And that's the point, it's not the board holding most newbies/beginner-intermediates back. Is it the Arrow or the Indian ? Is it Michael Jordan or is it his Nike's ? Let those photos inspire you to believe that IT IS possible to do a big backside under the lip cutback or a air EVEN on a longboard. You may not want to or ever be able to those advance move, but now you know a longboard doesn't hinder you to turn or maneuver. It can be done.

As someone who started on a minimal, then went to a funboard, then to a shortboard I can tell you that I have now returned to a longboard simply because I get way more waves, get longer rides, love the feel of the glide and tbh am just less worried about getting pitched over the lip because, well, I get into the waves so much earlier! I'm also taking on much bigger waves that I ever did before.

It's not for everyone and you may move on to something else later on, but I think a longboard really is the best way to start, 9'6" long, 3" thick and 22"+ wide will give you so much more time on waves = more fun!

For me learning to catch waves comes down to four things. Position yourself well on your board with the nose only a few inches out the water, look where you want to go (not at your feet, they can handle themselves), PADDLE HARD (REALLY hard!) til you feel the drop/acceleration and then stand up!

Hope you get some waves bromigo!

GnarlerNE wrote:As someone who started on a minimal, then went to a funboard, then to a shortboard I can tell you that I have now returned to a longboard simply because I get way more waves, get longer rides, love the feel of the glide and tbh am just less worried about getting pitched over the lip because, well, I get into the waves so much earlier! I'm also taking on much bigger waves that I ever did before.

It's not for everyone and you may move on to something else later on, but I think a longboard really is the best way to start, 9'6" long, 3" thick and 22"+ wide will give you so much more time on waves = more fun!

For me learning to catch waves comes down to four things. Position yourself well on your board with the nose only a few inches out the water, look where you want to go (not at your feet, they can handle themselves), PADDLE HARD (REALLY hard!) til you feel the drop/acceleration and then stand up!

Hope you get some waves bromigo!

I started on a 6ft mark richards and now currently on a 5.8 I went for the look cool type of look with a shortboard but it worked out for me as since im quite short and determined. I just think its a more enjoyable time with a bigger board till you are able to ride waves properly but good luck and have fun!

I am also an old beginner and in autumn moved from a 9"0 longboard with a fairly narrow tail to a 8.4 board that the producer calls mini-Longboard (CI Waterhog) with a very wide tail. Both have similar volume (~72l) but I catch way more waves with the Waterhog. So somehow shape does play a role too. Still considering something with even more volumes for those very small days, like a Mega Magic 9.0 or similar. At 50yo,188cm and 90kg I need help

Still 2 months two go until the next session.

My advice is renting out a board as you start to gain your confidence and ability in the water, you'll probably need a shorter board in a few months anyways, starting out go for something long like a 9ft board and work your way down to what works for you, 8ft or whatever