Steep shoulder-high wave board for big beginner/int.

[bogeysurfer]

Longtime listener first-time caller. I've been longboarding infrequently off and on for the past decade. I could get up and turn enough to keep it on the face on slow-rolling pointbreaks. A few months ago I kicked it into high gear surfing 4-5x/week trying to transition to a shorter board in beach break.

I have a 6'11x22x3 Gary Hanel I've been getting my chops with. I'm now in a similar spot on steeper beach break where I can get up and turn enough to keep it on the face. Absolutely love the board but I notice when the tide is low and waves creep to shoulder high, it gets increasingly tough to keep the nose from pearling.

Would the described fish be the incorrect board for the described conditions? Would a different board be easier to start really trying to work turns? Would getting something in the 6'2"-6'6" range make sense? Again, I'm trying to transition to a shortboard and putting in a lot of time, so I'm up for a little challenge. (I'm 6'2 210 but was 230 3 months ago and planning to get down to 195-200 over the next few months)

Thanks in advance!

[Lebowski]

A 6'2 board for a 6'2, 210 pound man who calls himself a beginner is a very small board.

Your current board is a volumous beast, and most volumous beasts tend to be poor for sucky, barrelly waves. This is because they often have wide, thick tails and little rocker, which means that the tail doesn't penetrate the waters surface (due to its bouyancy) and insteads ends up pointing the board steeply down. When this happens you end up with a very hectic take off.

[waikikikichan]

The answer is NOT another board.
The answer is NOT a 6’2” or 6’3”.

The answer is to improve you paddle technique to get in earlier and set up quicker

The answer is learning how to properly execute a Bottom Turn.

The answer is to put your back foot over the fin(s) to drive the tail ( which brings up the nose like on a power boat ).

The answer, if you can’t turn your 6’11” is to use and learn to turn a 8’0” for few weeks, then when you get back on the 6’11”, it’ll feel much shorter.