going from longboard to fish/shortboard

[Guest]

ive been surfing solidly since april i can surf ok in waves 1-4ft but today it was 6ft with the odd huge set coming in and i struggled with a longboard was just to hard to turn and throw around

so im thinking of geting a custom board made maybe a shortboard/fish hybrid with a bit more thickness im 6'4 and way about 11 stone (no idea what that is in pounds) anyone know what size thickness width i should be looking for?

or should i go for a mini-mal will jumping from longboard to fish/shortboard be to much of a drop down in size?

[tiny2]

it depends on what kind of surfing you want to do. i don't think moving to a short board would be too radical of a step since it sounds like you've mastered the drop-in, bottom turn, trim down the line maneuver in the 1-4 ft. range.

if you do go the shortboard route, it will take a little more patience since it will be a bigger adjustment in paddling as well as a different feel in balance.

sorry mate, i have no clue how many pounds equals a stone, but if you're planning on surfing generally head high and smaller, a fish will give you more volume to help out the paddling and still have that shortboard feel.

if you go the mini-mal route, just heads up that you may or may not have to still turtle through the sets. the larger fun-shapes and eggs will be pretty tough to duck dive with (which is an easier method for getting through larger surf)

[Guest]

well ill prob just use the longboard for the small summer surf and use a shortboard in the winter when we get decent size waves

i would stick to longboarding but i realy dont want to be tied down to one board like alot of people do

[kieran]

i am 6ft 1 and weigh around 13st. I purchased a custom 7 ft by 21 by
2 1/2.

You could probably go for something of simlilar size.

The drop down was not easy by any means. i went from a 7"9. The first session i had was diabolical infact. Paddling for waves is much harder and your wave positioning counts a lot more. When you pop there is no room for foot placement error. youll find it much more fidgety than the long board. Generally a shortboard is alot less forgiving.

However keep at it and the rewards are there. Turning is easier and more responsive. The board is so much faster than the longboard and catching larger waves is less painful.

I had been surfing the longboard for a year before i made the switch. Personally i think that was maybe too long as my surfing has come on much better since i got the shortboard

[namino tsume]

i am 5'7" and 150 pounds (however many stones that is) and i ride a 6'6 fish in 1foot slop and double overhead stuff... the fish is definatly good that way.

however if your looking for something to ride in the big stuff, go with a shortboard. its more manuverable and lighter (less like a longboard)
however the shortboard would be an incredible drop from a longboard with the fish being an easier drop.
however yet again, you will eventually get the hang of it, after a couple days of hard drops, you will find how to surf a shortboard.


so, if i was you i would go for the fish somewhere around 7' because it is something you can use on smaller days when you just want to rip.

[johnnytsunami]

I am 5'11" about 170 pounds and ive been riding a 7'6" funboard. Im looking for a shortboard cause i want something that can manuever better. Im lookin at 6'2" to 6'4" shortboards, would that be the right size for me?

[namino tsume]

sure thats fine... if your going to be in decent sized waves.