Surfing Waves

Hi I have been riding my 6'3 shortboard for over 4 years. I really like that my current board is light and pretty easy to turn. But I can't duck dive the board, no matter how hard I try. Which makes getting out very very difficult, not to mention tiring!

I'm 5 feet tall and weigh 95lbs. I'm wondering if my board is too big for me to duck dive? Should I get a smaller board?

Smaller board! I'm riding a 6'0 and I'm 6 foot and 200 pounds

Would switching to a 5'4 be too big of a jump in length?

The learning curve will be steep, but it should be fine.

Austin is what kind of waves are you riding m

Okioki wrote:I'm 5 feet tall and weigh 95lbs. I'm wondering if my board is too big for me to duck dive? Should I get a smaller board?

Not to be pedantic (ok, to be pendantic), volume is the issue rather than length. Obviously going shorter will usually mean less volume, but you could get less volume from a similar length by going thinner or narrower. Whether that is better than going shorter, in terms of learning curve, I am not sure. I suspect going a bit thinner shouldnt create too many problems, or perhaps going to 6ft and a bit thinner rather than jumping down to 5ft4.

When you sit on the board, out the back waiting for a wave, how far (if anything) does the board sink under the water? My theory (based on no particular evidence) is that unless the board sinks at least 6-9inches (? maybe more) when you are sitting on it, then you are very unlikely to be able to duck dive it unless you have a perfect technique (which you can't get until you can get a board you can duck dive with in order to practice....)

Are you still growing? If you did buy a smaller board now you may find its too small within a few years, which is no big deal since having a board that lasts a few years is fine, but its just something to keep in mind.

Thank u everyone. To answer some of your questions:

Stopped growing years ago!

The waves here (reef breaks only) are pretty mellow unless there's a storm approaching. I don't (or rather, can't) go out when it's over 4 feet.

I've never noticed how much my board sinks when I'm sitting on it, but I'm sure it's nowhere near 6-9inches in the water, probably more like 1-2??

Take these comments on the basis I have no actual experience with someone your height and weight!

You should definitely be able to go shorter. What are your current board dimensions (not just length). Perhaps look at something 5ft8 - 5ft10, thinner than your current board. You probably want to find a board that, when you sit on it, it sinks up to your belly button or even a bit higher. This is in terms of being able to duck dive it - a lower volume board like this will be harder to paddle and to catch waves.

A lot of short boards nowdays are designed as small wave 'dumpsters' - they are short but wide and thick. So make sure that you arent looking at one of those - something around 2 1/4 inch thick and 18 inches wide will be good, any thicker or wider and you may struggle to duck dive. You might even have a look 'grom' boards - boards for kids (hope you dont take that the wrong way). These are normal shortboards but designed for people your height and weight; whereas 'adult' shortboards under 6ft are often designed as specialist boards but still for the typcial 175lb male.

Thank u! That was very helpful, I'll see if I can try out a few boards in the size range you recommended. Hopefully, it won't be too difficult a transition for me.

Thanks again, you guys have been really helpful.

Happy surfing to everyone!