Surfing Waves

Decided to buy the fin set my shaper recommended over the budget freebies that came with the board and wanted to educate myself a little. I read the fin primer and I the speed control vs. speed generating number rating the futures website and I think I am even more confused than when I started.

So if anyone could help me understand.

Speed skate-y loose = good when you need to pump for speed, less fin, faster down the line speed, faster initial burst of speed. I get that much.
-What does loose mean? Is it that the fins have less hold so something like say a bottom turn requires more rail and less pivot around the fin? This board and others that I have ridden that are similar don't have the same resistance as say my single fin but its not exactly sliding around like a bar of soap either.

-What does skate-y mean? like an ice skate cutting through the wave face or rocking back and forth on a skateboard? and wouldn't the latter be true for almost any short board?

Speed control- big powerful waves, holding a line, minimal turning, racing to the shoulder, praying to god for survival.


TLDR; I surf beach breaks waist to overhead, never ridden anything other than freebie fins always assumed that I want is fast and loose although I don't really understand what that means.

Good questions and welcome.
A lot depends on how you want to surf, , so let's describe things from single fins onward!

A bigger board with a single inbox as aopposed to set position plugs.
You can slide the fin forward or back in th box... right at the back requires more effort and force over the fin to drive a turn , so is called tight, can be offset by more power in the wave and it is less prone to death wobbles or over steering.

Forward in the box it becomes easier to make a turn as some the rail helps behind the fin positioning, so is considered looser, at speeds the fin tends to be micro sensitive and needs to be finessed. I also use the the squirrely as the board seems jump all over the place beyond the direction of force you try to apply.
All fins create drag and size come into play with your weight and ability to transfer your power into the turn.
Too small fins in either base or depth if you apply too much power will let the tail of the board slide sideways = skatey, good surfers use it as a skill, ordinary riders it means out of control. Most often in as you suggest in the bottom turn. One good thing is more speed means more stability, like motorbike cornering, and like the bike tyre sidewall , you bring an engaged rail into play.

Flex can mean a rebound of energy into the turn which helps , too much flex, ie rubber fins on soft boards means loss of energy with rebound.

The real fin education is under your feet, get a selection of fin sets try them if you have several sets in the same conditions, single fin or 2+1 set ups try centre fin position and with and without side bites. Play with fin size. Try a finless day.
The answer is a bit like how long is a piece of string? Because it is based on all,the factors that make up your qualities of surfing. If it works well , good, if not, bad!

These terms describe rare occurrences in my surfing. When you will experience them depends on the size and shape of the waves you are riding. Bigger faster waves will make more board/fin combinations feel skatey or loose. A flatter bottom on your board will also make it more likely that you will experience that skatey or loose feeling. I have a board with a flat bottom and very little nose or tail rocker and it is the only board I surf that makes me feel skatey or loose very often. I would say that skatey or loose describes when the board takes very little pressure to change directions. When it is like that I have to be very careful or the board will shoot off one direction with me going in another direction. It's when I am going really fast on that one board in flatter water at the bottom of the wave. I don't think the fins matter much but then I use the biggest fins I can get so maybe smaller fins would result in me experiencing that feeling more often. I might be wrong about this but I rarely ever feel like the board is skatey or loose.