Surfing Waves

Sorry for the duplicative post but realized folks don't seem to dive into the other forums much and I couldn't figure how to delete or edit my previous post. I recently started a podcast with a buddy with a goal of getting barreled by the end of 2020. We understand this is near impossible, but we're going balls out on the mission surfing nearly every morning before work. I've longboarded 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 before starting this podcast mission.

Now getting into steeped beach break, my first transitional board is a 6'11x22x3 Gary Hanel. I'm now in a similar competency to my longboarding where I can get up regularly 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. I also feel other boards would be more responsive to turns.

So, in effort to try and rapidly advance my surfing in more critical waves in the chest to hear high range + also have a board that will help me progress my turning ability and start exploring cutbacks, what board shape and size would you recommend? I'm 6'2 210lbs but was 230 3 months ago and planning to get down to 195-200 over the next few months. I've been looking at Lost Rocket V3s, Hypto Kryptos, of CI 4s in the 6'2-6'4 range. I've also heard an egg or teardrop in the 6'6-7' range could be the ticket as well but worried that might be a little too similar to my big fish.

Your help and suggestions are greatly appreciated in advance!

I think that often new surfers get caught up in a search for the right board. The board that is going to make them surf really well. Some I guess never get over that and end up with a pile of boards. If you have trouble pearling when the tide is low and the waves are shoulder high it is very likely that you are doing the wrong thing so don't blame the board. There may be boards that are easier in a particular circumstance but every board has plusses and minuses and every board can be used in a variety of circumstances if you know how. To start off you might explain exactly how you are pearling. Is it before you stand up or at the bottom of the wave or after you are on the wave for a while?

I appreciate the reply! It's not that the board is pearling just seemed like a very mindful effort in a more critical situation where I'd prefer not to worry about it. I've been in head high mushy waves on the board with no problem. This is only when I'm taking off. I fully understand this might be part of surfing steeper waves though.

I'm not saying I need another board but my bday is coming up and I would like to add another option to the quiver. Again, it's between a longer egg or teardrop that will allow me to better explore sharper turns or a thick shorty with the same idea.

Totally understand traditional wisdom and people over-eager to go shorter, but I'm very serious about this podcast and the mission of getting barreled regardless of how farfetched it sounds, so that is the highest priority. That being said I know you can still get barreled on mid-lengths as well.

Others can hopefully give you some suggestions but you can get tubed on a longboard or an SUP. I quit surfing for about 12 years and restarted and the best tube ride I have had so far (since I restarted) was on a 9'6" longboard. I got tubed a lot more on shorter boards but still it was by far the best tube ride even though by this point I have spent much more time on shorter boards since I have restarted. I have an advantage over others in that I love to do late drops. Late drops are what you need to learn to get tubed more often or more likely.

Surfing mushy waves is must easier at take off than steep waves. You have more time to paddle, you have more leeway on when to pop up, you have more time to pop up, your positioning doesnt have to be as precise. On steeper waves, you have to do a late drop and be in the right place and be at the right speed.

So, as old man says, probably the board is not to blame, its just that your technique isnt quite good enough to deal with steeper waves.

That said, if the waves are very steep/shore dump, then it can be hard fitting a longer board into the wave face - you need to take off,pop up and turn very quickly into a steep curl. That doesnt sound like your issue - your problem is before you are popping up. But this is why you see people surf short (like 5'6 - 6ft) foam boards/foam fish boards. Fast take off, immediate turns and less chance of damage if you are surfing in shallow water. However, as said, this helps with the stage after pop up, not perling or paddling.

If you have a board with a big or thick tail, those are really good for weaker or fatter waves. But for steep waves a narrower or (especially) thinner tail can help, because the board 'sinks' into the wave a little bit and gives you some extra time. However, again there is no free lunch - because the tail is helping catch the wave as much, your paddling needs to be better. For example, the hypto krypto is a great all round board that allows people to surf shorter, and while it may be better than your current board on steeper waves, its not really a 'steep wave' board as such (and if you go long you end up with a lot of foam). Whereas,say, the pyzel phantom or the Cymatic are more steep wave boards (neither are beginner or even regular intermediate boards). A stock standard short board shape is that shape because it works on steep waves, but then again requires a wave with some power before it works at all (chest to head high at least)

End point - you can probably find a board that is marginally better for steep wave conditions than the one you have. But there is no magic board. The boards you are mentioning are not really steep wave boards, they are all rounder boards that work in a wide range of conditions and are 'easier' to surf than higher performance short boards. So they are great for most surfers in most conditions. If that is what you are after, then give them a go. Have a look at some fish boards perhaps. If you are only surfing up to head high faces, then going higher
performance wont work anyway.

And work on your paddling and positioning

This is exactly the info I was looking for. If you have venmo, kick me your info and I'll buy you a beer!

For bonus points, I do want to add a board to the quiver because, well, I want to. Based on complimenting my 6'11 beefy fish and 10'0 longboard, should I get a 7'6-8' egg or teardrop or something like a Krypto to help my progression to a proper HPSB in the future?

I would probably look at something around 6'6 that isnt a beefed up shorter board (like the HK - at 6'6 its a big beefy board) but is still a bit wider and thicker than a HPSB. I dont think there is much point going longer if your aim is to go shorter. Still fairly wide (21ish), flat rocker

So something like a hybrid or a shorter egg or modern fish - the Torq modfun/modfish for example, firewire spitfire perhaps, CI mid looks good, lost crowd killer (or maybe quiver killer). There are plenty of options and you may have local shapers who can shape something. I just suggest not getting a board that is meant to be surfed at 5'8 or 5'10 stretched out to 6'6. Find a board that is designed to be surfed in the 6ft+ range.

whether you are up to sufing this shorter board I obviously have no idea. But as a board after a 6'11 on the way to a HPSB, that is what I suggest

After spending god-only-knows how many hours researching boards and refreshing this thread in hopes of more responses, I finally squeezed in some surf this morning between rain in San Diego.

I'm such an idiot. I have so much room for growth in the fundamentals in terms of paddling power, stamina, positioning, stand-up, etc. and I have a really perfect board for where I'm at as well.

I actually think it would benefit my surfing to have a slightly longer egg that turns easier than trying to go shorter for the sake of going shorter.

I appreciate all the info here gang!

bogeysurfer wrote:I'm such an idiot. I have so much room for growth in the fundamentals in terms of paddling power, stamina, positioning, stand-up, etc. and I have a really perfect board for where I'm at as well.

You are not an idiot. We learn by making mistakes ( or by following bad teachers ). I respect and commend you by coming forward with your new realization. A lot of times people don't chime back in after figuring out it's not the arrow but the Indian that's at fault, and we never hear back from them again.

waikikikichan wrote:You are not an idiot

Agree - ask for information, assess the information, reach a conclusion. Doesnt sound too idiotic. Not common I guess, but not idiotic.

There is also a secret default method for getting barreled in a wave that steepens enough as you go, this can apply to longer boards.

So watch the waves of your choice, work on the skill you need those when you discovered you were not an idiot. These will help.
You can even do these techniques on a longboard, without the need for severe take off skills.

I’ll explain, you ride across the face, often the steeper sections speed you up and out onto the should while they chuck a barrel behind you.
The barrel is not the significant down the line ride the foam ball critter, but a much easier short term event if you read it right.
Two type. One harder than the other.
The easy, er, you see a steepening section you intuitively feel it is going to throw a lip out your board is gathering speed in response to the steepening wave, so the move is to stall, move back from the trim spot , weight up your back foot, raising the nose, there is a balance between forward speed and upward drift on the wave, at the right moment you forward weight the board accelerates, the lip throws and you will be under it, duck and crouch, you can also prolong the stall by dragging your hand in the face.

The other technique is the backdoor barrel, across the face you see a steepening section that going to throw, you time your acceleration to drive under the throwing lip, taking a downward speed line out to the shoulder on the other side.
Both can give a barrel at best, head dips or a little shade if not quite throwing.

I would keep the long term plan in mind, if you try to advance too far too fast you will only hinder your progress.

I would also suggest you not oversize something like a Hypto Krypto, that board is designed to be surfed signifixantly shorter than your height and the bigger sizes are wonky with way too much volume under the chest.

What shape is your current 7’? An egg seems like a really good next board, in the 7’ range.

A mid length board is really versatile and can be surfed fast breaks or slow rolling breaks, when you learn how to surf those breaks and the board. Get that down, and then you could probably advance to the board you really want to get barreled in (or just that mid length.)

Thanks for the additional responses, everyone! Especially Jafa for his much-needed barrel tips. I've already started to get hammered in some throwing sections so already trying to luck into a tube that way. I've also seen the technique of taking off behind a lip of an a-frame and trying to shoot through. Still need to elevate my takeoff game to bring that to fruition though. I appreciate your insight!

FYI, here's the board I nabbed on Monday: https://theboardsource.com/product/72-x ... surfboard/

After my first 2 sessions, it's definitely stable but a whole new beast for paddling with less volume and more rocker. I think a 7'6 would be more my speed but I think the 7'2 is a great length to advance my ability. The guys I bought it from are great and schooled me a bit as well. What they told me really hit home:

They said essentially any shortboard model needs to be surfed aggressively up and down the face to make it work "attacking the wave". The midlength I got can still be surfed in a similar matter but also gives the forgiveness to work without the skills to work it up and down the face. He said once I can start hitting this thing off the lip, then i can start exploring bigger high-performance boards.

So I think that sums up a lot of the advice above. Thanks again for the help!

Speaking of taking off behind the lip, this is a great vid-

bogeysurfer wrote:Thanks for the additional responses, everyone! Especially Jafa for his much-needed barrel tips. I've already started to get hammered in some throwing sections so already trying to luck into a tube that way. I've also seen the technique of taking off behind a lip of an a-frame and trying to shoot through. Still need to elevate my takeoff game to bring that to fruition though. I appreciate your insight!

FYI, here's the board I nabbed on Monday: https://theboardsource.com/product/72-x ... surfboard/

Good score -- that's very cheap. I envy people living down south. Do they do shipping? Every board sold in NorCal seems much more expensive.

Forget all those answers, here is what you need: 6'9 x 20 x 2 5/8" epoxy or 2 3/4" fiberglass step up with hard rails and light rocker with 5 fin setup. There, trust me.

For an explanation: I have california guns and semiguns for big huge waves, but when I want to go after overhead and a half waves I want something that will duckdive (althought not easily) and will have enough paddle to catch big mackers. Take it from a heavier surfer with 25 years of experience.