Surfing Waves

I haven't ridden a fish yet and I've heard many, many times from posts on the board here that "fish aren't easy for beginners" but I never have found what specifics or aspects of a fish board make it difficult for beginners. I know they are short (standard retro fish is around 6 ft or so), but they catch waves very easy, usually closer to 3 inches thick so they are easy to paddle out/bouyant and usually pretty wide which usually I read is a characteristic for being a very stable board versus a wobby 18 inch wide shortboard/thruster. Can some one please tell me why beginners would have significantly more trouble on a fish vs an 8ft minimal (your standard beginner board)? Is it just the lack of length making for a smaller target zone to put your feet onto during your poppup to get balance? That is the only thing I can envision so please give me a better understanding so I stop wondering (and newbies stop asking about should I get a fish). Just saying "they aren't good for begginers" doesn't do much for me. I want to know why.

Bub wrote: I want to know why.

Ooh, you're so demanding

A couple of things make fish difficult for beginners -

They're wobbly. Because of they're shape (as opposed to their dimensions) they're very loose and maneuverable, which unless you know what you're doing just means 'unstable'.

They catch waves easily.... but this means they take-off very very fast. Unless you can pop up instantly, this isnt a very good characteristic. You'll either be lying prone at the bottom of the wave, or it'll take off without you.

As well as gaining speed very quickly, they lose it very quickly too. You cant stand on it like a mini-mal and ride towards the beach on a foot of slop. You need to know how to gain some speed and power from the wave and be in the right place. It sounds contradictory to a fishes reputation for being good in gutless waves, but you DO have to work with the wave, it wont do the work for you like a mini-mal.

Fishes are super-sensitive to positioning. An inch too far forward and its over the nose you go, and inch too far back and you never get a wave


In the right conditions, fishes are fantastic. And they are quite easy to ride - but you do need to know, at least more or less, what you're doing. They're no good for the initial learning stages.

Hope that answers your question.

Someone will come on now and say something completely different - everyone seems to get something different out of fishes and they seem to polarise opinions about how they are ridden

if youre a beginner you can ride a fish but its good for turns and riding a certain kind of wave so if youre still working on your pop up and balance, cutbacks and steep choppy waves are a long ways away.

I pretty much learned on my fish, but everything DBBB has said is true and I have slowly learned this. The pop up thing is very true, and I am still yet to be able to utilise the the extra speed that fish are meant to give. Had I not seen my board for sale (new!) for £90 (I was seriously skint at the time) and also needed a shortish board so that I could take it one the train I would never have gone for a shortboard.

I adore it though, I just love how easy you catch waves on it on small days. It is worth it just for that. Especially considering that the surf in the North Sea is usually 2ft slop.

If you haven't started on a long board yet, then imo don't get a fish. I short boarded for a yr and a half (on a 6'4). Then I transitioned to a 6'1, with no problem. When I bought my 5'10, I had such a hard time my first few days. Just recently after about 10 sessions, I learned how to gain the best speed on the fish. They are hard because in tiny surf you have to keep adjusting your stance. For an example, when your pumping you need to have your whole stance forward, then you have to move your foot back to the tail, to turn or snap or w/e. They are very fun, but as others stated, it's hard to maintain speed unless your in the perfect spot on the wave, best of luck.

Thanks guys. This info. really does help me better understand now. I can see how I would probably have trouble getting to my feet on short fish that takes off like a rocket. I'm just scouting around on ebay, craigslist and surf shops for a used board and want to know which boards to not even consider. I know I don't want a board longer than 8 ft and I don't want a shortboard/thruster. Now I'll make sure I don't consider a short fish. Would a larger fish be ok? I've seen some with the deep swallow tail, wide, thick etc that around anywhere from 6'8 to 7'4''. Would something in the 7ft range probably be much easier for a beginner if I happen to come across one for a decent price?

Bub wrote:Would a larger fish be ok? I've seen some with the deep swallow tail, wide, thick etc that around anywhere from 6'8 to 7'4''. Would something in the 7ft range probably be much easier for a beginner if I happen to come across one for a decent price?

Hmmm, do you actually mean a 7ft fish, or something like a funboard that has a swallow tail?
I know 'big fishes' exist, but Ive never ridden one, and I cant really see the point of them.
If it really is a fish you're looking at, then it'll still be difficult because of the flat rocker etc. You'd find you were burying the nose of the board in the water and pearling a lot.

if, on the other hand, its a 7ft-ish funboard that has a swallow tail, then that would be a perfect board to progress on. Not an ideal first board, but definitely one you could get along with once you've mastered the pop-up etc.

One thing you have to realise about a fish is that it is 100% a shortboard, and meant to be ridden one (mine is particularly fat and wide and is the same). Okay the dimensions make it easier to catch smaller and possibly weaker waves and perhaps slightly earlier but you still won't be gliding along on unbroken waves and like you can on a longboard. And, when you start losing your speed you are still going to sink.

(P.S. This is what I have learned from personal experience and from what I've read/heard etc).

By the way I have read that flat rockers (roughly) = a faster ride, but should having a flat rocker make it easier to pump (technical term?) for speed?