is this next step board ok for me?

[riverplatense]

Hi everyone, I have been visiting this great forum for a while but this is my first post. Reading here really helped my surfing a lot.

So, I started surfing year and a half ago, first on a foamie and then in a 7'2 hybrid.
I usually catch more waves than I miss and can surf along the face.
Seeing what the good guys do I thought about going to a shorter board.
Recently I found an affordable nice 6'6 and I took it. But the board is 18'' wide and 2 1/8 thick. I tried it twice and I struggled to catch waves.
I am not frustrated but I felt just like 12 months back.

My question is:
Should I continue trying with this one?
continue with the 7'2 until I progress more?
alternate boards depending on conditions?
or look for something closer to my 7'2?

I am 1,75 cm and weight 163lbs.
Thanks a lot for any help, tip or advice!!

[kamesen]

*bump* to this but lets generalize,

if someone is looking to progress towards a shortboard, or more aggressive surfing, when is a good time to move down to the next board size?

{A} Whenever you get your hands on a smaller board
{B} When you become average with your current board
{C} Only after you've completely mastered a larger board

i have been surfing for 2 years. started with an indian 2m40cm (7'10") board and started catching every wave quite easily. then i moved down to a BLUE 2m13cm (7'0") funboard and im good at that one but by no means an expert (some bottom turns, no cutbacks, occasional floater) . i found a 180cm (5'11") TORE rocket fish but i feel like i did 12 months back or worse. i know my paddling has to improve because i cant get enough speed to outpaddle waves before they drop me, or to keep them from sliding right under me.

will my time be better spent trying to adjust to a new board or mastering the old one? thank you much for the wisdom and advice!

[kitesurfer]

Recently I found an affordable nice 6'6 and I took it. But the board is 18'' wide and 2 1/8 thick. I tried it twice and I struggled to catch waves.
I am not frustrated but I felt just like 12 months back.

My question is:
Should I continue trying with this one?
continue with the 7'2 until I progress more?
alternate boards depending on conditions?
or look for something closer to my 7'2?

I am 1,75 cm and weight 163lbs.

Hi and welcome. Looking at the board dimensions my gut feeling is the problem is not in the board length but rather its width and thickness. From your description of your surfing it sounds like you could hangdle a shorter board now if thats the way you want your surfing to go. 6ft6 is fine but look for a board that is wider and thicker 19 1/4 and 2 3/8 thick.
Or perhaps look to getting one of these modern fish which are basically big shortboards with a swallow tail. This type of board you will be able to continue to use in crappy surf once you have progressed further and onto even shorter boards.

KS

[isaluteyou]

have to agree with kitesurfer here. You can get away with length as long as your board has enough width and flotation. The board you mentioned is probably gonna cause a great deal of frustration for a very long time. I like the idea of going for a modern style fish as you never need to get rid of it as when you get better the board will be used primarily for soft mushy days. So its a good investment.

[kamesen]

update: Since surfing is mostly about enjoying the ride I decided to continue on my 7'0" until I can master it instead of switching to a short fish (pictured) and struggling. This way I can focus on developing balance, paddling, and muscle memory without dealing with as much frustration every time I go out. Good idea/bad idea?

This way I'll also have time to add some minor details to the fish like I did the funboard- well, the funboard got it from tip to tail

[Surf Rasta]

I also have to agree with KS. You may need a board with a little more volume! It makes the transition a lot easier.