Should I Progress from OR with MiniMal?

[surfnoob]

Hi all. Been surfing 18 months with my 7' 6" Roger Cooper minimal (my 2nd wife). Happy to ride the line, bottom turn (fore and back) and make most of the waves I paddle for. I surf South West Wales, UK and I'm 6ft 1', 12st 8lbs and reasonably fit. Still need to work on my style having videoed myself and watched it!

Now, I'm struggling to find out via various forums what my minimal can do - most surfers i see ride the line and that's it - no cut backs, floaters etc. Is that because the minimal will never do that, or is it due to the ability of the surfers I watch, or maybe the minimal will do it but most surfers have progressed to shorter boards?

So I guess what i am trying to find out is whether i should continue with my minimal or move down to a shorter board?

Do you think there are other things i should be trying to 'master' on the minnimal before looking at going shorter?

If you think a shorter board is the way to go can you make any recommendations? What sort of size should I look at and what type of board - the fish is mentioned a lot which seems to give a load of speed but will it allow me to drive up the face and cut back?

If i end up with 2 boards in the quiver, when would you choose to use a minimal over another board - what conditions dicate which board?

So many questions, sorry!

[kitesurfer]

Still need to work on my style having videoed myself and watched it!

Don't we all?

From your post it sounds like you want to progress to doing cutbacks and stuff and whilst for some this is possible on a minmal it won't be as easy as it would be on a shorter board.
Retro fish are a lot of fun and do make the most of a lot of the bristish surf the fin set-up lacks the drive of a modern shortboard. I would recomend that you go for a larger shortboard with not too much rocker, between 6ft6- 6ft8 about 2 5/8 thick and 19 1/2 to 19 3/4 wide possibly with a swallow tail as the extra width will still enable you to catch waves and the double pin tail will still give you plenty of manoeuverability to practise cut backs.

Something like this.





Or this





The first one is 6ft8 the second 6ft 7. If you have trouble finding something suitable, give us a shout, i have made a few boards already for forum peeps already and could rustle something up for you.

KS

[surfingwithsmile]

LOL for some reason i cant help think that behind those boards is his daughter or granddaughter (*hint* pink bike)
who he asked to come over for a picture then he told her to prop up the surfboard

and if you want to learn cutbacks and floaters go to a shorter board with a curvier rail line
now before the fish users come in here and start defending their quivers
as far as turns go

->thrusters are more speed based turns however their turning archs are alot bigger and are designed for bigger wave faces
->quad fishes are more of a slower speed turn where your turning arch is not as big better for smaller wave faces
simply put
to do a cutback on a thruster would be like a capital "C"(shape of your carve) and cutback on a quad fish would be a smaller "c"
ability can make that carve tighter but as far as the easier board to turn it would have to be the fishier board

if i had only two boards to choose from and one was a mini mal
i would choose the other board hands down no matter what the conditions are or what board it is

[surfnoob]

Thanks for your feedback. So, I guess this begs the question - what is the purpose of a minimal other than being the first stick for a newbie?

Don't get me wrong - a long mellow ride down the line at sunset sets the stoke rating off the scale and I've come down overhead waves like a rocket which gets the juices flowing.

I guess your saying that to start dancing a little more then u need a shorter stick?

[surfingwithsmile]

Thanks for your feedback. So, I guess this begs the question - what is the purpose of a minimal other than being the first stick for a newbie?

Don't get me wrong - a long mellow ride down the line at sunset sets the stoke rating off the scale and I've come down overhead waves like a rocket which gets the juices flowing.

I guess your saying that to start dancing a little more then u need a shorter stick?

that is exactly the purpose of a minimal --->"newbie first stick"
while i wont go and say that minimals or "fun boards" arent fun
i would go ahead and say that if you are a skilled surfer and you arent just trying to mess around
then they arent fun (like if you were totally serious with your surfing)
because they dont turn like shortboards and you cant nose ride them like a longboard

they have no special qualities
the long mellow ride down the line at sunset being a good stoke is the wave
not the board
if you were on the same exact wave on a longboard hanging 10 that wave woulda felt XXXX times better
same goes for the overhead drop
a late drop on a short board on an over head wave compared to a mini mal on the same wave
the difference would feel like a childs toy rocket(the water pressure kind) and nasa's space shuttle

but yeah if you wanna paint your own canvas then you have to pick the right brush (shorter )

[surfnoob]

the long mellow ride down the line at sunset being a good stoke is the wave
not the board

I like it - your spot on.

Looks like the bank account is gonna take a hammering shortly!

[IB_Surfer]

You are ready for a new board. You might want to rent one first before buying, last thing you want is to buy one and hate it.

[hopey8]

Hi Guys.

Im pritty much in the same situation. Been surfing for about 8 months on a 7"9 min mal bic ( dont hammer me for it ), have had great fun learning on it and turning into the wave etc but now want to progress onto either a fat boy flier or a fish thinking between 6ft 8 area? im similar build etc to the dude that first posted but im heading to NZ on the 10th of may, mainly the north island to start with so was wondering if anyone knew the surfspots and if there is a good intermediate board that suits NZ waves.

Any help very welcome as it seems a real minefield trying to pick the right board at times.

Many thanks.

[jaffa1949]

Hi Guys.

Im pritty much in the same situation. Been surfing for about 8 months on a 7"9 min mal bic ( dont hammer me for it ), have had great fun learning on it and turning into the wave etc but now want to progress onto either a fat boy flier or a fish thinking between 6ft 8 area? im similar build etc to the dude that first posted but im heading to NZ on the 10th of may, mainly the north island to start with so was wondering if anyone knew the surfspots and if there is a good intermediate board that suits NZ waves.

Any help very welcome as it seems a real minefield trying to pick the right board at times.

Many thanks.

The main surf town on the North Island is Raglan it's no secret, it is a great left hand triple point break pick up a board in New Zealand a second hand model and buy or take a good wetsuit talk to the surf shops in Raglan or see the surf schools there.
A good place for a try and see various types of board at the inside break, or the main beach.
BTW the west coast beaches of New Zealand cop big swell and require you to know you water skills. I'm genuinely serious about this. Gentler on the east coast beaches but less reliable.
For all travelers awareness and respect

[hopey8]

Hey jaffa 1949.

Cheers for the advise. ive packed my summer suit in this country which is 1.5mm thick but havent brought my boots or gloves but seeing that i surf on the south coast of england kinda hoping NZ waters arnt as cold.
Defo listen to ur advise about the conditions on the west coast as it important to know about rips and tides etc. The biggest ive surfed so far is about 4ft ish on the mini mal so going to be a steep learning curve for me, got a month in a camper though so should be cool. Are there any breaks i should avoid in the north that would be seriously dangerous?
Cheers for the advise again sorry about the questions.
Take it easy.