Surfing a year in LA, what board next...

[filmbee]

I know this is the most asked question so apologies for the repetition, and I've read a bunch of the other threads relating to this but can't seem to find an answer for me so here goes…

I've been surfing in LA for nearly a year on a 7 foot foam board. I'm 5'5 and weigh about 112lbs (female!). I surf once/twice a week and hopefully more soon. I can catch and stand up on waves most of the time. Waves in LA seem to be a mix between mushy and rolling (I think, I'm not quite sure of the terminology for the bigger waves here. I'm British and new to all this lingo!)

Any ideas or help on what board to get next? I don't mind the hard work progressing to another board, pref a non-foam board. Not sure if a fish or a short board will be ideal for SoCal. Or is it really the case of a fish for the mushy waves and a short for the rolling/pitching/hollow?!) What board is a general one good for everything?

Thanks very much.

[pandarturo]

Well from my two weeks of California surf I haven't seen anything huge and hollow. So I suggest sticking to something easy to paddle like a groveler or an egg. Hook up with a local shaper to get a gauge on what you really can handle.

[filmbee]

Yes I wasn't sure what the slighter bigger waves were called that weren't so mushy. Clearly not a hollow wave…

I'll do some research on grovelers, are they similar to a fish board/hybrid? I'll Google...

Thanks for your help.

[IB_Surfer]

for all beginners reading:

TRANSITION TRANSITION TRANSITION

If you are headed into shortboard surfing you need to transition into it. At your size and weight you can probably surf a 5'8 board, but not at your skill level. So, start with a bigger size shortboard, for you 6'6" to 6'8", use that for half a year, then go down. Eventually, maybe 2 to 3 years from now, you'll be at the 5'8 size your weight can afford, but not now.

My fav size that my beginner friends can handle and lear with has been my 6'8 x 20 1/8 x 2 5/8, so just from having helped beginners that is my recommendation.

And a fish is great for small days, way more volume

[filmbee]

Thanks very much, that's really helpful. I'm going to ask in a few surf shops and see which ones they recommend in that size bracket. Presumably a fish or a hybrid would be best to change to. Either way I'm sure I'll be eating a lot of sand for a while!

[pandarturo]

We'll let me know if you're in the SoCal region

[dtc]

Fish/egg/hybrid are all quite similar shapes (wide, fairly thick), although there are differences eg the tail shape. But it probably doesnt make too much difference for you; any of them should be fine. Grovellors are usually much shorter (but also thick and wide) and are probably not quite what you are looking for - they are very 'skatey'

If you are coming off a foam board, remember that normal boards are a fair bit different - foam boards float a lot so its easy to catch waves, but usually harder to turn and perhaps not even as stable (because they sit right on top of the water). So I wouldnt go too short - even though you are ok on a 7ft, its a 7ft foam board and you dont want to jump down too quickly. So 6ft8 or so is good as a transition board, as others have advised.

Other than dimensions (length, width, thickness), you probably also want a board with a fairly flat rocker ie not one that has a really big curve up at the nose. Most fish/hybrid boards do have a flat rocker, so that will be ok; but dont get seduced into a board that has a big rocker because thats the one the surf shop guys reckon is cool. Bigger rocker is good for more hollow waves but in smaller/mushy/normal waves, it just makes paddling harder and catching waves harder