Vacation rental surfboard

[jmredinger]

I am a female who weighs 135 lbs, is 5 foot 3, and plans on surfing during the summer in the Outer Banks. I have only been surfing three times; twice have been lessons, and once has been on my own over a period of a week everyday. Every time, I have been surfing on a soft top 8ft board. This summer, I have been thinking about renting a hard top board instead of the soft top. I know that safety is one benefit to the soft tops, but are there any immediate benefits to hard tops (not that I could progress quicker since I only surf a week out of the year)? For instance, I have found soft tops to be slippery and possibly too buoyant. Will a hard top 8ft board be harder to ride or heavier to carry? Keep in mind that I am still a beginner.

[Big H]

Contemplating too buoyant....what do you mean? Rub wax on the soft top and that will solve the slippery issue. That being said, I would support your thoughts and get a hard board with real fins.

[jmredinger]

"too buoyant" may not have been the right description... It just overall feels a little different, I don't exactly know how to explain it. Thank you so much, I appreciate the response!

[waikikikichan]

I think you you mean the buoyancy makes the board hard to maneuver. Like trying to steer a bus versus a sports car. Just rent a hard board and if you don't like it, swap it out for a soft. ( just know that girls get black and blues on the hip bones first couple days on a hard board. Guys get them right under the ribs. But it only temporary )

[Big H]

"too buoyant" may not have been the right description... It just overall feels a little different, I don't exactly know how to explain it. Thank you so much, I appreciate the response!

Putting it that way yeah, soft boards have a very different feel....pretty much just designed to go straight and trim a little but not much else....good for their design as a starting point but not intended for much beyond that. (Though to be fair under the feet of a good surfer they can pretty much do whatever they want on a foamie....reference JOB getting barreled at pipeline.)

Read or watch a video on board handling and safety in the break zone, keep coming nitro lot your board as much as you can, cover your head when you wipe out with your arms and be aware of your fin(s) and where they are....also, the one that still gets my girls is watch where your board is in relation to you and the waves when getting in and out and when you are in the water with the board, either swimming next to it or walking with it....I still have a scar on my instep where I go raked with the fins standing next to my board in ankle deep water and a wave swept up and pushed my board through me like I was a bowling pin. Hard board, hard lesson, won't forget.

[dtc]

Although not everyone seems to feel the same way, on the now very rare occasions that I use a softboard, I find them less stable than a hardboard at speed. I think its because a hard board will have bottom contours and rails (edges) and better fins, all of which cause the board to 'grip' the water (or be sucked into the water a little bit) and so the board is more stable. Softboards just have flat bottoms that don't do very much hydro-dynamically (if that's the right term) - they just sit on the top of the water rather than being 'part' of the water.

As slower speeds this perhaps isn't as noticeable

In any case, as said above, rent a hard board and see what you think.

[jmredinger]

Yes, less stability and harder to manuever was what I was trying to say about the soft tops. Thank you so much for all of your help everyone! I think I will definitely rent the hard board and if I end up not liking it, I'll go back for the soft board. Also, thanks for the safety advice and what to expect. I appreciate it!

[maddy26]

Hello,

I think you mean the lightness makes the board hard to move. Like endeavoring to control transport versus a games vehicle. Simply lease a hard board and on the off chance that you don't care for it, swap it out for a delicate.Simply realize that young ladies get dark and blues on the hip bones first couple days on a hardboard. Folks get them directly under the ribs. Be that as it may, it just brief.
Thanks...