Catch surf softtop as first board?

[surfingbart]

Hi!

Over the last two years I have been surfing roughly 3-4 weeks total during a couple of holidays.

I live in The Netherlands, and while the surf there is quite limited, I love going to France/Portugal/Spain to surf a couple of times per year.
Since renting a board is quite expensive (+100 euro's a week), I was thinking about buying a board myself.

I consider myself a beginner that is moving towards an intermediate level of surfing. In other words, I have strong peddle, know my way in the line-up, and I started experimenting doing turns. However, I just need to catch more waves to work on the latter. Last time I surfed a 8 and a 7.5, and the last one was around 48 liters.

I thought of buying a catch surf skipper quad 6’6 (55L) because of the price, durability, easy wave catching. What do you guys think?

Thanks for all input!

[dtc]

I think almost everyone will say that a 6'6 is too short for you at this stage of your development.

Are the boards you have surfed all foam boards, or are they hardboards? A lot of people assume that a 7'6 foam board is much the same as a 7'6 hardboard, but they are quite different.

How much do you weigh?

[waikikikichan]

I thought of buying a catch surf skipper quad 6’6 (55L) because of the price, durability, easy wave catching.

Where did you read or Who told you that board is "EASY to catch waves with" ? And what other board were they comparing it to ?

Over the last two years I have been surfing roughly 3-4 weeks total during a couple of holidays.

I consider myself a beginner that is moving towards an intermediate level of surfing. In other words, I have strong peddle, know my way in the line-up, and I started experimenting doing turns.

So you are saying you've been surfing for only a week and half to 2 weeks in one year ? What other sports do you do ?

[BaNZ]

Welcome! Unfortunately you're too optimistic on surfing a small board. Exactly like one of the first post that I made on the forum. In my first two years I surfed every Saturday and Sunday for at least 3-4 hours each session. I was catching waves easily with my longboard. I was also teaching my friends how to surf. Spent months working at hostel doing hard labour so I had strong paddle and was catching more waves than anyone at the line up. I thought I'm pro until I got a smaller board and went out on overhead days. I was way over my head and got into difficulty. Every now and again, I'll take out my 6'2 just to remind myself how stupid I'm to think that I can make that jump from 9'0 to a shortboard.

[surfingbart]

Thanks for all the replies!

Sorry I might left out some important information, first post on this forum haha. I forgot to say that the boards I last rode in Bali were hardboards: started with an 8 at the beginning and moved down towards a 7.5 at the end of my holiday. Had some really long waves at Medewi.

My weight is 76kg.

@waikikikichan I guess I just read it on their site and from that kind of concluded it myself because of the volume of the board as well. Yes unfortunately the last two years have been around two weeks of surfing each year, I will add to this the coming years and hopefully end up moving to the coast some day. I also do a lot of skateboarding, snowboarding in the winter and go to the gym couple times a week, I consider myself quite fit

So it seems like the Catch board might be not the ideal choice?

[surfingbart]

Welcome! Unfortunately you're too optimistic on surfing a small board. Exactly like one of the first post that I made on the forum. In my first two years I surfed every Saturday and Sunday for at least 3-4 hours each session. I was catching waves easily with my longboard. I was also teaching my friends how to surf. Spent months working at hostel doing hard labour so I had strong paddle and was catching more waves than anyone at the line up. I thought I'm pro until I got a smaller board and went out on overhead days. I was way over my head and got into difficulty. Every now and again, I'll take out my 6'2 just to remind myself how stupid I'm to think that I can make that jump from 9'0 to a shortboard.

Oops this might indeed sounds like my story haha, so maybe its better to stick with a 7-8 mini mal or funboard with some good volume?

[jaffa1949]

Surfingbart, that soft top is totally unsuitable, for your level of surfing, no matter where you think you are in the surfing food chain, you are pretty[ much. Around the beginner mark, look at the boards you were most successful with in Medewi, 8ft, 7,6” .
6ft 6” you are going to struggle to catch waves, the fins are soft, too flex and the weaker waves in Holland you will just be an obstacle flailing around in the line. 8ft is a good mark.
I wish people would forget about volume, there are other factors in surfboards that are more important.

[waikikikichan]

Is the Odysea 7'0" Log available in your area ?

Screenshot 2018-07-25 at 8.14.07 PM.png (87.9 KiB) Viewed 2562 times

[surfingbart]

Is the Odysea 7'0" Log available in your area ?

Screenshot 2018-07-25 at 8.14.07 PM.png

It is! So this one will be better for me?

[waikikikichan]

It is! So this one will be better for me?

"Better" in comparison to the 6'6" quad fin swallow tail of the Skipper. But still not good enough. Too bad Odysea doesn't make a 7'6", the next step up from the 7'0" is the 8'0".

[saltydog]

Isn't the fees to bring the board on the plane pretty high? Also, they might have the size limit. Otherwise 8' Odysea seems pretty good.

[waikikikichan]

You’re right Saltydog, some airlines won’t take boards over 200cm / 6’6”. ( or charge a premium). So the Skipper inside a travel case still might not make it. And once you get to your destination, some taxi’s won’t take a longboard. ( you have to request a van that cost more ).

[surfingbart]

Yeah I know, I looked into different airlines, it should be around 35 to 50 euro one way... Quite a lot.

The next two surf trips (Bretagne and Peniche) will be with board rental, and after those I will be looking into buying a board myself.

[foamie22]

The skipper is a pretty awesome fun board

I own an odyessa 6’6 version - I am 85kg / 186cm - but can comfortably ride shorter fibreglass glass boards

If you want to surf a shorter board - I would ease down to that level by going a Softech 7’0 first - super thick/ wide - 65L

The skipper comes with hard fins as a quad setup only so it’s probably not what you're after.