Newbie!!!!!!!!

[IdRatherBeSurfing]

Hi all!!!!

Im totally new to the wicked sport of surfing!!!! Only been out twice so far and I am hooked!

I'm 20, female, and currently in Uni in Aberystwyth UK.

Soooooo addicted I have got a board off ebay today!

6ft7 Gerard Dabbadie jobbie for £95 - bargainous!

[calisurfer]

well congrats and good luck with ur surfing future i hope its all u expect it to be

[PapaW]

Better get practicing you've set a steep learning curve for yourself with such a short board to beging with...

[IdRatherBeSurfing]

Interesting you say that.........

Have used a few minimals and could do absoloutely sod all with them!

Used a shortboard on my last time out and was up and away, catching waves and getting up with less trouble!

[floot]

whats good for one person isnt always good for everyone.If you have had a good time on a shortboard and are able to catch waves...go ahead and enjoy and learn.Me, I'll have to stick to a mini Mal.

[oldiebeginner]

do you think it depends on how tall/heavy you are, as to which board you can learn on?
i'm a beginner and remember once trying a shortboard... mini mal
i'm 6ft/217lb (all muscle of course)
so IdRatherBeSurfing i'd say you were about 5" 5/108lb if my calculations are right

[tomcat360]

height and weight has a ton of influence:

ive got this friend whos 6'8" and rather thick (not fat) and he has an awful time tryin to get a good board (and everything else) that fits him. he finally got a 10'4" log and is finally gettin to surf after 3 years of struggle.

[PapaW]

Ah yes very true... me not seeing the full picture as usual... :p

[IdRatherBeSurfing]

do you think it depends on how tall/heavy you are, as to which board you can learn on?
i'm a beginner and remember once trying a shortboard... mini mal
i'm 6ft/217lb (all muscle of course)
so IdRatherBeSurfing i'd say you were about 5" 5/108lb if my calculations are right

Hi!

I'm 5ft4 (closer to 5ft3) , and weigh 154lbs

That sounds kinda heavy for my size! But I'm all muscle . Oh the joys of having horses lol

[k mac]

Ah yes very true... me not seeing the full picture as usual... :p

hmmm common symptoms of a certain recreatinal drug

[sinistapenguin]

I think it's time for me to chip in with my normal sermon and leap to the defence of the mini-mal!

As well as your own height/ weight, the way the board has been shaped has a lot of influence.

I surfed a shortboard for 11 years, but now I ride a 7'5 thin & narrow mini-mal on which I can turn almost as quickly as the shortie, but with the advantage I can catch all sorts of waves, big, small, steep, slow, fast etc.

If you tried a poorly shaped/ beginner shaped mini-mal, you might have found it a bit rigid.

I am trying to convert the masses to believe that mini-mals are not solely for beginners, but I think it's a losing battle! Still the way I ride mine and the fun I have is evidence enough for me!

[IdRatherBeSurfing]

I think the one I was on was a Bic? Sort of white with a yellowy stripe on it - Techincal? Moi? !!

Still, I find shortboards are easier (so far anyway) although my popping up can sometimes lead to some interesting acrobatics!!

[IdRatherBeSurfing]

Just a thought, surely learning to surf on a shortboard is like learning to drive in a big car.......

I mean, after passing my driving test I got a 2litre car - tres powerful for a beginner! and the car was quite big (Cavalier CDX) while most of my mates were driving little "beginner" cars, like fiestas n corsas n stuff.

3 years later I'm driving round in a 4L Range Rover, and mates are still in their little kiddie cars too scared to try anything bigger!

So I'm thinking its the same principle!

(No offence to ppl who drive small cars btw!)

[oldiebeginner]

hi IdRatherBeSurfing, not a bad guess on the height
remember muscle is heavier than fat...
jesus, uni must be paying well if you can afford to drive around in a 4L
you ok seeing over the steering wheel

[IdRatherBeSurfing]

Nah! I only use it to tow the horse!! I generally just walk everywhere. And its LPG converted anyway, so only costs me about £20 a week

[sinistapenguin]

To follow your car analogy, it would be like this.

A longboard would be like learning to drive a Limo. You can learn the basics and get it to go forwards easily enough, you know there's a lot of power in the engine, but driving it properly takes skill and practise. If you want to try a 3 pt turn, you've got to know what you're doing! You know it can do over 100 mph, but don't have to push it.

A foam board is like an 800cc automatic Fiat Panda. It'll get you from A to B, but essentially you can't do much with it. It's forgiving cos you don't have to think about gears. You can get it moving fairly easily, but it's got no power, it'll never make 100mpg and turning it too sharply is likely to cause an accident!!

A good mini-mal is like a fuel injected mid range family car. It's got some power if you need it, and you can choose to drive it fast or slow - it's an alrounder.

A quality shortboard would be like learning to drive in a Ferrari F40 - The second you touch the accelerator it'll shoot forward. If you even touch the brakes you'll stop and the slightest twitch of the steering will turn you so fast, you'll probably spin out.

The thing they all have in common is that the principles of driving remain the same, but it'd be harder to learn in a Ferrari - you could do it, but it'd be a challenge.

I drive a 2L Toyota Avensis and surf a mini-mal. But I can drive pretty fast in twisty roads if you get my meaning!!

Cheers

Sinista

[drowningbitbybit]

Good analogy


I ride a fish/shortboard but drive a campervan (top speed 60mph)



...Although I should mention Ive got a ZX9 motorcycle as well (top speed 180mph)

[oldiebeginner]

very good analogy sinista,
do you think the kind of board you ride reflects in the kind of person you are...e.g long boarder-mellow.

[moncho]

Oh definitely! You could never imagine the quintessential chilled-out 50 year old bloke with a VW and a spliff on a shortboard, could you? You don't often see those posing, quiksilver-clad testosterone-charged youths ripping around on longboards either

[oldiebeginner]

i fit into the longboard category, but still feel testosterone charged...sometimes...
hey Moncho how nice it is to see your little yellow face