Fish's VS Longboards

Have a chat about any general surfing related topics.

Fish's VS Longboards

Postby Laguna » Thu Jul 20, 2006 10:55 pm

Whats Better For Small Wave Surfing?

I have never ridden a fish so dont know a lot about them, only from the obvious stuff you read about them - good on small waves, 2 fins, short + wide boards, turn easier.

But I know how easy it is to catch small waves on longboards, but recently have been reading surfers quivers in magazines and most of them say they have a fish for small days.
User avatar
Laguna
SW Pro
 
Posts: 1104
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:54 pm

Postby GowerCharger » Thu Jul 20, 2006 11:36 pm

a fish fits in your car, and you dont look a wally trying to carry it to the sea on days when its blowing a gale :lol:
Actually i was out on my thruster last week when it was really small and some longboarder made a snide comment to me as i paddled out about my board being too small for the conditions, i went on to have a great time catching a ton of waves while he sat outside and caught next to nothing. i think its more about the type fo waves youll be surfing than the size, id take a fish on small fast waves, but on a slow peeling point break a longboard will be more useful.
User avatar
GowerCharger
SW Pro
 
Posts: 901
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Fri May 05, 2006 5:58 pm
Location: Gower, Wales

Postby Laguna » Thu Jul 20, 2006 11:46 pm

Cool, good points made. Funny enough me and my friend went out last week and my friend on his 6'10 thruster asked one of the women who was coming back from surfing on a foamie longboard 'what the surf was like'. She said "its a bit lumpy" , and looked at his board and added "ooo you will have fun on that" and laughed.

When we got out we had an awsome time catching these small choppy waves.
User avatar
Laguna
SW Pro
 
Posts: 1104
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:54 pm

Postby pat42 » Thu Jul 20, 2006 11:53 pm

I thought fishes looked a bit gay and that I'd never get one.

But after reading about Wishkids board and other forums about fishes, I'm seriously tempted to get one :?

Even though I'll look gay :D
User avatar
pat42
SW Pro
 
Posts: 1155
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2006 7:11 pm

Postby kitesurfer » Fri Jul 21, 2006 7:28 am

Due to their flat rockers and relatively high volume retro fishes take off really early, ie on much less steep sections of waves and they continue to make these types of sections really well., due to thier ability to carry speed. Where they aren't so good is when the surf is steep due to the twin keel set-up. They tend not to be able to utilise the power of the wave so well as the twin fins don't get as good a drive as say a thruster set-up would. Hence you can find yourself under gunned and running out of wave real quick.
Oh and their hilariously funny to ride, they just make you laugh and i think this is perhaps more of a reason as to why people are riding them, not because there that much better, there just more fun! But they do seem to catch everything, whether or not you can ride it weel is another matter! I love falling off mine!

KS
User avatar
kitesurfer
Surf God
 
Posts: 3533
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2005 1:20 pm
Location: In the kitchen making Harmergeddon mead!

Postby drowningbitbybit » Fri Jul 21, 2006 7:34 am

Fishes and longboards - both dead easy to catch weakish waves on.

Where a longboard is best is where waves are weak/mellow due to the beach - so you've got a long wave which you can catch way out back and ride for ages.

A fish, on the other hand, wont catch a wave so early and is best for weak days (rather than mellow breaks) so you get a shortish ride (compared to a longboard) but you can catch the waves and pull maneouvres that you'd struggle to do with a shortboard.

So, if you want to surf a shortboard break on weak days, get a fish, but if you want to surf a mellow longboard break, get an... er... longboard :D
Last edited by drowningbitbybit on Fri Jul 21, 2006 8:21 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
drowningbitbybit
Surfing Legend
 
Posts: 6459
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 11:16 am
Location: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia.

Postby waveseeker » Fri Jul 21, 2006 8:14 am

I have a longboard and a fish, as has been said the longboard is best for gutless waves, the fish for small days at a decent break. Saying that I have seen Carwyn WIlliams ripping up a solid 8ft hossegor on a fish.
User avatar
waveseeker
Surfer
 
Posts: 79
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Thu Jul 06, 2006 8:23 am
Location: Bracklesham

Postby Laguna » Fri Jul 21, 2006 11:16 am

drowningbitbybit wrote:but if you want to surf a mellow longboard break, get an... er... longboard :D


you were dieing to say fish then wern't you lol


thanks for the replies guys
User avatar
Laguna
SW Pro
 
Posts: 1104
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:54 pm

Postby Laguna » Fri Jul 21, 2006 11:23 am

So just to sum things up, Fish's are:

easy to paddle with as they are wide?
easy to catch waves with?
easy for turning?
User avatar
Laguna
SW Pro
 
Posts: 1104
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Thu Aug 04, 2005 11:54 pm

Postby Phil » Fri Jul 21, 2006 11:34 am

get a longboard, there great fun and you can catch any thing on them even 6inch ripples
User avatar
Phil
Big Wave Master
 
Posts: 2156
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Jun 22, 2004 8:55 pm
Location: soon to be dropping in on DBBB

Postby drowningbitbybit » Fri Jul 21, 2006 12:09 pm

Laguna wrote:So just to sum things up, Fish's are:

easy to paddle with as they are wide?
easy to catch waves with?
easy for turning?


Thats all more or less true, but one thing people dont seem to realise is that while a fish will fly off a small wave, it'll also lose its speed really quickly.

So you either have to surf like a whippet on speed (pumppumpturnpumpturn) or you get real short rides. You can make it over crumbly sections etc but if the wave is really gutless often all you'll get is the take-off and one turn (maybe).

Still ridiculously fun though :D
User avatar
drowningbitbybit
Surfing Legend
 
Posts: 6459
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 11:16 am
Location: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia.

Postby Phil » Fri Jul 21, 2006 12:16 pm

drowningbitbybit wrote:
So you either have to surf like a whippet on speed (pumppumpturnpumpturn) or you get real short rides. You can make it over crumbly sections etc but if the wave is really gutless often all you'll get is the take-off and one turn (maybe).



all the more reason to get a longboard then
User avatar
Phil
Big Wave Master
 
Posts: 2156
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Jun 22, 2004 8:55 pm
Location: soon to be dropping in on DBBB

Postby drowningbitbybit » Fri Jul 21, 2006 12:47 pm

Phil wrote:all the more reason to get a longboard then


Thats kinda what I meant but couldnt quite bring myself to say it :wink:
User avatar
drowningbitbybit
Surfing Legend
 
Posts: 6459
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 11:16 am
Location: Gold Coast, QLD, Australia.

Postby bluesnowcone » Fri Jul 21, 2006 12:49 pm

a fish is more manuverable but if you get the right longboard you can learn to chuck it about
User avatar
bluesnowcone
SW Pro
 
Posts: 1223
Likes: 0 post
Liked in: 0 post
Joined: Tue Mar 28, 2006 4:16 pm
Location: South Coast


Similar topics

Return to Surf Chat