I'm just back from my first surf on 8'2 jp wide body pro and was quiet impressed. Surf was only small 1-2 foot offshore beachies so not too much to comment surfing wise but I was very happy with stability. Board pierced through white water nicely and felt as stable as my 10'5 although the length did look a bit strange to my eye but ill get used to that!... I was worried about such a big step down but it was no problem, maybe it's the 32 wide which is the same as my 10.5 so sideways balance felt much the same. Paddles nice and I found that longer smoother paddle strokes got me gliding better than short powerful strokes when paddling onto waves. Board was loose which i wanted and I almost pulled off a 360 which was nice... Looking forward to some bigger waves but feel I have chosen wisely in what can be a minefield in going to a smaller board.....

Board jp 8'2 pro widebody
Supping for 18 months,
surfing for 20 years
age 34 weight 72kg....