Hi,
Want to get into Sup surfing, have 14ft boards currently so not an absolute newbie, however have only "surfed" once a few months ago and loved it...if only i could turn!

So im in the market for a surf sup, not wanting nor does my skill require a top of the line board with a crazy price tag attached to it. will be learning to surf in exmouth as we are moving back to the pilbarain a month, but first some time on the GC over xmas and new year.

Could you put some suggestions in front of me as to what may suit.

90kg,
174cm tall
good balance
Budget - id like not to spend over 1k - the wife starts stomping her foot down harder with the word NO attached when talking about over 1k...if only she knew what the 14ft boards cost....

PS: i like the type of surfing DJ does in is video's, thats definitely more my intended style.

Cheers

Buy a used board.

If you want to surf like DJ then buy a board like he uses.

my budget is less than 1K, thanks for your advice, ill go buy a second hand board...any old board should do hey......

Have you surfed in Exmouth? I spent a tiny bit of time there earlier this year and there are some waves that were a long paddle out (that were bigger and more intense), and some small fun waves close to shore. If you think you will paddle off-shore you may want a different board (possibly a gun like Matt's/SUPBru) or if you stay close to shore then you could get one like DJ's (used, as it is an expensive shade of yellow) or one of those surfboard warehouse boards - I think they're on the GC.

At 90 kg and good balance you could get away with 9'2" x 30", but it depends on your surfing plans. On the GC you can probably demo a few to see how you go.

Thanks for your reply CSU, no i have not surfed Exmouth, but i have spent plenty of time there as i used to live nearby and will be again in a month. to start off i will be staying in on the smaller waves as my skill level is not great on a surf sup due to inexperience, my first and only time was in Bali on a JL quad 9'11 32 wide i think, may have been 30 wide.

So somewhere 9'2 to 10'0 would be a good start do you think?

Yes, I would think so.

You then have to broadly choose between the full-outline boards (noseriders, Mana, Speed, etc.) or the more conventional surf shapes (gun, Nalu, Flow, etc.), and my guess is that the two locations will suit different board types.

The other issue that I remember there is it can get pretty windy. If it is easterly then it should not get too choppy (on the waves close to shore) but you have to paddle into the wind - length is good but a wide nose is not. If it is on-shore you will need more stability.

Bottom line is that I think a bit of extra length may be wise.

But hopefully some Exmouth surfers will provide their recommendations.

I can't recommend the fanatic allwave highly enough it has a fairly flat rocker so easy to paddle it is super stable but turns very well for a fat board .mine is 32 wide 9'5 long and 170 ltrs I started out surfing it in knee to waist and have had it in overhead conditions, after learning to surf this I can now surf a 8'10 speeed 130 ltrs and a 8'6 nut no probs . mine is high resistance skin and believe me when I tell you it's tough .just another board to throw into the mix but I must say it is the easiest board to learn on as they are so forgiving cheers K

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Kierannq said...
my budget is less than 1K, thanks for your advice, ill go buy a second hand board...any old board should do hey......

The reason I say buy used is it's the most sensible way. You can get a premium brand board after the first owner has taken the hit of depreciation. Which board to buy is highly personal. My friends swear by their All Waves/Surftech Channel Islands Caddys and when we had a beginners surf sup day they were the favourites because beginners could turn them. Personally I find them horrible to surf and prefer a either a longboard feel (e.g. Nalu; Stylemaster etc) or a more full-on shortboard shape. So I'm always very reluctant to recommend boards. But there are lots of videos of DJ surfing Naish Nalus and Manas etc, so if you like the look of that then see if you can get a used one of those. Whatever you buy you'll want something else in a year or less so it doesn't make any sense to buy new and lose a lot of money when you resell. It's very hard to sell on "no-name" boards.

The other thing to do is to try to buy a ex-rental board. They are always chosen to be beginner-friendly and good value by people whose job it it to know these things.

Try and demo some boards and see what feels right to you. It's a highly personal thing.