New to this space and no doubt this has been covered a lot in previous posts but after some kind (or not so kind) advice on my first board purchase:
52yo with poor stability (standing up) and paddle ocean skis
84kg 187cm
Paddle mainly in coastal bay with some very small swell at times, wind chop, flat.
Want something that I can learn to surf on some small waves, get some skills moving around on the board but also cruise around the bay in a straight line and work the fitness.

From what I have read the Nalu 10'10, 11 or 11'4 may be a good all-round choice. The 10'10 seems to have a bit more volume and comes in a soft top which may result in less injuries.
Also keen for advice on whether to get the easier board first and learn or something less stable and swim a bit for a while.

Thanks in advance.

Nalus are great boards. My first was a nalu. However it was a little fragile at the nose and in my inexperience I managed to snap the nose twice on the sand in shallow water. If I had my time again I would have got a strong second hand board, perhaps one of the fanatics, then upgraded to the nalu when I got better. Having sup surfed for a while now, I use Smik and Jimmy Lewis, both absolutely bullet proof.
Have fun!

You are on the right track with size. Go for 160l volume and bigger than 10 foot. You want to feel stable and comfortable when starting out, and be able to catch as many waves as you can. These days I have an 8ft Jimmy Lewis but my go to board is my big Smik style lord. I just want to have fun rather than wobbling around the place.

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grumpytex said..
New to this space and no doubt this has been covered a lot in previous posts but after some kind (or not so kind) advice on my first board purchase:
52yo with poor stability (standing up) and paddle ocean skis
84kg 187cm
Paddle mainly in coastal bay with some very small swell at times, wind chop, flat.
Want something that I can learn to surf on some small waves, get some skills moving around on the board but also cruise around the bay in a straight line and work the fitness.

From what I have read the Nalu 10'10, 11 or 11'4 may be a good all-round choice. The 10'10 seems to have a bit more volume and comes in a soft top which may result in less injuries.
Also keen for advice on whether to get the easier board first and learn or something less stable and swim a bit for a while.

Thanks in advance.

Have a look at a Jimmy lewis striker as well. As said they are very well built and the 9'5 or 10 would probably be pretty stable. I imagine they would do well as a flat paddler as well

I went through this exercise myself recently as a 75y.o. beginner. Deferring to you guys should he look at a Jimmy Lewis Hanalei 10'8" ? I was keen on the 11'2" at 95kg but was not available at the time. He designed it to flatwater paddle in chop and with enough rocker to surf. Premium construction. Over to you.

Hi Grumpy

Any volume over 150 will be fine for your weight.... but IMO, width is the key to comfort when first learning, especially if you have no previous surf experience.

I would advise a minimum of 32" wide, but don't be afraid of going wider.... yeah, I know many here think wide is bad, but they are young and fit with a load of surf experience. My 11 year journey on SUP surfboards has proven to me that width is super important.

At 6'1 you are on the tall side, which raises your center of gravity, so 33 to 34" wide would ease the learning curve.

At 73, I am a Sunova team rider and marketer, so from our line, the board size to look at would be the ONE 10'2 x 33 at 184 liters.
Flat enough rocker to paddle extremely well, good length and width to learn on, and lightweight. Not a high performance board but it surfs just fine in small waves.

No matter what you get, there is going to be a humbling period at the start, but with the right board you will soon get past the awkward stage.
I began on a 36" wide Starboard Avanti that was 11'2 and 230 liters. Great board for BIG folks (I was 130 kg at the time)
Lifelong surfer..... I fell 100 times my first day
But that quickly passed, and I was on my way into the magical world of SUP!

Lots of good choices out there, enjoy your journey into a new surf life!

This guy (about your size) bought the 10'2 ONE after his first paddle session on it.... he had never surfed in his life.
Now he is chasing surf all over Florida and loving his new surf life
I surfed with him last week!!! He loves his ONE!

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grumpytex said..
New to this space and no doubt this has been covered a lot in previous posts but after some kind (or not so kind) advice on my first board purchase:
52yo with poor stability (standing up) and paddle ocean skis
84kg 187cm
Paddle mainly in coastal bay with some very small swell at times, wind chop, flat.
Want something that I can learn to surf on some small waves, get some skills moving around on the board but also cruise around the bay in a straight line and work the fitness.

From what I have read the Nalu 10'10, 11 or 11'4 may be a good all-round choice. The 10'10 seems to have a bit more volume and comes in a soft top which may result in less injuries.
Also keen for advice on whether to get the easier board first and learn or something less stable and swim a bit for a while.

Thanks in advance.

I learned on a Nalu, but one of the older ones, hahah I did bruise a rib my 3rd time out falling on the rail (kept me out a few weeks if I remember right), dunno if a softop might have helped.

Is there much of a difference in weight between these 3? Just thinking that the older models at least were pretty heavy, like 30lb'ish and a lot of surface area to catch in wind. I might factor that in, in addition to stability. Good luck

The Naish Mana 10ft is a great board to start with, still surf mine after 5 years it's great fun.

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Chuck46 said..
I went through this exercise myself recently as a 75y.o. beginner. Deferring to you guys should he look at a Jimmy Lewis Hanalei 10'8" ? I was keen on the 11'2" at 95kg but was not available at the time. He designed it to flatwater paddle in chop and with enough rocker to surf. Premium construction. Over to you.

At 105kg I learned on Hanalei 10'8. Great board to learn foundations of SUP surfing. Yes, it is a hybrid that works well on flat water for lighter riders but for heavy guys it will serve as a great beginner surf SUP. It will teach you to trim, get to the tail to turn, get to the nose. As you progress you will definitely want to go to a smaller board but I still keep mine for those days when waves are not good enough to hang around one of my breaks. I just go cruising around and catch occasional ankle biters.

Go the starboard whopper man. 10x34 about 161L from memory. Big lump of a thing but a fantastic shape and turns extremely well despite the size. Have gone smaller since but still grab it from time to time and always have fun on it.

Thanks for the great advice everyone. Spent the weekend on a Starboard wide point 10-6, 32. Had fun, big learning curve but getting more confident, hence more swims

is that Noosa point Dave.

"From what I have read the Nalu 10'10, 11 or 11'4 may be a good all-round choice. The 10'10 seems to have a bit more volume and comes in a soft top which may result in less injuries."

I've had all those Naish boards that you've mentioned..

The 10'10" is more suited to flat water paddling and not ideal for surfing.
The 11'4" Nalu is nice but I found it a little long and hard to turn in the waves.
The 11' Nalu is my favorite and still use it.. It's better in the waves than flat water paddling.
I have the new 10' Mana in the soft top version and it's awesome.. and would be my pick for you out of those Naish brand boards. The 10'6" Nalu would be another great option and they are a great do-it-all type board.

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grumpytex said..
Thanks for the great advice everyone. Spent the weekend on a Starboard wide point 10-6, 32. Had fun, big learning curve but getting more confident, hence more swims

is that Noosa point Dave.

Yes it is, I try to get there every year but missed the last 2 years, October hopefully will see me back there. Hope to retire there in 5 years or so.