Tasilee said.. Hi billekrub and thanks for the comments on your older JL Striker 8'11". I hate the hand hold in the older one I rode yesterday - and I'm assuming the newer models have a better one! Carrying them in a little wind can be dangerous as they can easily twist out of your fingers. On the beach, little problem, but on hard ground or placing the board on the roof of your car - a problem.
I'd LOVE to see more boards use the Sunova (liftsup) handles - they are BY FAR the best I have seen. If you are carrying your board for 1km or more - it makes a HUGE difference. And by the way - the Smiks use the old JL design hand hold! That was one reason I finally dismissed it as not serious. Yes, they (and the JLs) are light, but when walking into a breeze for a kilometre or more, believe me, a good hand hold makes life a lot easier.
new JL's have an awesome deep handle...i much prefer it compared to my Sunova...Older JL's did have a crappy handle though...
Another option would be the Infinity RNB, the board is sensational in that smaller stuff and @8'5" it has stacks of volume and stability. It is a super fast fun board to ride especially in that 2-4ft range. The conditions here in QLD are far from perfect 95% of the time but we have no dramas with the RNB as it is a do everything sort of board that will work for large percentage of SUP surfers.
Tasilee
> 9 months ago, 4 Jun 2017
