Surfed the Hokua on the weekend , must say it felt very comfortable & surfed very well zippy is the word I think .I was looking for somthing to run in choppy/less than perfect conditiions . Looking at the website just made me wonder about the Mana . I'm 5'10 95kg . DJ?
I'm your weight and I've used the Hokua 9'5" and 9'5" Mana.. but not the 9'0" Mana.
The Mana has a long board feel and let's you move around the board.. It surfs great and is more stable than the Hokua.. The Hokua has a short board feel and is faster for sure but likes to be riden more from the tail.. I think if I only had one wave board it would be the 9'5" Mana because it's fun in all conditions.. I'm guessing it will bounce a bit in bigger waves like my 10' Mana but it's stable.. and for me stable makes it fun.. It also paddles over whitewater really well.. If stability is not you priority but surfing performance is the Hokua is the better board for sure.. I hope to try the 9' Mana at Merimbula.. I've heard it's a fair bit more tippy than the 9'5" Mana.
DJ
Thanks DJ compared to my JL Mano the Hokua was a walk in the park stabablity wise .
The 9'5 Hokua feels more stable than the 9' Mana.
The hokua feels like most of it's volume under your feet and sits a little lower in the water and therefore fells more stable.
The mana's volume is spread out and it sits further out of the water but always seems to want to sit at a slight angle in the water and therefore has a tendency to tip from one side to the other. This didn't bother me too much when I paddled the mana but I friend of mine got bad lower back pains on his that seem to stop when he switched to the Hokua.
Go the 9'5 hokua IMO. It's faster, more manoeuvrable, so easy to catch waves with.
Thanks mbuzz
.. It is more tippy than the 10' Mana but still pretty stable.. and surf quite a bit better.. If I just had one wave board it would be the 9'5" Mana.
DJ I know one can not try all boards but have you tried 9 Angulo Surfa, Jimmy Lewis 9' 1" KWAD or 9' Coreban Fusion?
I have tried these and 9 5 Mana and depending on ones size/weight (me 76kg) the Mana is a little big but good for a beginner just getting into waves IMO.
Agree with most here that the 9'5" Hokua is a better choice. The 9' Mana has enough volume but not in the rails making for a cambered deck and relatively tippy ride compred to the 9' Mana.
Having had the Hokua for two months now I have to say the more I ride it the more I like it .On the web suit they say if you only want one quiver this is the one to go for , and I have to agree , I find its the only board I take now instead of two or three. What really opened my eyes was yesterday gizzie and I paddled over to the Island I got a bit of a start on him knowing he was on a 12' board thinking he would beat me , when we got over there he commented on how fast the Hokua paddled .I have been riding it mainly as quad , find that I have been heading up the front a bit too. The only negatives for me are 1 deck pad not as comfortable as my jimmy lewis find my feet get a bit sore after a while . 2 I'm used to late /steep drops on the JL ,can't get away with the same on the Hokua but I can live with that. Don't think I have been as happy with any other board ,if your thinking about one go for it , it's fun.
Having had the Hokua for two months now I have to say the more I ride it the more I like it .On the web suit they say if you only want one quiver this is the one to go for , and I have to agree , I find its the only board I take now instead of two or three. What really opened my eyes was yesterday gizzie and I paddled over to the Island I got a bit of a start on him knowing he was on a 12' board thinking he would beat me , when we got over there he commented on how fast the Hokua paddled .I have been riding it mainly as quad , find that I have been heading up the front a bit too. The only negatives for me are 1 deck pad not as comfortable as my jimmy lewis find my feet get a bit sore after a while . 2 I'm used to late /steep drops on the JL ,can't get away with the same on the Hokua but I can live with that. Don't think I have been as happy with any other board ,if your thinking about one go for it , it's fun.
