Hi there,

Can anyone give me some advice on a good "all-round" surf-orientated SUP board? I expect to do some flat water paddling for fitness and practicing etc, but generally want to use the board in the surf.

I am fairly new to the SUPing department so beginner-ish, however I have extensive experience with kitesurfing and some prone surfing, so am comfortable in the water/surf generally and would back myself to be progress at a reasonable rate and don't want to get held back by anything too beginner-ish in board size and design. But at the same time don't want anything too hard to handle. I am 1.8m tall, 87kg dry (without gear) and in reasonable fitness.

I was thinking of getting a Sunove Speeed 9'2 as I have read some good reviews. However would that be suitable for me as something I can use now and grow into, or am I being totally unrealistic? It seems to be a love/hate thing for some people. Some people seem to say on the forum that its amazing for lots of different surf while others seem to not like its "tippiness", which has me wary as a SUP learner. I don't have much chance to demo.

Or would another board e.g. Steeze or JL Striker be more suitable? If so what size?

Thanks for any help.

Hi Bramber,

I haven't ridden a Speeed but would agree with your observation that it looks to be more of a specific type of board rather than all rounder.

The Steeze or Striker are more all round shapes. I have a 9'6" Striker and it is an awesome board. Super stable, great glide but then on a wave is super fun. When I first got it I had to learn to make sure I stepped back if it was a late take-off, as the nose doesn't have much rocker.

It also depends on the waves/conditions. As the Steeze/Striker are more longboard shapes, they suit fatter point breaks where you can catch the wave earlier and paddle back out easily.

However if you are riding hollow beach breaks, you'd be better with a board with more nose rocker and short-board shape (pointy nose) to punch through the whitewater - something like the Sunova Creek or Blue Planet Funstick.

Cheers Mark

Hi Bramber,
I agree with MarkW81, the Striker is the perfect all-round sup and is our number 1 best seller but it depends on the waves you are surfing...
I use to say if i could only ever have 1 board for the rest of my life it would be my 8'5 Striker because it's good in 1 foot point breaks to 6 foot reef breaks...The Striker will perform however you want it to but it just depends on how you "fin" the board...For your weight you could go down to the 8'11 Striker due to it's stability...
That was until I got my new 7'7" Destroyer (I'm 82kg & 6'1), so instead of going the 9'5 or 8'11" Striker you could go the NEW 9'3 Destroyer or even the 8'10" because of your weight & grow into it..... See specs -
The NEW 2019 Jimmy Lewis Sup is the All-New go-to board for all conditions..
The NEW 2019 Jimmy Lewis Destroyer Sup is the All-New go-to board for all conditions...With a beautiful pulled in rounded pin tail & fuller nose it should fit in somewhere between our number 1 best selling board the Striker & the Stun Gun with a 5 fin setup... Performance with stability & paddle power...
The new Destroyer will come in the following sizes with a NEW 10 x 29" in the new year...Available in JL Signature Sandwich Construction
7'7" x 29" 100L
8'0" x 30" 115L
8'5" x 30.5" 130L
8'10 x 31 145L
9'3" x 31.5" 160L



The Striker Specs-
Our Number 1 best selling board.... The 1 Board Quiver Killer...Ride the Nose, Hit the Lip. Best of Both World's.
Low rocker and full deckpad for nose riding.
Down rails and tight carving tail for high performance turns...Self regulating Gore Vent.
Swept center fin and side bites. JL Signature I-Beam Construction.Low nose rocker for nose riding and great flat water paddling, while the tail rocker and 5 fin set up gives the Striker great small to medium wave performance abilities, making this a ultimate all around board! Full length deckpad for posi-traction nose riding. NEW ALL with Futures QUAD Fin option..
8'5" & 8'11"- 7" JL swept fin and 4" side bites
9'5" & 10'0"- 8" JL swept fin and 4" side bitesSIZES8'11"x30"x4" (124L)9'5"x31"x4.15"(144L)

Thanks for the tips guys, the striker and destroyer seem like really good boards.

However does anyone have a view on how the speeed 92 would be for someone like me?

Cheers

Bramber I haven't ridden the new Destroyer yet but have spent the last twelve months on the 8/11 Striker. The Striker is a superb all rounder and a real go to board for any conditions below head high, well at least for me ??. I Love dropping in running up to the nose trying to hang ten, awesome. It's super loose when you are on the tail and the 8/11 is capable of very pivotal cutbacks, amaze myself some days. One of my mates here in Perth rides the 9/5 Striker as his all rounder, he also loves it, he moved off his cherished Laird 10 ft to this. Again this board is very cruizie on the flat stuff but still performs well in decent size waves. Can't wait to try the 8/5 Destroyer but non around in WA at the moment, certainly worth a look

Hope that helps, drop me a pm if you have any further questions

phil

Hey Bramber,

What kind of waves are you planning on riding for the majority of the time?

I'd err more towards a all round shape as an everyday board, then buy a high performance shortboard SUP later for bigger/hollower conditions.

I've had a creek, 2 x speeds, a skate, a surf and quite a few other brands boards. All work in different ways.

In Sunova i'd maybe look at a Steeze/Surf as the allrounder, if more of a surf shape is your thing a Flow would be 1st pick imo.

Otherwise, a Striker/destroyer, Fanatic Allwave/Stylemaster... there are plenty of options, basically in every brand.

As you progress your preferences will change as to what you like and what you don't, however I will say that no matter how good you get on a SUP, there will always be a need to have a longboard/all round shape in the quiver.

A great first board for an average size human (under 88 ish kg's) you can not look past the 10'6 x 30 Naish Nalu.
I would love to know the units sold on this board from its first release to current date.
Recessed deck area is a real advantage and I'm amazed a lot of other boards do not have this.
Second hand or new, single fin or three fin this board is a winner in my opinion.
We always try and have a 10'6 Nalu in our SUP school fleet yet find it is nearly always out on the water with our employee's.
Disclaimer , Naish, Starboard and other brands retailer, SUP school owner operator.
Here is a somewhat independant review from a UK sup magazine, not a brand promotional video.

Select to expand quote

Jimmy Lewis Boards said..
Hi Bramber,
I agree with MarkW81, the Striker is the perfect all-round sup and is our number 1 best seller but it depends on the waves you are surfing...
I use to say if i could only ever have 1 board for the rest of my life it would be my 8'5 Striker because it's good in 1 foot point breaks to 6 foot reef breaks...The Striker will perform however you want it to but it just depends on how you "fin" the board...For your weight you could go down to the 8'11 Striker due to it's stability...
That was until I got my new 7'7" Destroyer (I'm 82kg & 6'1), so instead of going the 9'5 or 8'11" Striker you could go the NEW 9'3 Destroyer or even the 8'10" because of your weight & grow into it..... See specs -
The NEW 2019 Jimmy Lewis Sup is the All-New go-to board for all conditions..
The NEW 2019 Jimmy Lewis Destroyer Sup is the All-New go-to board for all conditions...With a beautiful pulled in rounded pin tail & fuller nose it should fit in somewhere between our number 1 best selling board the Striker & the Stun Gun with a 5 fin setup... Performance with stability & paddle power...
The new Destroyer will come in the following sizes with a NEW 10 x 29" in the new year...Available in JL Signature Sandwich Construction
7'7" x 29" 100L
8'0" x 30" 115L
8'5" x 30.5" 130L
8'10 x 31 145L
9'3" x 31.5" 160L



The Striker Specs-
Our Number 1 best selling board.... The 1 Board Quiver Killer...Ride the Nose, Hit the Lip. Best of Both World's.
Low rocker and full deckpad for nose riding.
Down rails and tight carving tail for high performance turns...Self regulating Gore Vent.
Swept center fin and side bites. JL Signature I-Beam Construction.Low nose rocker for nose riding and great flat water paddling, while the tail rocker and 5 fin set up gives the Striker great small to medium wave performance abilities, making this a ultimate all around board! Full length deckpad for posi-traction nose riding. NEW ALL with Futures QUAD Fin option..
8'5" & 8'11"- 7" JL swept fin and 4" side bites
9'5" & 10'0"- 8" JL swept fin and 4" side bitesSIZES8'11"x30"x4" (124L)9'5"x31"x4.15"(144L)

Is the 8 5 destroyer similar to the 8 11 striker in terms of stability (based on volume) and would it suit me, or do you recommend the 8 11 destroyer size as well?

Hi Bramber,
Yes the 8'5 Destroyer & 8'11 Striker would be similar in stability...It really does depend on the waves you'll be surfing predominantly...The longer 8'11 Striker will give you a little more glide, has a full deck grip for getting up to the nose if you choose or the 8'5 Striker will give you a little less swing weight for beach breaks... Either or will do the job but if you want to do a little more flatwater paddling then the Striker will be better..