My wife has agreed to taking up SUPing more seriously so now on the look for a board that is stable enough for her to learn on and me to have fun on small days.

Looking at the Mana /Alana 9.5 and Sunova Surf 9.5 at the moment

She is approx 70kg /170 cm has got basic skills already

Re Mana seems a bit heavy and the surf is about 9 kg which is great but flat bottom which is strange in theses days of concaves etc. any comments of suitable board that fits both criteria or does th surf go well been flat bottomed

trying to only have 2 boards between the two of us at the moment

Any comments on which direction / boards we should look at for next southern summer ?

I can reccomend the Sunova Surf 9'5 as I recently had one for a week at the Gold Coast.
I was impressed how stable it was and it surfs really well. I normally ride a Sunova Soul 9'5.
The Surf is light compared to the Mana and better value in my opinion.

How did you find it been flat bottomed, as in the last 30+ years of surfing, windsurfing even kiting, all the boards I have had have some shape, or does it rely on outline and fins

I'm no expert on board shapes but I have recently ridden boards with concave bottoms. The Surf felt more predictable than the concave shaped boards when turning to me. The concaves also felt a bit slower when on flat water.

Nothing wrong with a flat bottom as long as it works with the rest of the design. If you've tried the board then trust how it feels to you, not whether it has bells and whistles.

I've just taken possession of a GT 9.5 mana 10.4 kg .in weight .
I really like the way it surfs ..and it has good speed ..which my 9.6 Hokua lacks in
rolling waves ..very stable .
i know a few ladies with the Alana version ..they love em .
Im going to look at the 8.10 mana At the end of the year ..too
start the collection ...of manas .great shape.easy to surf .
what more do you need ? ...

i just like to add ..you don't see many 2 nd hand for sale
says something ..people keep them

My wife has a 9'5" Mana GS she's about the same weight as your missus. She loves the board uses it in the surf and flat water paddling. Never surfed before she got the Mana can catch waves now and let's the whole beach know when she's straight lining for the shore. Had it for over a year and except for a few scratches where she rode it up on to some shells on the beach it's in great shape. It's light enough for her to carry and she loves the graphics on the bottom. Don't know anything about the Sunova.
As for you - I'm just north of 100kg had a Mana 10 and recently got a Nalu 11GT. For me the Nalu is the better allrounder of the 2. I probably do 50/50 surf/flat water on it.

We found ourselves in the same position. We settled with a 10.1 x 28.5 x 3 7/8 Deep longboard SUP around the 120 litre mark. If just for me i would have gone a little narrower but kept it a little wider for my wife. She can handle this board well and i can also use it for longboard style surfing and also 10 foot plus competitions as they are gaining a lot of momentum around here.

Thanks would love a deep 10 x28/29 but she doesn't like my laird10'6 x 30 now but ok on the rental 10 x32 but finds it a bit big, so looking at 32 wide but smaller and lighter.

Have you thought about the Fantic Diamond? 9'6x31 and if you can get over the 'female' colours it surs really well. However the 'female' colours make it easier to get across the line as her board, not one for you that she can use.

Demo if you can, but if not you can't go wrong with either the Mana or Surf.

Sorry mis-read that in reccomending in the Nalu 11. I can paddle the Mana 9'5 no problem, it's plenty stable.

Starboard Element. At 9'8 x 30 I have found it to be a good board for flat water and surf .

Hi KiteTim....
I have owned both the 9'5 Mana and the 9'5 Surf.
Both the Mana & the Surf are very easy to paddle and surf, so you can't go wrong with either choice.

You can find my reviews for both on youtube.
Search "Rick Weeks 9'5 Naish Mana review" or "9'5 Sunova Surf Review", for the full rundown.

Full disclosure.... I have been sort of adopted by Sunova, because I am so stoked on their boards....
I get to ride all of their boards while I cruise around with Sunova doing demos in the US
I am super ok with that, since I have never ridden better boards.

Some answers to your Sunova questions:
Sunovas don't have a ton of concave.... Bert uses rocker, rail foil and outline shape to create his masterful surf shapes.

The Surf
is super smooth and easy to surf.... a great intermediate board.
is very stable because the outline is full figured.
is lightweight... and the build is the best I have seen.
Women love the handle, because it is super easy to control the board, with minimal effort.

Another biggie is the Sunova Gortex valve.... the board will breath with temperature changes, without worrying about a vent screw.
And it comes with a mast track.... for some casual sailboarding.

Have fun with your search.... enjoy the next board!