Given the increasing popularity of the 10ft sup longboard category I wonder if there would be room in the State and National titles to include this sup class in the event calender?
For starters it could be an event inclusive of all age groups then in time the event could cover categories for all groups as the popularity increases.
Most certainly warrants discussion amongst the power brokers to get something happening in the not to distant future.....
After consultation with the Surfing Qld affiliated SUP clubs, Surfing Queensland are running both Open Men's and Open Women's 10ft+ divisions as non-qualifying 'community' events to be run alongside the QLD state sup surf titles this year. They've also separated the surfing and racing state titles to run as two different events.
Seeing as they're non-qualifying events, I don't think we'll see a 10ft+ national title but you never know whether they'll look at a similar community event at nationals like they did with the racing last year.
Great idea it would show a different form of surfing and would only add value and maybe add more compitors win win for sup.
Great idea.
Anyone know how many clubs around Australia or the world already have 10ft+ divisions and how long have they been run for?
"World" would include my region I guess, so here's the situation here:
I only know 2 other guys that have a 10+ in their quiver besides me....
Everyone else is too busy going shorter. Their loss 
I wonder if Surf NSW can follow Surf QLD and have an exhibition or community sup longboard event at this weekends titles? It's probably all to late for them to organize but it would be a good start as there are some pretty hotfooted longboarders that preside in Sydney northern beaches... 
10 ft plus (okay maybe 9.5) IS SUP surfing.
All the short SUP board stuff just looks kind of like a compromised version of short board surfing.
I dislike watching riders barely able to paddle their tiny boards, unable to get to where the sweet spot in the break is quickly - or unable to quickly adjust and get to that sneaky wave 20 m further down the beach and out the back.
i can understand that short sups work great when the surf is on - but personally i can just take out a nicely volumed 6ft surf board and have a fat time and get just as many waves cos the board has the same wave catching power as an 8'5 x 28. (in fact probably more).
Dont get me wrong- i'm not a short sup hater - but it just seems so shallow.
The veryvery very top guys can make them work - but i dont think they are mainstream.
The problem is that this filters down to the mainstream and you see learners with theirs knees bent and bums stuck out trying not to fall off an 8,0 x 27. And heaven forbid a 5 knot onshore shows up..
Windsurfing went too short / small. Kite surfing did the same. And now SUP too...
I think this 10ft plus move is a visionary move that hopefully will become the mainstream. And sudddenly you dont need cranking waves to have a really great time (or wait for ever for the right swell to run a contest)
Of course i dont mind short boards if they have volume and width - perhaps it should be a volume rule ?
Select to expand quoteWE have 2 sup surfing divisions over 10 ft and under 10ft so enter know for a good weekend away
JB said..
I think there should be more Longboard SUP comps.
JB
Select to expand quoteockanui said..
I wonder if Surf NSW can follow Surf QLD and have an exhibition or community sup longboard event at this weekends titles? It's probably all to late for them to organize but it would be a good start as there are some pretty hotfooted longboarders that preside in Sydney northern beaches...
I think it's great that state and national titles events are looking to include other categories that don't conform to the ISA standards. However, can we not call them community events? To me, that's so incredibly condescending. It sounds like a social category open to holiday makers who walk up and ask to have a go at this SUP thing they've heard so much about. Exhibition categories is not too bad, but really, why can't they be recognised as state and national titles? Just because they don't qualify the winners for the ISA event? Seriously, who gives a flying fig about the ISA event? This is what we are trying to tell these people - the ISA categories in surfing and racing are not what the vast majority of SUP people are interested in. This is why state titles ends up with 12 people competing. Because we don't give a stuff. And you won't fix that by adding in a tokenistic community sideshow category that gives every indication that the organisers don't respect the category. I appreciate that Surfing Australia has a vested interest in focussing attention on ISA categories as they receive funding according to the number of "world champions" they produce, but if this is at the expense of running events that the majority of people want to attend, then don't come whinging to us when we don't turn up.
Select to expand quoteSandsy1 said..
Make it single fin only!!!
Hipster surfing at it's best.
Do hipsters surf? What about their hair and beards getting wet?
Select to expand quote
Do hipsters surf? What about their hair and beards getting wet?
