I'm looking at a second hand board - a Fanatic Ray , 12' 0" X 31.75" - 271litre. I paddle on the river, and have a 9' 2" X 31.5" currently. I'm 5'8" tall, but under 60 kg.....I'd like a board with better glide, a bit more speed I guess. Revies for this board said it was aimed at 75-100kg users, so is it too big? Many thanks.

For paddling on the flat a board can be too big if:

- You do not need its width for balance: extra width adds drag. The idea is to have just enough width to feel stable (so that the glide is not compromised by your movements to keep your balance), no more. This depends on your technique and conditions (chop?)

- Depending on the shape (rocker), you may not have the weight to make both the nose and the tail touch water, reducing the effective length in contact with water, reducing the max speed.

- The bigger the board, the heavier to carry and lift onto the car. And for inflatables, the longer to inflate/deflate.

I say no.. Can a board be too easy?
In my opinion easy = fun.. and not easy = not fun.

The only problem I see with big boards is their weight and the ability to lift them on and off the roof of your car.

That 12' Fanatic will be perfect.

271 litres sounds a bit big ,I think it could be 170 ? .my 14 ' naish Jav has that amount ,I have a 12 search which is 179 litres ,as DJ says lifting and carrying them is the biggish issue and your only a light fella ,at 31,75 wide it will be stable ,but if you go a little narrower you will get a better flowing gliding board ,my search is 30 wide and thats heaps for my 97 kgs .see if you can get a 11,4 nalu or 10,8 perfect for your weight . it will be big for you ,but you could carry a passenger

I'd say it mostly boils down to availability and price.
If you can carry and lift the board..... and it is prices right, I say go.

Almost ALL of my boards are at least 32" wide and I paddle long outings on them all the time.
The extra length will give you better hull speed and straighter paddling than your 9'2... it will be an awesome cruiser!

The first board that I paddled on flat-water was 36" wide and I kinda wish I never sold it... it was really fun to glide around on a big ol' board

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supthecreek said..
Almost ALL of my boards are at least 32" wide

No offense, but you are not 60kg anymore (nor me :-) )

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colas said..

supthecreek said..
Almost ALL of my boards are at least 32" wide

No offense, but you are not 60kg anymore (nor me :-) )

Good one Colas!!??

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colas said..

supthecreek said..
Almost ALL of my boards are at least 32" wide

No offense, but you are not 60kg anymore (nor me :-) )

You are correct, I am 98 kg...

I taught paddling for years, and almost everyone I taught was 60 kg or less.
Most were women or young kids....

My experience has shown me that wide boards are awesome for most recreational paddlers.
Many of our boards were 14' x 34" and about a million liters

Smaller paddlers are absolutely fine on big boards
There's something relaxing and comfortable about a big ole' board!

And
Sometimes it's about availability and price

I had fun looking through my old pics from my days as an instructor!! (I threw in one of the Fanatic Ray as well)

I have a 36" wide inflatable ( old Red Mega 10-8) that I love for putting kids on or carrying gear, I do wonder if smaller people would have trouble getting paddle shaft vertical on wide board, it feels a little awkward for me coming off 28" wide surf SUP.

Thanks for the input, after speaking to a SUP instructor I know I've decided it's a bit too wide for me. As a skinny chick may also be too much for lifting onto my car. Cheers!

To get the extra speed and glide you are looking for I think you are on the right track by looking at touring-type boards (basically racing hulls that are widened to 28"-31") with displacement noses which is the key to great glide. For example, my wife paddles a 7'11" X 31" @ 110 liters in the surf, but her favorite flat-water touring board is 11'6" X 28", 270 liters, 12.7 kilos. She also enjoys my 12'6" X 30", 310-liter, 13.6-kilo touring board but she does not like the extra weight and does not need the extra volume. You could get more glide by moving from a touring board to less stable race boards which will be similar shapes with widths under 28" but stability will become more of an issue. If you paddle in any wind or chop or just want relaxed stability, I would suggest touring boards around 11' to 12' X 28" to 30" for fun fast flat-water paddling.
There are some thinner boards in the 12' range that are more surf oriented, but much of the stability in race and touring boards comes from the thick square rails which provide great secondary stability. Boards with thinner surf-type rails need to go wider to get the same stability and will be much slower due to the surf-type entry in the nose instead of a faster displacement nose.
As far as inflatables, because it is not possible to shape clean rails, bottom contours, and nose entry I have found these to be slower and much less stable than hard boards.