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exiled said..
How Patrice is the only shaper in the world who has figured this out always amazes me.

I say that because volume matters too. I lost 15kg and have been amazed how easy it is to balance on some boards that were previously unmanageable. The difference between a 1.1 ratio and a 1.2 ratio made a world of difference.

Sorry Exlied, but I have to call you out on this. In Australia we have some amazing SUP shapers who are at the cutting edge of shapes & design, and have been for over a decade.

Slatz from Surefire Boards
Simon from Deep
Chris from Phantom
and probably a heap more I have missed.

Thanks for sharing the vids Colas, but on some of those waves the boards looked like they were getting caught when you turned, stalling with no speed, I think that is because you may have gone too small and lost your flow. There is no point going short in length if you lose speed and the ability to connect moves through turns.

Just my 2c (flame suit on )

On a short sup does a different fin set up help with stability ?
For example going quad instead of thruster and using bigger side fins ?

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Gboots said..
On a short sup does a different fin set up help with stability ?
For example going quad instead of thruster and using bigger side fins ?

No.

Bigger fins may even makes things less stable, as it prevents the board to easily move around by the small constant movements needed to keep balance.

Bigger fins can be useful when you are learning to master the row effect on short SUPs however, but for this I recommend the C-Drives that provide a lot of hold at paddling speeds without being too stiff while surfing.

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zoolanderZ said..
on some of those waves the boards looked like they were getting caught when you turned

Trying to judge a board from videos, separately from the wave condition and rider technique, is quite pointless ...

I am sure that here the rider (me) technique is at fault (my main problem is not to look where I want to go, but there are many others). If you think boards less than 8' cannot be surfed with flow, you have 50 years of surfing history to prove you wrong... Heck, even Tom Curren has insane flow surfing a skimboard. And on the other hand riding a 10' board will not automatically make you a style master.

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Gboots said..
On a short sup does a different fin set up help with stability ?
For example going quad instead of thruster and using bigger side fins ?

In my opinion no.

I think one of the critical elements that you need to figure out is how big your sweet spot is. On my Deep it's very small. Furthermore, lateral stability needs to be coupled with longitudinal so you will find that in pretty much most cases a split stance is the way to go.

I do a lot of callisthenics training in the gym because I am getting older - 50 - and I find the type of training I do now keeps me primed. One of the best exercises that has helped me with my supping is the Swiss exercise ball.

It has to be the ultimate for balancing along with slack lining which I would also like to try. You wouldn't think that the Swiss ball would help with your balance but trust me, try it. Go spend half an hour standing and squatting whilst on the ball and then go for a SUP. You'll feel like your stability has improved exponentially.

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zoolanderZ said..

exiled said..
How Patrice is the only shaper in the world who has figured this out always amazes me.

I say that because volume matters too. I lost 15kg and have been amazed how easy it is to balance on some boards that were previously unmanageable. The difference between a 1.1 ratio and a 1.2 ratio made a world of difference.

Sorry Exlied, but I have to call you out on this. In Australia we have some amazing SUP shapers who are at the cutting edge of shapes & design, and have been for over a decade.

Slatz from Surefire Boards
Simon from Deep
Chris from Phantom
and probably a heap more I have missed.

Thanks for sharing the vids Colas, but on some of those waves the boards looked like they were getting caught when you turned, stalling with no speed, I think that is because you may have gone too small and lost your flow. There is no point going short in length if you lose speed and the ability to connect moves through turns.

Just my 2c (flame suit on )

I'm sure they 'could'. There are no lack of shapers who will give you a custom board at whatever dimensions you ask for and if it works, great. If not, "oh well, I made you what you asked for".
Patrice is the only one with the stones to release a production model that size and tell the world it works, that is a very different claim. If Surefire starts advertising a 7'8 x 27 3/4" x 4 1/2" x 105L Vandal the only question I'll have is 'Do they ship to Hawaii?'

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ghost4man said..

One of the best exercises that has helped me with my supping is the Swiss exercise ball.

It has to be the ultimate for balancing along with slack lining which I would also like to try. You wouldn't think that the Swiss ball would help with your balance but trust me, try it. Go spend half an hour standing and squatting whilst on the ball and then go for a SUP. You'll feel like your stability has improved exponentially.

I agree - anything you can do to strengthen your core will help you balance on a sup (and reduce the likelihood of back issues). It makes a huge difference. (Leg strength also helps.)

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cantSUPenough said..

ghost4man said..

One of the best exercises that has helped me with my supping is the Swiss exercise ball.

It has to be the ultimate for balancing along with slack lining which I would also like to try. You wouldn't think that the Swiss ball would help with your balance but trust me, try it. Go spend half an hour standing and squatting whilst on the ball and then go for a SUP. You'll feel like your stability has improved exponentially.

I agree - anything you can do to strengthen your core will help you balance on a sup (and reduce the likelihood of back issues). It makes a huge difference. (Leg strength also helps.)

The best exercise to strengthen the core for balancing on a small sup is balancing on a small sup :)

Had another go today . More swell but also bumpy . Could hardly stand for first 10 minutes . Finally managed to catch a few and one very good one. Once on the wave I can see the benefits . Easier to move around .
Thanks to my experienced local "coach" today who kept me positive .

Standing up front of the handle seemed to work

I had a surf on my Flow 8'7 yesterday in some waist high'ish stuff, I haven't been on my Flow for a little while (using my small Shroom)..

I could have done with ready this before I jumped on it..

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exiled said..

zoolanderZ said..

exiled said..
How Patrice is the only shaper in the world who has figured this out always amazes me.

I say that because volume matters too. I lost 15kg and have been amazed how easy it is to balance on some boards that were previously unmanageable. The difference between a 1.1 ratio and a 1.2 ratio made a world of difference.

Sorry Exlied, but I have to call you out on this. In Australia we have some amazing SUP shapers who are at the cutting edge of shapes & design, and have been for over a decade.

Slatz from Surefire Boards
Simon from Deep
Chris from Phantom
and probably a heap more I have missed.

Thanks for sharing the vids Colas, but on some of those waves the boards looked like they were getting caught when you turned, stalling with no speed, I think that is because you may have gone too small and lost your flow. There is no point going short in length if you lose speed and the ability to connect moves through turns.

Just my 2c (flame suit on )

I'm sure they 'could'. There are no lack of shapers who will give you a custom board at whatever dimensions you ask for and if it works, great. If not, "oh well, I made you what you asked for".
Patrice is the only one with the stones to release a production model that size and tell the world it works, that is a very different claim. If Surefire starts advertising a 7'8 x 27 3/4" x 4 1/2" x 105L Vandal the only question I'll have is 'Do they ship to Hawaii?'

Hey Exciled,

If that size Vandal (7'8 x 27 3/4" x 4 1/2" x 105L) will sell good then it is easy to design and put into production. We do ship to Hawaii but it is not worth the cost at the moment. We have shipped a few boards over in the past but cost is way to high IMO.
We are currently in talks with a distributor to bring Surefire's to Hawaii so fingers crossed it all works out.

Cheers

I have not idea what Gong's sales numbers are, but that size and the one larger (8'1 @ 120L) are once again sold out. If you can get that performance at that price I'm sure you'll do fine with it.

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zoolanderZ said..

exiled said..
How Patrice is the only shaper in the world who has figured this out always amazes me.

I say that because volume matters too. I lost 15kg and have been amazed how easy it is to balance on some boards that were previously unmanageable. The difference between a 1.1 ratio and a 1.2 ratio made a world of difference.

Sorry Exlied, but I have to call you out on this. In Australia we have some amazing SUP shapers who are at the cutting edge of shapes & design, and have been for over a decade.

Slatz from Surefire Boards
Simon from Deep
Chris from Phantom
and probably a heap more I have missed.

Thanks for sharing the vids Colas, but on some of those waves the boards looked like they were getting caught when you turned, stalling with no speed, I think that is because you may have gone too small and lost your flow. There is no point going short in length if you lose speed and the ability to connect moves through turns.

Just my 2c (flame suit on )

I agree

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exiled said..
I have not idea what Gong's sales numbers are, but that size and the one larger (8'1 @ 120L) are once again sold out. If you can get that performance at that price I'm sure you'll do fine with it.

To give you an idea, at any time Gong has about 20 containers full of gear in transit, and as you can see, they are quickly sold out... and this mainly only with the French market.