Hi Guys,

I'm new to these forums and I was wondering if i could have some advice from more experienced surfers such as yourselves in progressing my surfing.

I started on a 7'4 mini mal 1 year ago and was riding small waist to shoulder high beach breaks around Southeast QLD.

At the start of this year I scored myself a 6'2 MR puffer fish for a good deal and have been surfing this for the majority of this year between 1 and 3 times a week and am now comfortable in waves up to head high however I am having trouble popping up and riding steeper waves especially ones that are barreling.

I am thinking that maybe this board is holding me back in these larger conditions considering it is 21.25 inches wide so should I transition to a more traditional or hybrid shortboard?

I am also having trouble duck diving bigger set waves of whitewash and considering I am only 6'1 and 73kg, is this 6'2 x 21.25 x 2/58 fish to much board for me in bigger more hollow surf?

I understand its all about technique but I feel my technique is okay as I can duckdive smaller waist high waves so should I be surfing a shortboard closer to 30 litres of volume for ease of duckdiving?

Hopefully that makes sense and sorry for the long post but hopefully you guys can help me out!

Hi there and welcome,

FWIW, I surf a 7'3" x 22" wide Fish style board at 53lt. I'm getting old and fat, but have no problems taking fast head+ high waves on this board and surf it mostly in fast breaking beachies. It's definately more of a challenge to duck-dive, but you can do it with a bit of momentum and pushing the nose down more - you also need to start the dive earlier to avoid the white water.

I would look more to your positioning and final paddle strokes to get you into the wave a bit earlier - this will give you a better chance to set your line and drop into the face of the wave. Spend a bit of time watching what the good guys are doing.

Also worth noting that your wave count will likely go down a bit moving from a fish to a SB. The extra volume (and surface area) of a fish will help you paddle into waves easier - that's why I got one!!

all the best

Thanks heaps GPA for quick reply!

I will defiantly try starting the duck dive earlier but I fear that it could still prove a challenge when longer 5-6 wave sets are breaking in front of you. I can often duck dive the first one but the rest I loose to much speed on and become tired due to the large amount of force pushing down on the board.

My ultimate goal eventually would be to transition to a shortboard/hybrid such as a hypto krypto or lost V3 rocket for bigger more powerful days but defiantly keep the fish for the smaller stuff.

What would be the advantages/disadvantages of a lower volume board apart from the ones already mentioned?

I am a relatively strong paddler and managing to get a good amount of waves each session but I'm just not sure when or what board to transition to.

Thanks again in advance guys as I really appreciate it!

You just have to try a smaller board out and see how you go. Stick with the fish/hybrid shape I reckon.

It's the skill level not the board. More rocker will help with late drops to some degree, but when I surfed over there I found I just needed to take of in critical spots on my fish. You will still need to do that on a short board, but paddle way harder. I was surfing 2-3 head high Snapper on a 6' twin fin.

As far as duck diving goes, I doubt your fish has enough volume to be unduckdivable.i think it's simply that you have not be surfing very long in the grand scheme of things and need to build more technique and surf strength.

Stay on the fish for another year would be my call, and when you get a shortboard keep the fish.

From the sounds of it you are ready to take the next step. Nothing wrong with getting another board. It's all part of the learning process

Thanks for the advice guys!

Thedrip and bento have given me to different pieces of advice so Im not sure which one to follow?

I will defiantly be keeping the fish for days below shoulder to head height but i kinda have mixed thoughts if its worth persisting with it in hollower surf or if i should pick myself up a nice second hand hybrid kinda shortboard to allow myself to progress quicker?

Cheers

Just get one of each!

If you have a quiver you will always get a wave.

Be nice if you could have a Mal, fun board, fish, and shorty.

One of the best things about surfing is the diversity.

I don't like fish in hollow waves. Fat rails + volume + wide tails == not your friend. Yeah, it's doable but it's harder. Depends on what you mean by hollow though.

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Legion said...
I don't like fish in hollow waves. Fat rails + volume + wide tails == not your friend. Yeah, it's doable but it's harder. Depends on what you mean by hollow though.

His waves are way different to WA waves. Heaps less power. Six foot snapper vs six foot Womb/Boodj/Gas etc is not comparable. The board I was surfing at Snapper definitely doesn't work in lots of hollow waves here, but is absolutely doable over there and the extra paddle power is needed more than a refined board IMO.

Having said that, if he is looking to start a quiver, like lots of people have said, suck it and see. And I wouldn't get a hybrid. You have a fish already. Get something very different. Rounded pins and swallows are good in sucky waves I reckon. My NW boards all have swallows for the most part.

Small swallows though. Lol.

Okay that sounds good then!

And when I say hollow waves I mean low tide and barreling and overhead mostly

What size/model board would you recommend for a 6'1 73kg guy like me?

Keeping in mind my paddle strength is pretty good from lots of swimming and upper body stuff.

Cheers

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Spilz100 said...
Okay that sounds good then!

And when I say hollow waves I mean low tide and barreling and overhead mostly

What size/model board would you recommend for a 6'1 73kg guy like me?

Keeping in mind my paddle strength is pretty good from lots of swimming and upper body stuff.

Cheers

Dont mean to bag your fitness, but I would suggest your strength isn't super flash if 5-6 duck dives in a row is tiring. So I wouldn't look to lose too much volume or length.

The hypto krypto and its ilk aren't that high performance and ideally if you are ready for a HP board, go talk to a local shaper.

My 2 cents? 6'2-6'4" x 19"-19 1/2" x 2 1/2". Rounded pin or a squash tail or a swallow, but pull it in. Around 32 litres.

It is meant to be a step up board performance wise. Don't wreck the experience by going too low in volume. You haven't been surfing long and have a lot of improvement ahead.

Go talk to a shaper, take what you have, tell him what you like about it, what you don't, and what you would like the next board to do. Respect their knowledge. I know a little about boards and what I like as I have had 30 or so customs over the years, but you know what? The two shapers I currently get boatds off have done over 9000 each. They know what I need, try to avoid getting what you THINK you want.

You want less nose and less tail width than the puffer fish and possibly more rocker. I wouldn't knife the rails too much in your first HP.

You wouldn't necessarily need a HP board.

I don't surf in mush and don't surf large waves. So I am currently only riding a 5'8 hybrid shape.

It's not worth over-thinking - you get used to whatever board you are riding in whatever conditions. So go out and grab a smaller hybrid shape, like the ones you mentioned, and see how you go!

Okay thanks for the advice fellas I think I might try and talk to a local shaper nearby and see if they can get me on a hybrid shape with a nice rounded pin and just see how I go from there.

I am understanding more than ever now that practice and water time in these conditions are just as important as the board I'm riding so hopefully the surf picks up around here again!

Cheers!