If you do go soft top, then this one is a better price
http://www.boardlocker.com/listings/...am-1190092.php
Man up and go with a glass or epoxy board
If you do go soft top, then this one is a better price
http://www.boardlocker.com/listings/...am-1190092.php
Man up and go with a glass or epoxy board
Been working/playing outside too much lately, started this thread and didn't get to check in for two weeks.
Ideally I'd like to get something that won't cripple learning, but will be useful down the line. I've been scoping CL, problem is I'm like a 50 year old gaper making the 'those look like water skis' comment. The shaping subtleties escape me.
I live and work in East Hampton for the summer. So access to breaks isn't tough.
So it sounds like three options - longboard, softtop longboard, or big fish. I'm 6'1, 165ish. Gnarly body surfer. No, seriously.
That softtop for $200 sounds like a decent option, appreciate the link. There's a couple 7'2"ish fishes for sale locally for $~320 (http://longisland.craigslist.org/spo/2469348575.html). Still too advanced?
Oh, and wtf is this? http://longisland.craigslist.org/spo/2482776050.html
^^That is something you should stay away from. Looks like a reproduction retro shape. If you plan on arching your back when you turn, and clasping your hands behind your back, this board is for you.
Do you not have shops nearby with a good used selection, or a buddy that surfs? That 7S is a great shape, despite being mass-produced by soul-less money grubbing whores. My friend left an 8' version at my place for repairs. I took it to Lake Linda Mar a week ago and had a blast. I think the 8' model would be better for a beginner. I even owned one of these when I was learning. It had a sweet orange swirl resin. I loved that board!
the shaping subtlies don't really matter much to you now and you can always sell it for +/- $100 of what you paid for it if you don't like it. It's summer boards are more expensive.Quote:
Originally Posted by C.O. Jones
edit: perhaps I'm not getting what you mean by subtleties.
Maybe 'shaping subtleties' wasn't the right term...more along the lines of "i have no idea why one board looks this way, and if that'll help me learn or hurt it".
Anyone have a good website to pick up some shaping knowledge? Been googling but haven't found anything comprehensive.
re: the local surf shop scene, I haven't checked them all but from what i've heard, most are in the business of separating tourists and their money and not much else.
Swaylocks is another place you could probably learn more.
Surfermag forum but only in the design forum, you'll get eaten alive in the main forum, the trolls are hungry.
I haven't followed every post, so hopefully this helps and is what you are looking for
-I find length of board less relevant than thickness and width, AKA Volume. I have a 7'6" Gun and an 8'0" funboard, the gun has significantly less volume, which translates into less float, and then into less paddle and then into you going over the falls. Granted they are two different weapons of choice but straight volume is what i'm talking about. Length is similar but volume/float are not
-I find Volume under your mid section while paddling is most important. Find out if you surf off your front foot or back foot, then add volume in that part of your board.
-Full rails will be a must for a beginner, on any length of board.
-Getting something a funboard shape in the 7'0"-8'0" would be a good range to target, if you are looking to start as close to shortboarding but still not going through the growing pains. I went straight to surfing a 6'6" in my early 20's. There are growing pains but I liked getting pitched, kinda weird like that
-If you aren't down with funboards, maybe an oversized fish/hybrid such as KG, Rusty Piranha, Sharp Eye Blowfish, Disco, Merrick Pod....basically something with rails, lots of foam in the deck but still snappy as hell in good surf. You can fin them in bigger shapes and they have plenty more float than my standard shortboards
Going into a shop and getting the local grom usually translates into superiority complex. Just search online, you'll learn fast
I have to disagree with the short option(pod, disco). The Pod comes in a 6'4", but that isn't the way that board is designed to be ridden for the length. From personal experience, if you skip the 8' funboard and go to something short, fat and thick, you will learn to turn with a jerky style. Then, you can spend much of your first few years trying to smooth out your style. Also, the 8' board has some valuable lessons about trim and glide. Don't miss these. Several people have posted boards that are great examples. Get on it!
I suggested he target a 7'0" to 8'0" but if for some reason he was against funboards and set on shortboarding, then do not go with a standard shorboard. So we are kinda agreeing but I made those other suggestions in case he has already made his mind up.
^^Gotcha. I think with a new surfer, sometimes you're so eager to get to a shortboard, you're not willing to pay dues on the funshape.
Edit: This is amazing. Any other place, people would be saying to go with a chippy 5'10", then laughing as he flails. Gotta be the only place in surfing you can get solid starter advice without involving a shop owner(who pushes you into an $800 starter board).
Probably the least attractive part of surfing is the bizarre culture of everyone treating each other like assholes, trying to pretend like every single thing is some sacred secret, and just generally acting like a group of people can own a section of ocean if they're big enough pricks about it.Quote:
Originally Posted by BS720
Very well put. I started surfing 2 years ago and this is the main thing that turns me off from the sport. Especially here in new jersey. Sometimes I'll paddle out to a lineup and say something along the lines of "Hey how's it going?" and get nothing but a blank stare. I'm still sticking with it though, having a great time, and not letting that attitude rub off on me.Quote:
Originally Posted by YetiMan
To the OP, definitely get a funshape/longboard or something you can easily catch waves on. Especially if your going to be surfing on the east coast mostly in the summer. The waves are usually so small that as a beginner you'll have a tough time learning on a shortboard. And remember, your out there to have fun, whatever board allows you to catch the most waves will be the most fun.
Oh and let me know if you want to paddle out some time, I'd like to check out that end of LI some time this summer.
I've spent the last 2 years down in CA/MX and only got vibed on 2 times. Now that I'm back in the states, we will see.
It's not all bad vibes but the saying goes something similar to "Surfing ain't a Group Hug". The closer you are to surf mecca's then the more that statement holds true. Places like Western Samoa and less traveled places have no vibe what so ever, some of the coolest people alive
You're more outgoing than most. I don't open my mouth at a heavily localized spot unless I know someone.Quote:
Originally Posted by S4Shredr
On a funnier note, I keep seeing a Jeep Grand Cherokee in my neighborhood with a MASSIVE TGR sticker on the back window. Saw it in the Sloat lot today, walked up and asked the guy if he had change for a nickel. He's looking in his center console for five cents, I'm realizing TGR is bigger than just mag's. Embarrassing, but I got a good laugh out of it.
haven't really found that to be true. good vibes at some great surf mecca's, and shitty vibes in shitty placesQuote:
Originally Posted by Piggity POW
bad vibes are more proportional to the number of tweaker douchebags living nearby. Hence bad vibes in Washington and Hawaii.
If this is the case then Santa Cruz must be the epicenter of bad vibes?Quote:
Originally Posted by Hugh Conway
I've never been hassled anywhere I've been but I follow pretty basic protocol when I'm at a new place. Suss out the lineup from land so you don't end up being that guy on the inside when a set rolls through, don't paddle directly out and try and score the first waves that roll through, don't loudly chitchat with people I don't know or even those that I do know, don't sit right in front of people, don't bail on waves when it's "my" turn, if I do bail, get the fuck out of the way ASAP, etc. Perhaps those getting vibed are reaping what they sow.
Maybe it's because they think you're a chick
You can never eliminate the potential for pissing off some shit who thinks that square of oceans there's
I'd rather be mistaken for a chick and have them realize they're wrong than have them think I'm a jerk/douche/dick/asshole/generally miserable person to be around and have them realize they're right. Being pleasant to people and following a few simple societal rules feels nice and minimizes hassle, you should try it next time you surf in WA or HI.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hugh Conway
Hugh, using Mecca was probably the wrong term. I mean places that see high volume tourist and/or are already whored out. Basically places where everyone straps a board to their car whether they surf or not. People need space and crowded places tend to have more chances of bad vibes. Not always but elbow to elbow in the lineup certainly doesn't create good vibes
BTW...everyone's been friendly to me too, for the most part. It's more of a feel I get from reading and from vids and stuff as opposed to people being lame in the water around here. FWIW.
Every time I surf in WA I meet Canadians that are down there to escape the "bad vibes" of Vancouver Island. I think that's funny/sad in a "could our nice polite and innocuous neighbors to the north really be worse than us?" way, even though I've never had any bad vibes there either.
Hugh is TGR's Bad Vibes Bob.
Whatever bad vibes you get I'm sure it's all your fault :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Piggity POW
And back to the OP, buy a board, go surfing, have fun
PS- I have never really been barked at in the lineup or had vibes sent my way. I've witnessed plenty of barking, cold stares and the guys that stare through you when you tell 'em it was a nice wave. There are plenty of cool people in the lineup too, it's just not a group hug like it seems on gidget ;)
Very rarely in 15 years but I've had to bark at people in the past, it's how the lineup stays in operation if someone is throwing the cycle off and going to cause an injury. A board, fin or reef to the head is horrible and people dropping in or ditching boards are fair game for a vibe. It is very similar to guys on here that bark at fools in the backcountry for not wearing a Beacon or having Avy training, barking is sometimes necessary to save people from injuries in the lineup.
Zen lineups are magical experiences, know the unwritten rules from day 1 and positive vibes in the lineup will follow :D
I agree with the jerky style point. Love getting on the log time and again to sQuote:
Originally Posted by BS720
mooth out the style
^^With the exception of my Pumpkin Seed, all my other boards are quads. I picked up a Joel Tudor single fin egg in HI 2 years ago. I think it's therapeutic for a quad surfer. On a full wraparound cutback, it puts a massive grin on your face. You plant your foot on the tail and it feels rock solid.
I am so behind on the board design thing. Still riding all thrusters (except for the 60's era LB), and progressive* short board and gun shapes (and a 7'6" eggish board left at my house). I enjoy them, especially when the surf is on, but need to figure out a good high volume short board that still drives like I enjoy.
*for 2002
After being out on the EC for a week - to the OP. Get some volume. I forgot how meager conditions can be in between swells, and to learn, you need to get out daily (or as often as possible).
And +1 for Hughs comment. Buy a board. Go surf.
I can't say enough about the sharp eye disco. I'm not skinny and I need volume for drive but I like the responsiveness of small boards, this board does it for me. I've ridden my 5'10" (rounded pin) in waves pushing 3' OH with punch and this board still delivers. It turns on a dime yet floats through the flat sections if you are trying to connect it through the next peak. I think i could order the Disco up to 6'2" rounded pin and it would have the same drive and responsiveness. That's just me but damn that board is $$Quote:
but need to figure out a good high volume short board that still drives like I enjoy