I see that Starboard are bringing out the Whopper 10 x 34 in ’09.
Not having a background in surfing I’m keen for some feed back on what type of wave conditions you think it would work best in?
Yeah I know it hasn’t hit the water yet but I’m hoping on some of your experiences on different board sharps to give me a bit of an idea of how this type of board would perform.

My main type of wave is up to shoulder high and fattiest, not a lot of power. Would the whopper suit? ( I must say my 11 2 really suits my conditions but I’m hoping I can find a board with a bit more of a short board feel)

Up until the release of ’09 range Boucher , I was keen on the 9’ 8 x 30 swallow tail. The only thing holding me back was I’m not sure I want to spend most of my time trying to keep my balance on a smaller board.
What I read is the Whopper has about the same volume as my 11 2 x 30 but the length and tail shape might indicate that it will turn quicker than my 11 2.

The purist of you will say the 9 8 is still a better wave riding board and I would agree but I’m more about enjoying the hole experience,
This really hit home to me over the xmas break when most of the guys on smaller boards were spending most of the time falling off / getting back onto their board where as I was cruising around catching more waves on the 11 2 and enjoying it.

I won’t be heading out into over head high powerful waves. So, do you thing I’m taking a backward step by going to a Whopper?


Ian

hey piros just thought id wade into this with the quote from the starboard whopper catalogue

"10’0” x 34” The Whopper
Probably the most significant breakthrough in SUP since the paddle was introduced. Extremely stable at 34 inches wide, it provides stability for a beginner to paddle through the most turbulent white water or other difficult conditions. It has reasonably good glide and it turns on dime while paddling. The extra nose kick makes it almost impossible to nosedive, catching even the smallest white water waves with ease. The stability makes it a breeze to paddle into waves, with the BIG surprise being that this board actually rips in waves. It’s truly a fantastic wave board for most conditions, and is surely the most versatile wave dedicated SUP board ever shaped."

not my words but they seem to mention stable a few times ?????hehehehe

whopper or big mac? hmm whopper grilled!

Scotty Mac said...

Who knows if 34 is too wide? A year ago 30 would have been considered too wide and now just under 30 is the standard. I am a bit fat but I would go less than 29 again. I would love to try and 8.0 x 31. Would be sweet in small waves.

Scotty I reckon the 8 4" would be fine, I have an 8 4" x 30" wide coming any day soon from rod (boardbumps)

What I think on the subject of length and width is from personal experience. That is if you learned to paddle on a 12ft board then you recommend a 12foot board to everyone to learn on.
That is your experience and is especially prevalent with the crew that started paddling a few years ago purely and simply cause there was no other boards to buy or use and everyone was making them that way for the traditional surfing style.

This is not so today as anyone who has learnt on a 10foot board now recommends 10' boards. It is the same for widths and volumes.

My first board was a 10'4"long, 30.5" wide with a volume of 175 liters, this Easter it will be four years old and I still have it. I have taken double overhead drops on the wide peaks on it and made everyone of them, mostly cause I did not want to fall/jump off.
The board surfs traditionally and even with the step tail that has made it looser to surf ( by adding the step tail the board has 120mm of tail lift 5mm less than my current design wave boards) It in no way carves like my 9'0 or my 9'4 or my 8'6 or my 7'10. I still ride it when the surf is tiny and I need to go for a paddle and a surf in the school hols, it is fun to ride but does not satisfy my surfing needs.

At 29.5" wide these boards are really stable because the VOLUME is finely tuned to weight and riding style.

What I am finding is that smaller boards can be wider and ridden in up to shoulder high waves that have less power and are really carvey and good to ride and are stable.

There is one truth in surfing and that is
shorter boards are looser and turn faster than longer boards because of their waterline length.

Rod

Ian, you should be able to get aboard that is as stable as the proverbial rock at around 10' to 9'6" these boards are a bit wider at around 30" and will have full noses. Full noses give SUPA boards the most stability. Volume is the next most critical component and sadly SUPA boards are not sold with their volume in the specs.

I find this hard to believe as you would be hard pressed to find one of the big international boards that are not designed by computer and cut by a dedicated surfboard shaping machine or a CNC machine. I get my volume from my surfboard design program and have done so for over twenty years. All sailboards are sold with volume, aren't they Greeny?

What weight are you? I believe that you find the Naish 9'6" a bit trying at around 130 liters of board volume?

But to answer you question yes the traditional style of surfing will and can only suit the type of board your talking about. Stall turns are the rule, then walk/run forward to trim.

Rod

high as a kite said...

Rod,
I'm 88kg's on a good week.

Maybe if i was 25 years younger I wouldn't worry to much about it but been an elder tribesman I want something easier. The size doesn't bother me it's just the stability.
Once on a wave I find the Naish 9 6 ideal and really enjoy the experience, it's the other 80% of the time paddling around that I find tiring.
Ian

Ian, I know you stuggled yesterday on the 9 6" and I am 20 kgs heavier than you and have no trouble paddeling that bad boy but I have spent so many hours on that board lately its starting to feel like walking By the way I absolutely loved using your board yesterday and for the traditional longboard feel this board is unbeatable.
I have done enough surfing to know when I like a board, and that board of yours is a super board, (absolutely love it) and I am thinking maybe you have the perfect baord and dont reliase it

When I get my new custom board off boardbumps in the next couple of weeks
you are welcome to test run it

Yeah Brooko, On the way home on Sunday I was thinking the same thing about my board. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"

I guess I'm like many others, getting caught up in the short board hype.

I reckon SUPing board size is going the same way as windsurfing and kiting did. Most of us got caught up in the small board hype and eventually realised that small was not allway the best option and settled on something a bit bigger.

high as a kite said...

Yeah Brooko, On the way home on Sunday I was thinking the same thing about my board. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"

I guess I'm like many others, getting caught up in the short board hype.

I reckon SUPing board size is going the same way as windsurfing and kiting did. Most of us got caught up in the small board hype and eventually realised that small was not allway the best option and settled on something a bit bigger.

Ian, I personally like surfing the smaller boards better and are prepared to go as short as possible I like the rip, tear , speed and late drops feeling of the short board, coming from a surfing background on shortboards it suits my style.

Saying that, I would always like a longer board in my quiver for mellow, relaxing, cruisy style longboard surfing I guess the type of boards people are going to be after is what type of surfing there trying to acheive.

Yeah Brooko & Rob,
It's all about conditions and experience i guess.

Maybe I'm just a lazy old fart and need to toughen up or take up lawn bowls(only joking)

Hey Brooko ,

Thought you might like this picture i took of one of the heats last year at Noosa .

Check out the size Brian Keaulana's board shaped by Dave Parmenter , compared the other guy's......Brian was RIPPING , actually they were all Ripping !!!

Rich

as he says just about anything goes

got this off a dvd sorry about the quality



tom

Brooko said...

... that fat , wide , rail to bite into the face of quality waves

As the man says, whatever works. The key for me is that you have to try before you buy. All the opinions in the world are kind of meaningless until you hit the water.

Logically a wider board can have a thinner rail than a narrow board. You have more width to spread the volume and more distance to draw the line of the fine rail.

A thick, narrow board must have either a fat rail or a curved deck to accomodate the rail shape.

I have a super-wide kiteboard (48cm) and when I built the prototype people in shops were telling me how it would not work and stuff. It's actually the sweetest board in light to moderate winds.

The key is that the amount of rail in the water is what has the effect. The bit sticking out of the water when edged doesn't do much at all. My kiteboard is not very forgiving of poor technique when overpowered but that's easily fixed ... switch to a narrower board when things get extreme.

The key has to be what works best in the range of conditions you want to ride in.