I’ve been riding a flat bottom, low-rocker 6’9 x 21.5 x 2.75" single-fin, 44L egg on the small summer NJ waves. Gdaddy helped me with the design and it’s been a joy to ride in clean 1-3’ sessions. I recently took it out in a few of the storms where longer period 4-5’ waves traveled faster. I felt like I I had to be in the exact right place to catch, otherwise they just rolled on by as I paddled. When I did catch it felt to stiff. The tail of this egg is round so that holds me back on faster turns. I also have a feeling that a different fin choice and sliding that up a bit could help. OR perhaps I’m just not be strong enough or have enough experience positioning myself out there yet. Either way, I ended up swapping it out for my 8’2 which gave me more margin, so I caught more. But of course with that much length, it turns much more slowly and I just dont enjoy riding longboards anymore. On top of that, fall is approaching so the wetsuits will start coming out in a while, bringing my body weight from 155 to 165. I should add that the 44L feels just a bit corky too, so ~44L might be fine with a wetsuit.
With that., I want my next build to be tailored for fall/winter where the swell gets bigger. Using the 6’9 egg as a reference, Im thinking of (1) adding 4" of length. This adds volume and planing area for a bump in paddle power. (2) rounded pin-tail to help it turn in quicker. I stopped at a local shop this weekend and looked at Gerry Lopez Lil’Darlin. It’s the shape I had in mind, but it feels too aggressive, maybe something between that and an egg? The other questions Im still working out are rail type and nose width. Harder rails paddle/plane faster, but I dont want it so hard that it becomes stiff. A sharper nose gives more room on the face of the wave, but it also reduces the planing ability because the front profile of the board is less of a straight line. Any thoughts on this?
I think you need to spend more time learning how to surf that board. The tail isn’t holding you back and neither is the rocker or the bottom. The smaller the board, the less suitable it is for running a wave down. Positioning to actually be in the right spot at the right time becomes more critical. The rounded tail isn’t holding you back, either. If you’re having problems turning the board its probably because you’re standing too far forward and don’t have enough leverage on the rear fin. Move your rear foot back over the fin and you’ll have all the leverage you need.
Watch the old vids where they were surfing those boards back in the day. When you can surf as well as they do on that design then you can get to considering what elements you need to take your surfing to the next level. When you can outsurf the board THEN you can consider where it might be holding you back.
FYI, for how I’d surf a 2+1 I doubt I can outsurf that board in conditions up to overthead. If I can, it’s not by much.
I’m not trying to talk you out of building a board. I’m just saying that you have already built a board that - for where you’re at right now - will cover your upper end. Which as I recall wasn’t actually what your started out trying to do. As I recall, you wanted something more nimble than the 7-6 for small and clean conditions. You ended up with a more aggressive combo because of the blank you bought, which BTW does not have what I would call a low rocker.
MAYBE your next board could be what you started off trying to do in the first place, a more nimble board aimed specifically at small and clean conditions. A board that maxes out at shoulder or head high.
Love those “rounded pins”. On the fuller mid width as opposed to narrow pointy tails. They make the best Thrusters and a “Wing” at the side fins is outta this world.
Regardless of my intention, the 6’9 ended up being perfect for small waves. Others have mentioned that I have a lot to learn on larger waves. Either way, if you say it’s capable of riding larger waves, then I should push myself to achieve that goal. I really enjoy the shaping process, but Im in a place where I should only do it when i need to. Plus, the longer I wait to build the next, the better my assessment will be of the 6’9" when it comes time for something else.
When he surfs midlengths, Devon Howard usually surfs a 2+1. Tudor usually sticks to singlefins, although not always. Personally, I thought your board had too much tail rocker for a single and would work better as a 2+1, which is why I had made that assumption (sorry for the mistake). Either way, check out how they both move their rear foot back over the fin when they turn and then move it up closer to their front foot when they want to trim.
> your board had too much tail rocker for a single
Are you saying that tail rocker reduce reach of a single fin? If this is the case, couldn’t I just use a fin with more height? So far, I’ve used a 6" on 1-2’ waves and 7" on 2-3’, haven’t felt the tail wash out yet.