After reading and listening to all the arguments about SUP' I have come to the conclusion that they are just another ocean toy in the long list of ocean toys
I know it's in fashion to pay out on anything over a 6'2 but over the past summer the only problem I have had out in the line up has been with fellow surfers
Surf packs, kooks, insta crowds jumping out of the one car paddling out at the same time ruins my surf (or turns the attitude in the water to hassle mode)
I'm not an advocate of stand up
I just don't have a problem with them
although i started surfing on a short board, for a while i did nothing but SUP.
the size of the board, the pain in the arse it is to get around and the extra effort you need to take when in the line up is stupid.
nothing is as simple and clean as riding a normal surfboard.
ok, yeah it does get people into surfing for whatever reason may not have be able to do it, but really it is a bit silly.
So what happens when its one foot.
You can do the stupid looking bounce up and down on a short board or get on a SUP or long board and still get the stoke from riding a wave that works best in those conditions.
Some say oh I will go ride a bike or something else but to me nothing compares to getting wet and catching a wave. Short board, long board, body board or body surf.
Havent done the SUP thing yet but more lack of funds than any other reason.
i can ride any wave a SUP or MAL can on one of my stumpy little short boards.
best part is... it fits in the boot of my car!
They're epic, I love em.. I've surfed for 20 years and having more fun than ever on em.. Sure they're a pain in the arse when there's more than one in the line up but it beats sitting in the pack gettin hassled and snaked by frothing groms and top 32 wannabes.... And here's the thing, if you find the right one, they feel awesome to surf....it's like anything worth doing, you've got to put in the time an effort to get a feel for it and reap the rewards....
for a minute i thought the message was from shankywanky, and i was going to say "mate! you'd have to enjoy holding a 6ft shaft", but then my eyes came good.
Been supping now for 3 years after 7 years out of the water with a bad back, and surfed for 25 years before that. There's plenty of kooks on all sorts of gear, from my experience, but it only takes one muppet on a shortboard, a mal, a lid or a sup to wreck it for everyone. Come to think of it, I never saw a bodysurfer wreck it for anyone. I know the feeling of being mighty biased towards shortboarding, and miss pocket snaps and quick reos, but then i got hurt and realised how great it was to just be in the ocean riding waves at all. Dwell on that for a minute, and just be bl00dy grateful you're out there in the first place, kids.
I ride both shorties, single fins, fishes, spmetimes mals and SUP and to be honest unless you're surfing small beachbreaks they inhabit a different space anyway.
After 23 years on a shortboard it gave me a second grommet hood learning how to ride something completely different. The ocean paddling side is a whole other adventure. I just like being in the water a lot, it's fun.
surfed shortboards for 25 years and 15 years as completively.
started surfing SUP 2 years ago and love it.
Feel like a kid again,THE buzz of impoving all over again.
I HAVE COPPED heaps from all the boys but majority just taking the piss!I
i have had a few good mates really cracking the ****s but just very put that down to being very narrow minded.
YOU DO get a lot of waves but not because of ripping the surfers off, but being able to see whats coming a long way away, (wide sets ,INside sets) and because you can move so much faster with a paddle you catch waves the rest miss?.
surfers just see you on a lot of waves.
The only waves that the surfers can have to themselves are the ones where there are constant close out.
ONE other thing is a good paddler will help the surfers by letting them know in advance if theres a set coming and if there,s a inside or outside waves
i am surfing an 8'5" pro starboard and have taken it to the moldives and the mentawai and found that the better the wave the better they go.