I’m 5’10" and 170 pounds, 61 years old. Once the waves are solid 6’
with larger set waves, I prefer a more performance-oriented (racier
outline, more rocker, more down rails, overall thinner, lighter glass,
less length [9’, for me]) with a 2+1 setup (3-3/4" side bites, 7-1/2"
cutaway center). When the waves are smaller than that, I usually ride a
9’6" single that’s got a bit softer rails (but not all the way to
50-50), a bit fuller a template, less rocker and a bit more thickness. I
also have a totally retro 9’8" single noserider with a kicked tail,
otherwise VERY flat rocker, a wide concave nose and 50-50 rails.
What
you should opt for will depend on what style of surfing you want to
do. There are basically two “schools” of long boarding now: the more
retro, classic, graceful “gliding” style based in the 60s (exemplified
among younger guys by surfers like Tyler Hatzikian etc.) and the more
performance-oriented, “go-for-broke” style of guys like Terry Simms,
Taylor Jenson, Lance Hookano or Colin McPhillips, etc…
High
performance single fins will tend to draw longer lines. More retro
single fins with 50-50 rails will tend to do slower, more pivotal turns
instead of carving: you throw your body weight into the turn and wait
for the board to come around in response. If you want to noseride, a
single or 2+1 with a bit flatter rocker will do that better than a
thruster: you need some fin depth back there to hold the tail in while
you’re on the nose. The tail of a thruster with a lot of rocker will
tend to bust out and side-slip in that situation. A single will also
trim through soup (and maintain forward momentum better) than a
multi-fin board (especially a thruster).
Multi fin, performance long boards tend to
generate speed via a succession of turns (more like a short board). Retro singles do it more via
trim.
A high-performance, 2+1 longboard in the 8’-9’ range
will make for an easier transition from your shortboards than a similar
board over 9’: that longer rail line just fits into the wave differently.
One thing I notice at the beach is that a lot of people riding 2+1
longboards seem to use what, IMO, constitutes too large a center fin (in
terms of both depth and base). When you add sidebites to the equation, you can reduce the size of that center fin. Since fins create drag, I try to get
away with the smallest ones I can while still “getting the job done”.
You’ll have to experiement to find a happy medium. A long, wide,
50-50-railed, thick, flat, square-tailed, single-fin tanker will catch
waves like a mutha but will probably feel stiff and sluggish to you
(given the equipment you’re on now). When I got back into long boards
after years of short boarding, I started on an 8’ Yater pintail single
with a full template and gradually moved up to 9’0", where I settled in
for years. Now (at my advanced age) I’m most comfortable on a 9’6"
single unless the waves are pretty big and/or hollow.
For us older guys (who started out on long boards) a lot of enjoying “the glide” or retro/cruising style is nostalgia. If you started on shorter boards during the late 60s, it may not appeal to you. On the other hand, there are lots of young kids these days who dig it.