I am going to be buying a 6’10" mid gun for G-Land and general use in 6’-8’ waves. I was thinking about trying something different and getting a channel bottom shaped by an Australian shaper who has been known for his great channel bottoms for many years. Does anyone out there with experience in surfing channel bottoms have an opinion on them?
They seem quite rare these days. Is this just because they are out of fashion in our heavily fashion oriented surf world, or do they have major drawbacks? I haven’t noticed many hot surfers using them, even in big barrells. If they were a really good idea why don’t the top surfers use them in such waves (maybe they do)?
My concern is that maybe they are great for pointing at the exit door and going straight in fast, down the line barrells, but that maybe they don’t turn as well as boards with a regular bottom (flat, concave, vee, whatever). I still want to throw it around in the pocket a little and do some nice tight cutbacks and bottom turns.
I think the number one reason you don’t see more channel bottoms is that they’re a bitch to make…a lot of extra work, shaping and glassing.
I had one that I’d say was one of the fastest boards I’ve ever ridden…but it didn’t cut back at all. It was a 6’-10". I thought the stiffness was because of the length but I’ve been riding a 8’-0" that does great roundhouse cutbacks. So I’m thinking it was more the rocker- it was an 80’s style board with relatively flat rocker.
I think a more modern foiled channel bottom might be great at g-land. But you 've got to remember surfboards are all compromises- flying down the line means the board has properties that might not make for good short radius cutbacks, and vice versa.
For some good channel bottom surfing check out Shane Dorian in “Shelter.” On one wave he comes out the back and you can see he’s riding a channel bottom, so I figure the rest of the footage he’s also on one.
I rode a 6’10" 6 channel by Hamish Graham back in the late 80’s and it was unbelievably fast. The trouble I had with it was in cutbacks and tight carves. Not only that, but Hamish was so into himself at the time that he wouldn’t even discuss it with me. At the same time, I had a 6’4" 4 channel from Matt Moore that was super loose and very easy to control. It was the ultimate Rincon board for me back then. I rode that board to pieces…Literally! Unfortunately, haven’t ridden one since.
I’ve got a 6’3 Al Byrne channel bottom board. It’s an incredible board, very fast in hollow waves and barrels. And still great doing cutbacks! The one I have the channels sort of fade out in the tail of the so they’re almost a bit vee’d out in the last bit of the tail.
I think Al Byrne shapes on the Gold coast in OZ doesn’t he? Try getting one of his boards, I don’t think You’ll regret it. I got my board secondhand in Bali and I’ve ridden it in hollow waves in Indo and in the Canary island. Also ridden it in some semihollow waves up in Norway that allowed for more cutbacks and turns.
Don’t know about going longer with channels? But I saw some more Al Byrne boards in shops in Bali a few of them guns up to 7’4" with channels, flyers and very narrow small swallowtails.