Is there a basic general rules set for certain shapes or effects? Like nose riding, you need weight, nose channels or concave . … Compile a list? Thanks for letting us know about the fish, Greg. I’d always thought it was the keel fins and the flat bottoms, but with the v . . . now I know what to look for in a fish.
Since picking up surfing, I found it to be the most difficult thing I’ve done. Even flying a Cessna is easier than surfing.
One thing I’ve seen from the -er magazine . . . people are looking for ways to shortchange the system. They hope getting a ‘touted’ board will improve their surfing. But only practice will.
It’s funny people there recommend bonzers for mushy, slow so cal waves. And they say retro twin keels for fast, beach break barrels. Their main editor swears by style, saying ‘style never goes out of style’.
But style is perception, and based on some of the touted bonzers and fishes in the classifieds, ebay, and from lazy posters offering clues . . . they found out the hard way that your board doesn’t improve your surfing.
They say fishes are very hard to surf, a quote, “I’ve seen guys that rip on thrusters humbled by the fish”. My coworker, a long time snowboarder, and 7 year surf veteran said its cuz fish you have to ride like a longboard, mainly off your front foot. He said if you try to ride it like a thruster it will spin out . . .
One thing I’ve found about surfing (more than other sports), is ‘being cool’ over rules everything, even practicality. Even the mainstream public, the millions of people who ever don’t or won’t surf . . . has grown accustomed to ‘surfing is cool’ . And lots of surfers are the same. I first learned via college class (hey it’s SD), half the beginners (rich kids) got thruster boards. I had a longboard. I’ve seen guys paddle out with two zinc lines on there cheek under their eyes, but not cover the rest of their sunburnt skin. Or in 6 foot surf last week, guys had Hawaii pintail guns with double leashes and gaff helmets for beach break surf at high tide. My favorite is the awesome pinlined and bottom resin tint swirl bonzer (with enough square inches of fin to go on three 60’s skeg logs) big guy tri shape showing up at the beach break I frequent. It’s 3 foot mush, and he paddles out to sit. All morning.
I think this mentality (and the problem is these are people that have money to spend) is part what is making difficult for people to listen up to what Greg is saying.
That and, ‘This is they way its been done, so be it!’ There was a guy I knew, way into competition Tae Kwon Do. I saw him at the club, said whats up. He said, ‘Busy working the field,’ and commented I need to lose the glasses to pick up ‘chicks’ (hey I love electronica dance to, and so do the girls). He could kick the ball out of Shaq’s outstretched hands, jump kick over cars, do 10 punches in a second.
He upset some guys, and it went into combat. I debated about evening the odds, but the burly bouncer and his female terminator partner’s look made me ease up and go back to my group.
He got beat up by two multi stylist guys (did brazilian jujitsu and some variant of jeet kun do from what I saw). A. High kicks in close quarters in a bar with slippery floor from drinks and ‘chicks’ vomit won’t work (lower center of gravity = stable, learned that from surfing). B. He never learned how to fight or get out of multiple opponent scenarios. C. Grapple? Throw? What’s that? Well if the other guy knows it and you don’t, you’re screwed. I’m far from being a martial expert, but even I saw the solution . . .
A week later, he’s training very hard, still doing the same routine he thinks it was because his skills at his art. He never realized that he had to expand his martial repetoire . . . He wouldn’t listen to me. I was just that guy in glasses that showed up to meet up my friend in kung fu class.
Anycase I’m just rambling . … anyone know if there is a chance to demo Bert, or Greg’s boards? Or those new carbon fiber jobs . . . surf shops are too stingy to demo. . . .