Interesting link.
http://www.basesurfboards.com/news_detail/show/id/78
Play the video to see and hear comments about some interesting / intriguing boards.
wow, thats unreal. you should have named this thread “SLATER TO RIDE 5’4” QUAD AT GOLD COAST PRO"
Im looking forward to him riding a Twin Fin in Tahiti and an Alaia at Bells.
I hope he wins on it.
that’s pretty interesting. what do you think about slater riding a quad in a wct event?
Good idea SurfingGreen ! The thread / topic isn’t catching much traffic - considering what a departure Slater’s 5’ 4" Quad is from what WCT pros are typicaly riding. I thought the Sway’s crew would have had a thought or two on the design.
It’s kind of like surfing stand -up on a boogie board. If you consider how little of a board is in contact with the water while riding a good wave. it works.
I think they’re not popular because how often do you ride good waves. When you hit a flat section, the ride is over.
You can’t catch a wave unless you go really wide, and then you get performance issues.
Sometimes the “fringe” design isn’t widely ridden not because it hasen’t been tried before, but because of drawbacks.
It’s been discussed here many times. Now that Slater is riding them everyone is supposed to act like it’s something more special. Short wide boards when shaped right have always worked. Then Slater jumps on worthless little 17 ‘’ wide elf shoes and the entire industry including surfboard blanks changes to fit the rush of orders. Once folks other than elites, teens or magazines hounds tired of struggling to catch waves and some began looking at what were by that time called retro boards and surfing became fun again.
The bigger side of the industry ( with the exception of blank manufactures) decided it was ok to start building boards an inch or so wider with older outlines and calling them the new thing. Now Slater jumps on almost the complete opposite of what he and everyone else called a breakthrough in 1992 and we are supposed to go…ooooohh! Woooow! Geee! Him shaping his own is more of the same.
Stick with the shaper designers that have stuck to the same path for awhile and you will come out much better. Forget what Slater does. To 95% of the surfing world…it means absolutely nothing. Many of them beat Slater to the discovery of shorter and wider already when they grew up and realized they would never surf anything like Slater and better choose common sense equipment rather than flavor of the month.
Not directed at you personally. Just answering the question.
Peace off. Ha.
I think it is important to note, as in the above comment, that people at Slater’s level of surfing can surf anything. take Richard Kenvin for example riding the mini-simmons boards. now everyone wants to get one of those quirky little boards. but you watch footage of that guy riding a keel fish or alaia and you quickly realize that he is amazingly talented. so in the end it’s not the board/design as much as it is the rider. those simmons are probably fun but certainly not better for the average surfer than a dialled in modern fish.
but the current shorter board craze is interesting in that it’s getting some serious (as in competitive serious) attention finally. guys have been riding sub 6’ modern fishes for a long time now and clearly know the benefits -especially in the sort of waves most of us deal with. my 5’8" quad fish works for me from knee high to as big as it gets around here. lost’s 5’5" x19 1/4 fromt eh mid 90’s? I know I can’t stand their marketing either but the point is clear.
I was one of those skunked kids for a year trying to learn on a 6’2" by 2.2" potato chip Slater inspired Quiet Flight in Florida wind slop back in the early 90’s. never again.
“surfing stand -up on a boogie board”
Seen guys rip waist to chest high hollow surf just that way…
I’m looking forward to the ‘ultra short retro revolution’.
More ability for me to dominate on my regular board!
Amen brother, and God bless Kelly Slater, and the MTV Generation's herd mentality! I haven't scored so many good set waves since the '70's.
Sickdog