This is my first post but a constant reader. I recently broke my 6’3" al merrick flyer for the second time, deeming it unrepairable. Since that happened i have been out a step up board.
Heres my question.
My 6’0 aloha potato chip is just too thin on the bigger days, just not being able to get into it. once it hits 1-2 overhead im SOL. What would you guys reccomend for a step up board and what about tail shape? I find Swallows to be a little annoying(unless on a fish) and i was thinking about getting it in a quad(my fish is a quad). I am 5’10" and 145 pounds.
I like round-pintails especially on juicier waves. They draw nice fluid lines. The steeper the waves the more I’d pull in the template. Wider makes turning easier.
Are you making this board yourself, or getting one off the rack? If you liked the flyer, but you want something that can handle more juice, you may want to try a K step-up.
I was thinking about the k step up, BTW this is for punchy beach breaks in NJ and along the east coast. Would you advise for any other kind of tail, and how does it feel? all the boards i ride are squash, and i love the way it responds. The only other board that i have right now is a 5’6" quad fish that i ride when it gets bigger, id rather a better board haha. And im looking to buy not make it.
I’m right here in the same waves as you, brother… When it gets in the 2 ft. overhead range I ride a 6’8 rounded pin, single concave (I’m 43 years old, 185 lbs). It’s a little on the thinner (I think 2 3/8) side, which is thinner for me, because it has adequate length and it’s EPS. The first time you smack one off the top you’ll notice the difference… the tail sinks into the lip a lot more than a squash, giving you better control. Lots of guys around here still ride squashes when it gets bigger, but for me the rounded pin feels really good. I also find it’s easier to scrub speed off by sort of tail stalling to stay in the pocket.
I’ve never actually surfed NJ… and not too much on the right coast… so take this for what it’s worth. My guess is that even the more critical days don’t require a semi-gun. Squash tails work great, and make snappier turns than a pin. If you’re used to them, there’s no reason to change to something else. I have a 6’8" Doc Lausch big-boy thruster with a squash that works great in waves head-high to 2x-overhead here in San Franciso beachbreaks. Just figure the bigger and steeper the waves, the narrower you want to go on the tail. Some waves - like Pleasure Point in Santa Cruz - let you get away with wide tails, even on 3x-overhead days, because they are just giant slow-moving mushballs.
Our beachbreaks here are not like those you guys are lucky to have in SF. Mostly, it goes like this: when it gets that big, it’s usually from a semi-cleaned up windswells from storms that pass right over us with a backdoor cold front. Mostly in the winter events. Mostly short period, one- to two-day swells with a load of energy that just dumps on sandbars that form off jetties. So the waves do get pretty critical, with steep drops and fast walls, and not too much room to run.
amen brother…after spending the last couple years in cali (central coast) then moving back to the east its like learing how to surf all over again
but really to input on this thread, i like swallows in any condition…2 ft to doh…not retro fish swallows mind you…i ride a 5’11" swallow in all waves, but im only 5’8" 145
its like they say…opinions are like assholes…everyone has one and they all stink
if you dont like swallows and just want to get barreled maybe a round pin, if you want to come out of the tube and thwak the lip a few times maybe a squash…i would demo some boards…a lot of shops are cool like that
wow… there are some really nice photos on that site. The winter shots look cold. Our water temp got down to about 48* last winter. Cold enough to not want to spend much time under water. I hate wearing hoods, but I put one on a few times this year. I’m down in So Cal a couple times a month. Everytime I surf there I hear someone complaining about how cold it is - “whimps” I think… then I see shots of NJ with snow covering the beach, and I shrivel up.
The waves at Ocean Beach can get world class, but that place can be about the most punishing surf spot on earth. Did you see the Surfer’s Path article? Mark Massarra calls it “violent meditation”. We spend more days hoping for less swell than the other way around. There are times when you can’t even get out to the lineup. There is just an endless death zone. It’s a big ocean and the currents can get intense. The good days can be unreal though. It will hold shape - under the right circumstances - even when it’s huge. Squashtails work good here.
Here’s a video that blakestah posted on youtube… this is not an unusual winter day:
I like Northern New Jersey winter noreaster swells. Always offshore after the storm and short period cold waves. Two duckdives and you have an icecream headache. I have been riding a 7’0 five fin bonzer (semi-gun) shaped by Brian Wynn on larger and winter days. I am 6’2" and weigh 200lbs, so with the weight and the extra couple mils of wetsuit, I need the extra length. Besides extra volume in your board is not going to hurt you in the winter (just sit higher out of the water), or on any other larger day for that matter. I am actually surprised that sometimes I can still slide the tail on dredging drops, but I also ride my boards with my backfoot pulled forward a little. Swallow tail also, they always have worked well for me.
