What does wingnut actually ride? does he ride a robert august shape? one of the ones named after him? epoxy? just wondering what you have seen him on, i have some interest in those shapes because im looking at that type of board right now. i tend to surf a lot of the same types of waves he does, would like to surf like him too, haha. i am 160 6ft and need something that i can still noseride but also learn how to manuver well. I have been surfing consistitly for about 3 years. Most of that has been done on boards around 9’2" or so. I can crossstep well to the nose and working on the way back.my problem is with turning, my current board it is just heavy and seems hard to turn. what are some reccomendations for size and style of board that would be good for me, something i can still nose ride but has some manueverability. What are your guys feeling about trying to really get down the basic surfing on a heavy noserider? I feel that it might have hindered me a bit. I surf stuff under 6-7ft 99% of the time. my noserider i had custom made for me and i have had others made, but on this one im looking to just get a board used or off the rack because im moving around right now and cant be doing the wait a month thing, ill prolly just ride this board a bit and sell it to get a custom later. anyway, i would appreciate any suggestions on boards
i have surfed with wingnut several times and have seen his videos becuase i too am a big fan. most of the time he seems to be riding the mark martinson stepdeck on robertaugust.com. they call it the “predator model surfboard”. you can see the board at the above address.
ive only seen him ride that and the wingnut II, which is a very interesting design. wingnut is strange. he preaches traditional longboarding but surfs fairly progressively, and talks about how good surftech is and how everybody should buy one but hardly ever rides one himself.
i think most longboarders (that know what they are doing) are realizing that surftechs are too stiff and too light for real longboarding, and only work well when you want to ride a log like a shorty. the only area i can truly justify a surftech in, despite my distaste for globalization, is when riding a shortboard with your main focus on doing airs. boards fall apart when doing airs and a surftech that light will hold up better then 1 layer of 4 oz glass.
is the wingnut II made in fiberglass or does anyone know guys that make similar boards in fiberglass? That is the particular kind of shape i was thinking about. my thought is am i gunna get on it and have a hard time cross stepping it? i move on my board well but it is 18in nose, 23 midth, 15 tail. with a parallell out line. the epoxy deal im not getting into, i surfed them a bit in costa rica and dislike them greatly, it is hard to do controlled, fluid cross stepping and noseriding, the conditions were a bit choppy too, poor for the lighter board. thanks for any more info anyone
I had my shaper make me a Wingnut; I don’t think it’s the best shape for trad longboarding. It is, however, a great year-round and travel board, as it works well in 2 foot slop to overhead conditions. The specs are fairly easy to get and a competant shaper should be able to make one for you. My guy put a bit more rocker into the board and gave it a 2 + 1 setup; I’ve ridden it single fin and with three fins.
The WNII is not too much of a noserider. 'course, Wingnut can noseride anything…but when he’s out on the point and its glassy, walled-up, and shoulder high, he’s on that Martinson. Wide nose, parallel shape, just like the board you have (which sounds to me like the right board already to learn ‘traditional’ longboarding on). The WNII is quite a bit like a Harbour Testle Special, or an old Phil Edwards Hobie. Belly throughout, pulled in nose, no hips, small squash across the tail. None of Wingnut’s boards are light - none, that is, in Northern CA. I have no idea what he keeps at RA’s place in Costa Rica…
Your board sounds pretty good to me. You might get further along on your fade takeoffs, drop knee, etc. if it was more like 9’6-9’8" with very little nose rocker & the tail rocker not gradual from the center but all in the last 3 feet. When you see a board like that, you’ll know it.
Go over to Palm St SS. They have a lot of traditional single fin logs and a nice selection of used & consignment boards.
It sounds like you might enjoy a “high performance” longboard to go along with your traditional noseriders. Thinner, lighter, narrower, pulled in in the tail and nose for better turning and more rocker. In Santa Cruz local surf pro terms, something you’re more likely to see Terry Simms on than Wingnut. Or if you still want the really stable noseriding platform you can keep the nose wide but maybe go with a pintail or diamond tail with a 2+1 fin set up?
If you are looking for used, I guess you just have to see what’s available around the local shops. There should be something used by Pearson around if you don’t need a nice glossy glass job (i’m not a fan of his glassing but the boards seem to work well). I also see a lot of Walden longboards around up here in Pacifica. Don’t know where the guys are buying them (maybe Wise shop at ocean beach?). And though the traditional boards are big now, I’m sure Santa Cruz shapers like Junod and Rice still have more modern longboard shapes on the racks too. You might go talk to John Mel at Freeline and see what he has and recommends for you. He’s a great shaper too.
I’m partial to Harbour (have a Simms model, was Terry’s originally in fact: i’ll admit it is not the board of choice for summer ankle-high pleasure point - but anything waist-high or better it’s great). The Harbour website has a lot of great info on the different shapes of surfboards and what type of surfing they are designed for. http://www.harboursurfboards.com
personally, i like heavy boards…but if you want something easier to turn, find something that’s a little lighter, a little more pulled in, and with a bit more rocker.
Looks like the GP Surfboards are the new Cooperfish of Santa Cruz. The craftsmanship sounds incredible. Once again though you probably won’t see them anytime soon here on the East Coast
hi…Wingnut here…finally got organized to comment here…sorry it took so long…but if you have any related questions about what i ride, now and from back when you first asked…just let me know…
Realized i should have just cut to it…Rode the Tuflite Wingnut models for almost 10 yrs…especially as my options increased…the 9’4" would still be my favorite…the W-II 9’ was my favorite travel board for all options…and the 10’6" which they discontinued is the epic point wave glider.
work with the boys at Santa Cruz surfboards now…riding Haut shapes…