Malcom Campbell Alpha Omega Twin ride report....UPDATE!

flyinraptr

Michael Peterson status
Dec 18, 2008
2,804
1,444
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San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua
If by learning curve you mean 2 1/2 waves then yes.

I do think a person who primarily surfs HPSB tri fins might need a little more time with it.
Yes ... going from a thruster will seem a lot different from a single fin mid-length (where you're probably already used to using the rail versus trying to pivot off the fins). I've been riding twins or twinzers this entire season - a couple days ago jumped on a tri-fin for a single session - felt weird and slow. Yesterday - was in the 5'-6' range here - pretty walled up - guys on HPSB - were struggling to make it through a couple of sections before having to straighten out - even after pumping the sh!t out of their board. I was easily making it through the sections without having to pump. A couple of the things i learned - as far as the learning curve - is less is more - the less you try to pump the faster the board will go and understanding the line (bottom turn) that works - initially - at least with me - the tendency was to try to pull in quickly after initiating the bottom turn - the result was typically loss of speed .... as i got used to em - learned to let the board run out in the flat a little further - and let the board make a more rounded turn.
 

Duffy LaCoronilla

Duke status
Apr 27, 2016
38,637
27,968
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Yes ... going from a thruster will seem a lot different from a single fin mid-length (where you're probably already used to using the rail versus trying to pivot off the fins). I've been riding twins or twinzers this entire season - a couple days ago jumped on a tri-fin for a single session - felt weird and slow. Yesterday - was in the 5'-6' range here - pretty walled up - guys on HPSB - were struggling to make it through a couple of sections before having to straighten out - even after pumping the sh!t out of their board. I was easily making it through the sections without having to pump. A couple of the things i learned - as far as the learning curve - is less is more - the less you try to pump the faster the board will go and understanding the line (bottom turn) that works - initially - at least with me - the tendency was to try to pull in quickly after initiating the bottom turn - the result was typically loss of speed .... as i got used to em - learned to let the board run out in the flat a little further - and let the board make a more rounded turn.
Yes, which requires a bigger cleaner wave. People always trip out when I tell them my small wave boards are short thrusters while they are using quads (or twins).

Thrusters = tighter turns.

Twin fins (especially keel fishes) need some open face (or tubes).
 

rowjimmytour

Tom Curren status
Feb 7, 2009
11,534
5,832
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Yes, which requires a bigger cleaner wave. People always trip out when I tell them my small wave boards are short thrusters while they are using quads (or twins).

Thrusters = tighter turns.

Twin fins (especially keel fishes) need some open face (or tubes).
Not always my gbuzz and superbuzz both quads and short and stubby work great and I have no thrusters.
 

20W-50 and blood

Duke status
Feb 4, 2004
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Not everyone is going to like a Bonzer or an A/O. Not everyone is going to like any surfboard. There are differences in technique/waves that need accommodation. And this is comparing one world class surfer to another. They may agree, but often they may not. Back when I was younger, I frequently took boards out for a surf and immediately rejected them. The board sucked as far as I was concerned. (I was a pain in the ass) I was in a spot where frequently I could do that and just leave the board in the rack and pull another one out. And another rider pulls the board out and loves it. And the opposite. I grab someone's reject off the used rack and love it. It happens. I think most of us have experienced this. It's part of what makes it interesting. At least it is for me. I've always been fascinated by how things work. If it was all easy and black and white it wouldn't be so intriguing.

And sometimes a surfboard doesn't work for you. How many devoted thruster riders have experienced having a thruster they hate? 100%. Obviously. That happens with twins, quads and yes, even Bonzers. (Yes, I have had a few Bonzers I didn't like) My point here is riding one Bonzer, (or thruster, or twin or whatever) and not liking it and deciding that therefore all Bonzers, or all twins or all thrusters suck would be a less than reasonable conclusion.

But I understand the problem. Especially on a gun. And you are under no obligation to thoroughly investigate each and every design before you conclude that it doesn't work for you. Obviously. But I'm not a surfboard design fascist. Nor is Malcolm. At this point he has people coming from all over the world to get boards from him. And they keep coming back for more. He can't make all the surfboards. He has plenty of work. And believe it nor not, I have a couple of MC bonzer bottomed thrusters. They used to be fairly common around here. You kind of need 805 credentials, but he will still make them. But really, there is so much demand for Bonzers I think it's understandable that he wants to concentrate his efforts there. I'm just kind of pointing out the fact that rejecting a design because you got one specimen you didn't like is perhaps not exactly giving things a fair shake. But these are just toys. We are just big boys playing in the water with toys. Far be it from me to tell you what toy you need to frolic with. Do your thing. Just maybe keep an open mind. Sometimes just feeling something different has value. Sometimes a surfboard has things to teach you if you let it. :unsure:
if you cut one for a guy named phil (shoudl be liek 6'8-7'6 range w/ewings), get your dog or somecrackhead to dry hump it, take a pic, and i'll give you $50!
 
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flyinraptr

Michael Peterson status
Dec 18, 2008
2,804
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San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua
Again - sweet looking board! Both of the boards i've been riding this season have the twinzer setup - i've run both with and without the front canards .... one of the differences i've noticed is being able to make tighter radius turns with the twinzer setup.

Yes, which requires a bigger cleaner wave. People always trip out when I tell them my small wave boards are short thrusters while they are using quads (or twins).

Thrusters = tighter turns.

Twin fins (especially keel fishes) need some open face (or tubes).
 

spenat

Nep status
Feb 11, 2008
823
89
28
Brooklyn- Manhattan beach
I have one almost the same dims. 5-10 x ? x? The glass on twins are money.

Great choice for a good wave board for the southbay. likes an open face and mine holds well in the tube also.

As said above needs a bit of a face, it does not like mush very well.

Malcons kid (jacob?) posted some step up versions with a twin/ trailer set up on his IG page. are you getting one of those?
One of the step ups in 6-1 going to be my next order for sure.
 

thekadvang

Legend (inyourownmind)
Jan 29, 2013
361
543
93
i think we're central
RIDE REPORT:

Me: 5'9" 155 / mostly ride twin fins and quads
Board: 5'4" x 18 3/4" x 2 3/8" / futures true ames twins
Waves: bad to fun-ish nor-cen-cal beachbreak, knee to chest high

This review is going to echo a lot of the things the DUFF MAN said but here goes.

Hands down one of the craziest feeling boards I have ridden. Extremely loose and probably the fastest I have ever gone in waves of that size and I have been exclusively riding twins for a while.

With that said I do not find it easy to surf. Hard rail + crazy concaves + fins placed up the board makes for a super on top of the water feeling. NOT a board for choppy conditions or flat waves (as said previously).

My first couple of waves were shockers. Trying to surf it like my other twins (read: trying to "rip") had me flying out the back of the wave on almost every turn. Waves where I took Duffy's advice and applied pressure to the concave evenly without going heavy on the back foot as much felt way better. The more I surfed the board, the more I began to feel the water moving through the concaves and giving that squirt and burst of speed. Pretty addicting but definitely hard to master.

I was shocked at how well the board paddles and catches waves -- it hides a lot of foam with the beak nose even at those dims. I was able to catch and do turns on knee to waist high low tide beachbreak runners where most of the crowd was on midlengths or longboards, which is always rad. Even on small waves I had a couple of speed burst feelings coming from WAY behind sections and making them which never fails to provide the stoke.

My take on this board is it's like the sports car of twin fins and I really want to get it into some point surf where I can open it up. Needs space and clean waves to go off. 100% a keeper.
 

ReForest

Michael Peterson status
Oct 7, 2020
3,071
4,555
113
RIDE REPORT:

Me: 5'9" 155 / mostly ride twin fins and quads
Board: 5'4" x 18 3/4" x 2 3/8" / futures true ames twins
Waves: bad to fun-ish nor-cen-cal beachbreak, knee to chest high

This review is going to echo a lot of the things the DUFF MAN said but here goes.

Hands down one of the craziest feeling boards I have ridden. Extremely loose and probably the fastest I have ever gone in waves of that size and I have been exclusively riding twins for a while.

With that said I do not find it easy to surf. Hard rail + crazy concaves + fins placed up the board makes for a super on top of the water feeling. NOT a board for choppy conditions or flat waves (as said previously).

My first couple of waves were shockers. Trying to surf it like my other twins (read: trying to "rip") had me flying out the back of the wave on almost every turn. Waves where I took Duffy's advice and applied pressure to the concave evenly without going heavy on the back foot as much felt way better. The more I surfed the board, the more I began to feel the water moving through the concaves and giving that squirt and burst of speed. Pretty addicting but definitely hard to master.

I was shocked at how well the board paddles and catches waves -- it hides a lot of foam with the beak nose even at those dims. I was able to catch and do turns on knee to waist high low tide beachbreak runners where most of the crowd was on midlengths or longboards, which is always rad. Even on small waves I had a couple of speed burst feelings coming from WAY behind sections and making them which never fails to provide the stoke.

My take on this board is it's like the sports car of twin fins and I really want to get it into some point surf where I can open it up. Needs space and clean waves to go off. 100% a keeper.
Where's the pic of the board?
 
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