This 5'10" x 20 3/4" x 2 3/8" EPS Flying Floatey Fish quad shaped by Tom Neilson in Cocoa Beach was delivered the other day. It's the little brother to a 5'10.5" x 21" x 2 5/8" EPS Flying Floatey Fish that I've been riding for about a year now.
Version one is a niche board for me; in slopey high tide beach break from knee to shoulder high I have not ridden a better board. Gets up to speed quickly with a pump or two then just planes and maintains speed over the flat spots. The pulled in tail allows for quick changes of direction but you can also draw out turns and the board will just flow and won't lose speed. Even though the nose is wide, you can turn the board at speed and not worry about it catching. Version one is high volume though, thick with full rails, and when the waves get steeper it tends to hang up on take offs and had a bit of that corky feel.
I ordered the new board a little shorter, a little narrower, and a quarter inch thinner and told Tom I wanted the board for a wider range of conditions. I've had a couple sessions on the board and it does exactly what I wanted it to do. Has the familiar speed generation, planing and turning ability as the first one; the ride is totally consistent. I can't wait to ride it in steeper lined up conditions.
There is a definite sweet spot (both front and back feet) and consistent foot placement is key.
I think it would be fun to experiment with this shape in different lengths and different fin configurations; seems like a board that could easily be customized for different ride preferences and conditions.
Tom is really easy to deal with and ships to CA; both boards were finished in about a month and delivered about 10 days after that, well-packed.
Anyway, these boards work great for me, I really think Tom has the magic formula for this shape.
