How many sessions do you give a new board

sdsrfr

Phil Edwards status
Jul 13, 2020
5,854
11,262
113
San Diego
kind of one of those if you know you know situations.

If the board is new and the conditions I bought it for are on offer, i know what i want to know in the first handful of sessions. The results can be:

- boar is exactly as i hoped/expected
- interesting sensations worth feeling out
- wtf was that
- I am pretty sure i fell for the marketing

If the board is new and the conditions i bought it for aren't on offer but I surf it anyway, after the first handful of sessions the results can be:

- holy cow, magic boar
- interesting sensations worth feeling out
- wow, never surfing this in these conditions again
- uh oh, is this boar even gonna work?

In the latter scenario, once subseqent conditions are as expected, I'll continue to re-evaluate the board (until i've sold it) and typically have the following result:

- holy cow, really is a magic boar. KEEPER
- interesting sensations, disappointed, depending on overlap MIGHT SELL
- wow, boar works better in marginal conditions than as intended, PROBABLY SELL
- uh oh, is this boar is not gonna work. SELL
 

Waterlogged05

Michael Peterson status
May 14, 2005
1,923
1,822
113
Anyone have any funny board switching moments?

Trying friend's PJ lib tech, waves start to pick up on the outside, take it out there and am absolutely redlining and skipping down the face in chest high waves. Try to take a late backside bottom turn and grab rail and the tail just slides out and I'm drifting unwillingly and cussing while sliding backwards and looking at the lip

Went to grab that driver 2.0, first backside snap turn I tried, I pushed so hard the board popped out like a pop shuv it and swung around into my shin. Oh yea, you don't have to push it like a thick boat. Put a nice knee crater on the nose on the 2nd session.
 
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Mar 7, 2018
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after riding modern medium rocker shortboards for years i got a low rockered shortboard. it was so much faster in the normal beachbreaks i ride that i was out running sections and missing the mark in general. on a particularly good wave i couldnt get near the tube. a cheeky grom i know suggested i was dodging the barrel.... it took about 5 or 6 surfs to get the hang of the board, but it is a keeper now.
 

Waterlogged05

Michael Peterson status
May 14, 2005
1,923
1,822
113
after riding modern medium rocker shortboards for years i got a low rockered shortboard. it was so much faster in the normal beachbreaks i ride that i was out running sections and missing the mark in general. on a particularly good wave i couldnt get near the tube. a cheeky grom i know suggested i was dodging the barrel.... it took about 5 or 6 surfs to get the hang of the board, but it is a keeper now.
I'm always trying to make sections at mushy beach break so when I get to real surf I have remember I'm not trying to outrun it, any advice for this? Besides stay in the pocket?
 

oeste858

Phil Edwards status
Sep 11, 2017
6,931
17,272
113
San Diego, CA
Yeah, especially in summer, it’s easy to get used to surfing crumbly sections and just trying to extend the waves. Instead of angling in at the take off to get a jump on going down the line, try to consciously remember to do a real bottom turn off the drop, and then go straight back up into the pocket for the first snap… rather than projecting out onto the open face / shoulder. This also is the biggest adjustment for me when I go from fishy/planing hull boars back to a pointy-nose thruster.
 

sdsrfr

Phil Edwards status
Jul 13, 2020
5,854
11,262
113
San Diego
i was once told -

forget everything else, get low off the bottom, hit the chit out of the lip. get low again and then hit the chit out of the lip. stop thinking about that section down the line and just hit the chit out of the lip.

somehow burning this into my head when I need to be in the pocket does the trick and everything else becomes muscle memory.
 
Mar 7, 2018
94
143
33
I'm always trying to make sections at mushy beach break so when I get to real surf I have remember I'm not trying to outrun it, any advice for this? Besides stay in the pocket?
“Channel your inner 1980s fluoro short short wearing spirit animal and attack that foam and show disdain for the open face.”
Sorry, the above comment was submitted after consumption of a six pack and a packet of potato crisps.
 
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gkatz

Legend (inyourownmind)
Aug 12, 2008
350
6
18
8 sessions with poor conditions
5 for good
less then that you will not know anything...
it also depends if you are moving from one category to another. for example from a groveler to a HP. the adjustments are going to take more time