2015 Naish Nalu 11.

I searched for a review of this board and couldn't find one so I thought I would post one myself
i don't work for anyone and I buy my gear (unfortunately)
I'm a mediocre surfer and paddler and surf 2 times per week year round on average.
weigh 105kg 6'3
Supping for about 3 yrs
had around 6 sessions on a Nalu 11.0 GT now

surf from 1-4 foot reef breaks
glassy to mush

Board
its relatively light to handle
nice deep handle
nice deck grip and comfy double concave stance area
feels stiff in the water
large sweet spot to stand
stable as my old mana10'
Nice domed deck at the back to feel when your back foot is in place

Pros
i must say I am impressed with this board and it does not feel like an 11 foot board on the wave
it paddles extremely easily and drives down the line great
Super easy to paddle out through broken waves or reach a remote wave
it will drive through foamy sections without loosing speed and catch up on sections really well
It likes to turn mid face on a drop in and will pump up as much speed as you can generate it seems.
Catches anything and everything ( it is big !!) and gets you into them nice and early
you can picnic out the back between sets.
it will turn and cut back sharpish - you need to be on the tail
it will foam climb/float easily
Deceptively Fast on a wave
My wave count is well up.

Cons
it is 11 foot and is not the fastest to turn and scramble
it pulls like a bull when you are stuck inside paying your dues
it can catch its nose if you come off the top in a steep wave (like any Mal will)
stock side fins have some bubbles through the glass

Waiting to wind-sup it but hope it's as nice as it is to paddle

If you like riding a mal then this thing will suit It's a great lazy paddlers board

i confess I will ride a normal surfboard to hack big turns and I SUP to get a lot of waves easily and
avoid crowds -this board does that great. It's a pleasure to paddle this thing - it's definitely a keeper.

Well done Naish!

Great review.. It really is an awesome board..

Tardy,
I have a hokua too and I am finding this board is my go to board most times

it's just so easy to ride and it does surf really well

i rode the 10'6 and this is a scaled up version in my view - similar character
i could easily be on the 10'6 though
Both great boards

Ive read nothing but positive things about this board ....it's on the list . As my next board to buy.
jumping off the 11.4 today ...shortening the board .almost half a foot and adding an extra inch in the width ,would improve it,in wave conditions.11' Nalu

I,ve had my 11 footer for a while now and will throw my $0.02 worth in.
I have been a long time longboarder, and have been supping for about 5 years.
when I first got the Nalu I was not too impressed, it was a bit slow and found it harder than expected to paddle onto waves.
This is due to the large degree of rocker and vee in it, which does make it turn nice and easy, much easier than one might expect of such a large board.

However I have persisted with it and found when you get it in the right sort of conditions for this big mother, you can have a lot of fun.
For instance, forget bigger steeper waves. This board particularly likes small waves. I find waves steep or fat up to hip height are perfect.
I get plenty of waves in these conditions, do roundhouses, noserides, re-entries, etc. It really does turn that well.
Nose riding, (I mean 5 or ten toes over the nose), is very tricky on this board, because of the amount of rocker through the nose, but is doable in the right conditions.
So if you specifically want a nose rider this likely isn't your board. Look for a board with much less rocker, especially through the front 2 thirds of the board.
Bigger waves that are a bit on the fat side, not steep at all, I expect may also suit this board.

Sailing: I love sailing this board it just goes really well. I've mainly been using a 7m twin cam sail in 8 to 15 knots.
Having said that, Although it's been close, I've not had it planing and don't expect to due to the amount of rocker.
It does glide along pretty fast though.

BTW I'm 80 Kg

Cheers,
Ken.

Windrider thank you for your review!
How would you compare the surfing abilities of the Nalu 11'00 to your old Mana 10'00?
Thanks

Nice shot slab..I must admit the 11.4 cuts across the face nicely ..and holds a good speed.
ouch ...looks cold ..we've just put spring suits on this week ..the water has dropped from 25.8 c to 21c.
rip it up .

MTsup
I think the 11 surfs way better than the Mana 10

I find it is much more refined and surfs like a true mal does
it glides better and is at least as stable
note my mana 10 was a 2012 model

I mainly surf reefbreaks - fast, but not really that sucky or hollow
I find it surfs fine at head high or above but this may be my size/weight helping.?.?
i am yet to surf it over true 4ft waves though - but I will do.

it handles steep waves as long as you ride like a mal - ie turn a mid face bottom turn at drop in-
you definitely get in really early and have heaps of time to set up
Its really easy to flip it sideways at takeoff and if you are really late there is enough tail rocker to stamp a steep drop.
I haven't had it cork out yet and I've dropped into a few bombs

Its fast on a steep wall and likes to pump even from a mid board stance
I think the rocker is perfect - it has two faces as you move backwards
mid board it loves small waves and is just fun gliding around
step back and you can stall/pump easily and turn pretty well for the the amount of swing weight/length.

You can turn it pretty sharp and if you come off the top/hit the lip you can load up the tail and 'slide' down
without nosediving. i sometimes shuffle/step back mid turn

its no shortboard but I didn't buy it for that.

my wave count is up 30% on this thing - it's a wave machine.

hope this helps
WR

Area 10
Im 105kg empty....