Hi all - 25y/o girl, 170cm tall, 65kg.
Skill level:
I've just gotten back into surfing after about 8 years, currently surfing tiny Secret Harbour waves so just doing modest turns - I have good balance but not excellent fitness yet. I've never surfed anything other than a beach break - I'm from South Africa where we have loads of great beaches.
I'm currently on a 6'8 7S Superfish (I think it's over 40L), that I find to be excellent to paddle and great on small waves, but not as responsive as I'd like.
I'm looking for something a little higher performance, but don't want to overestimate my own skills and I'm feeling really overwhelmed by all the different board shapes!
From doing a number of calculators, my ideal volume is around 30L. Any suggestions on choosing a shape of shortboard, and then length that I should be looking at?
I'm seeing a lot of shorter fatter boards, which look like they'll be a lot of fun, but any suggestions are welcome!
Thanks 
Sooooo many variables to consider.
First off the rank i would be ultra cautious going from 40'ishL (i think that would be about 44L???) down to 30L.
I would consider scaling down in volume gradually unless you feel that your skills are quite significantly above your current ride, especially if your not at your ideal surfing fitness level yet.
Id look at something in between what you have and where you'd like to be ( Board volume wise) to carry you through Autumn and winter ready to peak into your ideal performance board for Spring.
Thanks for the reply! I used to ride a shortboard when I was younger (can't really tell from the photo but it gives an approximate size & shape!), it was still quite wide and thick but much smaller than the fish I have right now, I found that to be more challenging to ride but I liked the responsiveness.
Shape is still my main source of confusion though - what would the difference be if I got a 34L 5'10 wider board, vs a thinner (still 34L) 6'2 board? Or maybe I should ask it like this - for surfing smallish, hollow waves, what shape is going to give me the most stability while still allowing some manoeuvrability? Thanks!
Hi,
If you are enjoying the board you are on I would suggest looking at a smaller version - say the 6'3" 7S SuperFish... You will still enjoy the paddling benefit of a fish, and being 5" smaller you'll notice the gain in responsiveness.
PS - I surf the 7S S/F in fast breaking beach breaks... even though they are wide and fat, when you put your weight on your back foot over the fins they are plenty responsive...
That sounds like a solid plan - this is the first fish I've ever surfed and the paddling benefits are really awesome - wave count has increased a ton.
Will definitely keep this board for the smaller days, as I've just started a massive painting project on it!
^^^
Cool art! Post back when you get more done...
That looks like a V1 of the S/F. They have also released a V2 with some tweaks in the tail and bottom contours - and also a V3 that does not have the step-deck. I have a V1 in the shed and a V2 as my 'daily driver'... a mate of mine has the V3 @ 7'6" and is happy with it for the smaller days.
Select to expand quoteKimCoco said..
Thanks for the reply! I used to ride a shortboard when I was younger (can't really tell from the photo but it gives an approximate size & shape!), it was still quite wide and thick but much smaller than the fish I have right now, I found that to be more challenging to ride but I liked the responsiveness.
Shape is still my main source of confusion though - what would the difference be if I got a 34L 5'10 wider board, vs a thinner (still 34L) 6'2 board? Or maybe I should ask it like this - for surfing smallish, hollow waves, what shape is going to give me the most stability while still allowing some manoeuvrability
Agree with GPA, that's a sensible way forward.
