Do you really need a longboard?

i borrowed a friends 10' log this summer for a month and man, i did not want to give that thing back!! i shortboard (fish/HPSB) and had never ridden a noserider before this summer and i loved it for all the reasons already stated. its different but its new and fresh to me. plus in VB, its always gutless and a pain in the ass to find sections to hit if you dont have the right board. anyone trying to dump a noserider off????

 

Even better john tolly is our island good boards and custom. Cheapand ploy great for our waves have one that is 10 year old

 

Do you NEED an LB? No, but as many others said they like to ride them so what's the big deal?

 

I'm 42, I ride almost nothing but longboards.

 

I stopped questioning or caring about what other people thought of my board selection about 6 or 7 years ago

 

I'm a total cliche - the local old guy on a log sitting way outside catching everything. I know I annoy the kids on the thrusters because I was them 10-15 years ago - but I paid my dues

 

you cant hang ten on a 5'10 fish.... unless your joel tuddor or something ... its all about style. I enjoy riding a longboard in head hi perfection as much as a shortboard and would rather cruze on a 2ft gutless wave on a log then have to work it on a 5'10 fish... just my opion tho- what ever floats your boat- as long as you ride it!

 

I throw cheater 5's all day on my 5'10" fish!!!

 

When is it ever below head high in Belmar, I mean Deal, New Jersey?

 

sorry,zip,if you had a 9'6" single fin log for that handful of days a year you would be totally stoked and not 'getting other things done.' by 'ripping,' I mean,yeah,lance carson 'ripped' on a longboard, but in the late 60's longboards virtually became extinct because instead of being stuck on top of the water we could carve into the wave and get involved in being part of the wave.when it got down to 7'6" they kept going down to 5'5" or so,but for a time there like 1967-'72 the 7'6" was the hottest stick.I love a shortboard single fin when it's good,a fish when it's slow,a thruster when it's super critical/pumping/maxed-out,and MR twin when it's totally rippable,a quad fishy when it's somewhere in-between, a mini-mal when it's almost too small,but this wave here is often none of the above,and then I find the 7'6" single fin 1960's shortboard-revolution style board is really fun and works best.the fact that the fake hippie kooks like knost/kegel are totally ripping on them all time means something,but guys around here just discount them as funshapes unless you're talking about a little egg.

 

I love riding longboards. That retro glide is awesome. Nose riding, driving a big single fin off the tail, that feeling when you take a big board off the top and almost float down the wave face. On a vb waist high day I get more rail to rail action (and wayyy more waves) than most people out there groveling on their short boards. I still ride shortboards when the waves actually call for it, which I am finding to be a constantly shrinking window the more I ride my log. Currently riding a big old 60's style single fin, and loving it. Don't forget, the best surfer is the guy having the most fun out there.

I've got a 9'6 stewart that I can part with, pretty beat up but still kicking. More of an all-arounder than a nose rider or performance shape, it's a good one. Let me know 757.

 

Brah!!! it was 2ft overhead this weekend at 16th ave in Belmar, NJ... you didn't paddle out??? it was firing- best stop in the south!

 

If it wasn't for noseriding, I wouldn't own a log.

 

You got to be LB speciffic. I don't have much use for a HPLB because It competes for the same wave as a fish. A noserider fits the bill for those small lined up mushy daze....

 

Each shape has inherent advantages and disadvantages. If you have overhead waves that have open faces, lined up with lulls between sets, a longboard or midrange will be a blast, as long as the initial drop is not too steep or late. You won't have to duck dive if you time it right, and the extra foam will help you paddle in early and get lots of speed to make the first section. You can do big cutbacks and when it starts to close out you'll have lots of speed for a big floater and maybe connect to the inside.

If it is overhead and hard offshore ( in my dreams ), and a steep critical drop is required, or if there is not a lot of lulls and lots of duck diving is required to punch outside, you can go longer, but not wider. Go thicker: instead of 2.25 - 2.5 inches I like a 2.66 to 2.75 thickness on my step up/ semi-gun. Not necessarily much longer ( 6'6" instead of 6'4" ) so it still fits into the pocket, but the extra thickness gives you better ability to paddle down the face on take off and get down the line before you get crunched. Thinner in width a bit for more control in critical sections. More pulled in tail too. Maybe rounded pin instead of squash or swallow tailed.

When it is clean and glassy and lined up, whether it is knee high or overhead, longboards rule. The speed and the glide are unsurpassed, and if you have sharp rails and foil and rocker in the tail you can rip on one. IMO.

 

I have to say that I have really enjoyed reading these posts. For me personally, I like riding a longboard in almost any conditions. To quote Allan Weisbecker in his book In Search of Captain Zero: "I've taken to riding a longboard nearly exclusively these days,... Truth is, 90% of all surfing is done in the less than ideal conditions of size, speed and power that best suit most shortboard surfing. The shortboard revolution, in its wild-eyed enthusiasm, failed to take this into account." I'm 57 years old and have ridden longboards (in the past 5 years) in 8+ foot Haleiwa, 12 foot Playa Hermosa (very hollow) and 8 foot Witch's Rock, and most importantly, had a great time doing so. I can get out in anything and as long as I paddle in diagonally (not too hard to do when you've been at it as long as I have) catch and ride most any degree of hollowness. I have ridden shortboards and enjoy doing so when the waves are right, but more often than not, I catch more waves and experience longer rides on a longboard (9+ feet). I would suggest riding a variety of boards and seeing what style you find most fun. After all, as the Duke said, that is what it is all about!!

 

I almost exclusively use my log now in CFL, big (for here) or small waves
mid twenties ~140lb's I should really be riding a short board, but longboard is just too fun

 

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