Short, Long, or SUP, what's the difference and why does it matter?

I've been coming to swellinfo for years to check the surf reports and have been reading posts on here for quite some time, only recently did I choose to register and chime in. After years of surfing and being around all types of people I've noticed a common theme amongst the majority. What i've noticed is most people stick with one type of board and believe that they are somehow superior to those who choose to surf something else other than what they believe is "acceptable" in THEIR eyes. Short boarders stick to short boards, Loggers stick with their Log, etc.

I'm going to be turning 31 this month and have been surfing for a little more than half my life. I 1st started surfing a 6ft 4" shorty in my teens and that's the only board I had up until my mid 20's when i got got a bit lazy and put on weight (too much beer drinking and chasing women), around that time I realized my board had seen better days and it was probably not the right board for me anymore, so I stepped up to a 6ft 10" WRV Fish to add a little more foam although I was a bit skeptical before buying it because I didn't want to get a board "too big" (that's how I thought too) and be looked down upon. That was when i actually gave a s**** what others thought, but with age you tend to not care as much. So after having my ups and downs with the Fish, mostly due to my shoulder issues and fitness level at the time, I decided to start looking at long boards but I didn't want anything "too big" (once again) but I was convinced by more than a few people that if I have shoulder problems and need to catch waves, then my best bet was to go with a LB, so for my 29th B Day i was given a 8ft 1" HP LB which really got me back into the swing of things and I was able to revive my stoke and as a result have been more dedicated to the sport than I ever was before.

Being in Florida (which i love) I have seen my fair share of flat spells, although we have solid surf here there are those summer spells that really suck and can keep one from paddling out for days / weeks. Although I had always been more interested in the smaller boards I found I was missing out on lots of days due to not having the right equipment for the conditions. My old way of thinking was to just suck it up and wait for the next swell or cry and complain that it's not big enough for my board, but as we get older and we change so does our thinking, and I found myself looking at SUP's as a way to bridge the gap during the down times.

So last April (my B day) I was lucky enough that my fiance got me a new SUP to make it through those flat spells and smaller days which is exactly what I needed. Now I am on the water year round, flat or going off, doesn't matter, there is a board in my home I can grab on any day for any condition, but at the end of the day, i'm on the water, which is where I am happiest, and I find that i'm just as happy on my SUP as I am on my Fish or HP LB. The best part is i'm getting in even better shape than i've ever been in because i'm always in the water, and my skills are returning (i had lost a step... or two) and i'm now progressing at a higher rate than I ever did with one board.

Having said all that, what is the difference? Who really cares what board you have? Am I any different of a surfer because I have more than one option for equipment? Should I consider myself something other than a surfer when I'm on my SUP? I'm a short boarder at heart, and still paddle out on my FISH, but when the conditions allow for it, I also SUP.

 

Thanks for your reply, and you very well may be right on a couple things but there are a couple things I'd like to point out. I might care in the sense that I took the time to make this post, but not in the the sense that it would ever stop me from doing what i want to do, because nothing would ever change that. I'm more just curious as to why people think this way and hope that by having this discussion that maybe a few people could open their mind as did I after years of having similar thinking.

I don't fully agree with the attitude that short boards require more skill vs. the longer boards. Sure there are things about short boards that are harder than if you were on a long board, i.e. paddling, balance, endurance and certain manuevers, but there are things that are actually easier on the shorty, like duck diving, making turns, overall control and ability to whip it around, so they both have their challenges. What i've found after experiencing all types of boards is there are definitely DIFFERENT skills needed for each type of board, not necessarily easier or harder, but DIFFERENT. And the SUP is a whole different ball game in and of it'self. It's made me a better surfer having the SUP, no doubt about it.

The one misconception i think people have with the SUP is that it requires "less skill" than a short board. Where that might be true in some aspects, it not exactly true as a whole. Most of the people who say this typically do not own an SUP and have not taken the time to learn on one. They just assume this is only for flat water or think that because it's a much larger board that it's autmatically easy, and I can see why you would think this if you are noticing a guy on an SUP just killing it while you are struggling to even get a wave. What i recommend to anybody who has never tried to SUP surf is to rent one and paddle out into chest high waves and see how it goes. I've seen countless "surfers" try to surf with an SUP and fail miserably, and for good reason, there are definitely MAJOR differences between surfing an SUP and a short board, which require a different skill set... but that doesn't make it harder than short board surfing, it just makes it DIFFERENT.

 

I agree 100%, if you can't control your equipment, you don't belong in the lineup. However, if you CAN control it and are able to surf just as good as the next guy (regardless of board size) then this should be a moot point, that's all i'm getting at here.

 

Thank you and I agree with you, except for the part about validating my decision, that's not what this is about, I don't need any validation, i'm more hoping to open up others minds about them. And yes, the shoulder issues played a big role in my decision but that doesn't mean i've given up surfing the shorter boards either, because i'm still out there on them when the conditions are right.

 

Seen videos of this type of thing, but I personally would never consider it in a million years, everything has it's place though.

 

Valid points, for me personally when it's chest high and the wind is low, i bring both my SUP and my HP LB or my Fish, depending how my shoulders feel. I'll take a crack at both or even all three depending on how much fun i'm having. If the wind is over 15mph i leave the SUP at home.

As far as most people NOT killing it on the SUP, i think that speaks to the level of SKILLS actually needed to be able to actually SURF succesfully, hence my opinion that it's DIFFERENT and not necessarily easier or harder. For those who are still struggling to maintain control of their equipment, move down the beach and learn where nobody is at... when you are catching waves with great frequency and not falling all over yourself, then you can make your way back up the beach.

 

My feelings exactly.

 

Same can be said for short boarders man (and I am one as well). They're are just as many if not MORE idiots / kooks on short boards in the lineup as there are loggers or SUP surfers. My point of this whole post is that it's not the board / equipment one uses, but their level of skill and etiquette used while in the lineup. I can empathize with you from the stand point that you have had numerous negative encounters just as I have, only difference is I don't PRE-JUDGE anybody for what board they bring to the water, i let their actions speak for them. You may be right about some dudes on an SUP or Log, but you couldn't be more wrong if you were referring to me or others like me.