Bertlemann liked his fin loose in his single fin channel so the fin would flex and tilt as he turned.. Now most people on this site would argue he was wrong.. that you lose speeed, that blah blah blah.. But most people cant surf like Bertlemann even with out modern day equipment. You have to wonder.. is it the fin. Or is it the surfer? All this talk of fins, parallel profile rails, and space helmuts.. What Ive come to find is its not the equipment or the waves that make the difference but the surfer. Everything else is marketing and delusion.
I agree with the surfer is more important than the equipment aswell. And though the wave shape and size is a factor, I wouldn't call it a HUGE variable. It definitely determines how you surf or how you approach a wave on that given day but if you know what your doing and have some skill you can surf a small day just as well as a bigger day, you just don't present that skill in the same way. In fact, and this is just my opinion but I find it harder to surf a smaller day with style and grace then a bigger day (knee high compared to chest high). About equipment though, I feel guys these days sweat the little stuff instead of looking at the big picture. Tail shape, fins, an extra inch here so on and so forth will make a difference sure but only slightly. Board choice plays a much bigger role. And I'm not talking about choosing between a 6'0 or a 6'2. If the waves call for a shortboard ride your favorite shortboard. If they call for a longboard ride the longboard. I find that so many people have 7 shortboard all with in acouple inches of each other. Or they swap there fins out on a daily basis between 12 diffrent styles of fins. Unless your kelly it's a waste. Sorry for the long rant but it's something that really grinds my gears. One last thing, today was waist high, kind of weak but clean. I brought out my go to longboard. Had a blast. Caught the wave of the day according to everyone else out. There was one guy out who is a pretty good surfer, but today he looked like it was his first year surfing. He told me he chose his 6'3 over his 6'0.
Exactly, you said it better than I could. Wave and board design effect how you approach that given day.
The great thing about surfing is exactly that...that no two surfers are gonna have the exact same approach to riding the wave. Be it what they ride, how they ride it. Its all personal expression. Thats why we have so many options and ways to do things. Its all about finding what works best for YOU!!! Become friends with a shaper and go nuts!!! Odds are your not going pro so you dont need to be on some chipped out shortboard. Get something weird and have fun. You'll find you end up doing way better when you actually do throw a shortboard under your feet. You'll actually have some style and flow.
And in regards to this...its the surfer WITH the fin...people who say the fins dont make a difference are fooling themselves. Want proof? Look up George Greenough, or just take a look at all the different kind of fins that fish have. Although there are marketing schemes going, yes surfing is a multi-billion dollar industry now, we are lucky enough to enjoy a sport that has stuck to its roots and still actually listens to the people who do it and do it well to know what works and what doesnt. Most pro surfers (tour surfers and free surfing pros alike, not to mention the old timers) are still involved in design and research of what we get to choose from as the non-pro everyday surfer. And they dont want their names on gimicky product that doesnt actually work and they wouldnt use themselves.
