I want a new board....??

[2thdoc01]

Ok, so for 3 years I've surfed on a broadcast....me being lazy and confused, just stuck with the broadcast. If this helps.... I'd consider myself an expert downhill skier, advanced snowboarder, advanced waterskier, intermediate wakeboarder, and a growing intermediate surfer.

I can ride as long as I want rope less, have shot gunned a beer while riding and made some epic wipeouts. So I want something easy to ride, but that allows me to carve and spin. Like with my snowboard...I don't want something out of Control, but I'd like to have fun with the board do some spins and carve, but I don't need to do any contests!

Where do I start?

[skippabcool]

The best advice would be if you can demo several to see what you like. There are many different options. You might find one that you get and like but then try another that you fall in love with. If you can find some other TO's in your area that surf that might be one way to try some boards if you don't have a pro shop that you can demo them. I would recommend getting a custom one. Not one that was factory made. They are fine but it seems the custom ones get the bigger nods.

[skippabcool]

I would check out Wake9.com. They have several that have been tested and give reviews. Those are not the only ones but a starting point.

[NICKYPOO]

Sounds like you are definitely ready for a real board. I myself am nearly the same type of rider minus the snowskiing. I'm thinking you might be looking for a particular edge "feel"? That type of edge feel you get from a freshly tuned pair of skis or snowboard? Perhaps that slalom ski "locked in" edge? That is what I look for in a board. I found what I was looking for in a full hard rail pintail skim board. I never liked the feel of surf style boards. I hate the thickness of them. To me its like driving a truck whereas the 3/4" thick skimboard feels more like a go-cart. The hard rails also have a more responsive feel to me. Almost hyper-sensitive. I originally thought it was like having super traction but, that feel might actually be a product of the pintail as well as the rails (see the wakesurf tail shape thread). The hard rails might just be responsible for outright speed as well. Water tends to follow whatever shape it is in contact with. With a hard rail, it seems to release cleanly, right off the bottom of the board. The water flow with shaped rails tends to flow up around them. Contact with water creates drag. If water is flowing off the bottom and following the shaped rail, it seems to me it is causing drag. There was a thread a few months back by surfdad where he built a thin board. It had full length hard rails and squash tail. It ended up being a squirly rocket ship. Maybe if it had been a pintail it would have been a little more stable? I had my Walzer made that way. It is a 54" x 20 1/2" x 3/4" pintail with full length hard rails. Surfdad has been quoted as saying, "The Walzer is one of the best riding boards I have ever ridden." I tend to agree.

The problem with getting into the advanced boards is that they tend to be advanced in price as well. This is a problem with shops wanting to demo them. They are just to damn expensive to let people go out and thrash them. Do what you can do to ride every board you can. Pay attention to the details of the board and learn what shapes and what components do what. Read surfdad's threads. He has posted a lot of knowledge. Knowledge is king when you have to guess.

[NICKYPOO]

P.S.- Sean Walzer no longer makes boards. At least not for the public. That I know of.

[2thdoc01]

Here is the problem....on the Lakes I go to...NO ONE surfs! Being in Wi, there probably arent that many shops...if any...that have surf boards for sale let alone to demo.

So I have to get the advice from the net and choose something wisely. I dont mind paying a few bucks for a nice board.

I def like the carving and hard turns and Id like to get air off the lip of the wave.

So enlighten me oh wise ones.....

[jbort]

Its kinda personal - but helps to know your weight for reference purposes.

[NICKYPOO]

Its kinda personal - but helps to know your weight for reference purposes.

Major factor. I'm guessing that if you do all these sports and can easily ride a Broadcast, you are less than 200 which really opens the door to just about any board out there. If I had to pic a board to purchase today, I would more than likely end up with a Calibrated Piscus. The XXX Composite catches my eye though. Phase 5 is also on my short list. Not one of them is exactly what I want though. It never hurts to call the company and tell them what you're looking and listen to there suggestions. They might even be able to do something custom for you based on your specs.

I feel for you. We have no proshop around here either. I made an educated guess on my board and it paid off. Anything you pick is going to be light years better than that Broadcast so, try not to freak out too much.

[robert theisen]

I just got this Phase 5 Carbon X Hybrid board.It's the best of both worlds.Fast and responsive like a skim board,but tons of push and tracks well like a surf style. I'LL let you know in a couple weeks how i like it.

[auburntigegal]

I'm with doc.... Confused. The whole family is ready for a faster, more responsive board. We have all learned on the Ronix Cortez, but we need to upgrade! How do you know what length to get? Not trying to hijack your thread doc! But maybe it will help us both We range from 125 to 185#, plus I have really short legs (I'm only 5'1") and my husband is 6'. Does that make a difference? We want to get some air this summer!

[2thdoc01]

No worries ATG....the more info the better. I'm 5'10" 195....but I need to drop 10 to get into my bikini shape! Lol but eating pancakes at the cracker barrel in Athens on my way to Pensacola didn't help that cause!

There are so many " custom brands" out there, it's hard to know what to buy. If I can find something to be easy to carve and catch air, I'll be happy.

The broadcast is fine for casual riding, but trying to turn on it is like taking corners in an old caddy 4 door!

[Timmy!]

Once you get over 180lbs it seems you have to go with a bigger board. I'm looking to buy and/or build one right now as well. I like the Shred Stixx that duffymahoney is having built and I like the Walker Project stuff, Inland Surfer Swallow V2 quad and the Triple XXX boards look good for only $300-$400. There's a lot to choose from! The best bet would be to go to the Wakesurf Open that Ragboy is hosting and try them all out.

[NICKYPOO]

I'm with doc.... Confused. The whole family is ready for a faster, more responsive board. We have all learned on the Ronix Cortez, but we need to upgrade! How do you know what length to get? Not trying to hijack your thread doc! But maybe it will help us both We range from 125 to 185#, plus I have really short legs (I'm only 5'1") and my husband is 6'. Does that make a difference? We want to get some air this summer!

What works best for you is not going to work for your husband. You wouldn't buy one waterski for the whole family. You wouldn't buy one snowboard for the whole family. While much more forgiving in that department, advanced wakesurfing requires a more individualized approach to equipment. We take three wakesurf boards to the lake everytime we go out; mine, my wife's and one for everybody else. Everyone is free to ride whichever one they want and anyone can bring whatever they want but, when its my turn to ride, I ride my board. I had it made for me and only me.

The general consensus is that surf style boards are the best for catching air. They generate more speed therefore giving you a better shot of getting air as you carry that speed up the face of the wake.

[jbort]

x2 on Nickypoo comment.

I have 2010 Walker Project 5.1 Bazooka for big boy surf style and really like that board and I go about 255lbs. ST68 has one too and like alot. WE have become familiar w Lakewakes becasue its custom and made near Atlanta - my son now goes on smaller size Lakewakes board and my wife really really likes older Hyperlite Landlock which is a piggish but good starter board. She's super attached to the dang thing. Plus many of the custom guys update their designs at least every yr if not more frequently so its a challenge to keep up unless u have some ability to try out other boards via friends/dealers.

For AuburnTigeGal & family (or others); We r gonna try a new Lakewakes in a few weeks we bought late last yr and while its a trip to come to Atlanta, Mark at Lakewakes may have some boards to try out so give him a ring if u like. He's doing some real cool stuff w new materials but price levels also moved higher but most custom surf makers seem to be in $500-$700 range. I like surf style more because thats the only thing I've ridden but there are lots of folks getting lots of air on skim boards plus cool tricks. We are happy to entertain other folks if u want to come this way and try some boards.

[auburntigegal]

jbort, that sounds great! I really would like to try something out before I shell out $700! It's only 4 hours to Atlanta! I'll hit you and Lakewakes up soon hopefully!