Ok serious question from a life long surfer and now foil brained 40 year old. For the days where barrels are a possibility or it’s big slop and steep drops, what shape surfboard would take the least amount of time to get dialed in a hurry? I’d way rather foil but if it’s more of a surfing day, I’m game for that too. I rode my old rad ripper the other day and it was hard to get my feet in the right spot after prone surfing the last 3 years. What board would be like second nature to hop on? A shorter and thicker twin fish? Something stretched out a bit that doesn’t need to be turned from the tail as much? I’m way past trying to be an absolute shredder. I just want to have the most fun possible!
Best thing is to keep switching. If you haven’t surfed in 3 years, it’s gonna feel alien, but a couple more surf sessions in and you’ll adapt easily, then if you switch from time to time you won’t even think about it.
I’m surfing and proning every week and the first times I always needed at least one wave to adapt to each, now there’s no problem at all.
Remember how weird it felt paddling your prone the first times and you still adapted to that.
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! That last swell was GARBAGE for foiling! That storm rolled through and the bump was right on the nose, all closeouts, too big, no downwind line. One of the 5 days a year it’s better to surf than foil!
I use those days to work a bit more or build some marital capital for the next day of mush wind swell(awesome foil waves). Surfing doesnt feel right anymore I’m done!
Barrels at Blacks, Ocean Beach, Salvo, or something a bit less thick? I’ve given up surfing heavy waves and instead seek out sheltered “foiling waves.” But when the surf is good at those spots, I like a displacement hull like a Liddle, Jive, Shapes and Hulls, etc that allow you to surf off your front foot like you do foiling. Jive makes an insanely good all’rounder called the Lifter that can be surfed off the tail or full rail displacement. Not the board I’d grab for 6-8’ thick barrels though…! Can’t go wrong with a CI Mid for a steady board that is easy to surf and can handle some juice.
From my limmited experience surfing the East Coast, the waves are fun, but slowing moving and break close to shore and pretty steep. The displacement hull boards I recommended prefer longer period walled up waves and don’t like steep drops. I think the CI Mid type board is the call if you’re not wanting to have to adapt back to rear foot surfing and paddling until your shoulder burns. Real’s got some Rawlson Kailua single fins on sale. Bet those would be fun as easy take off pull into a cover up type board.