Tardy said..
Hi everyone .just wonder does any one own or have ridden the naish Hokua 9.6 x32 170 litre wave board.
Looking to ride a descent size wave and i have a distance to paddle to get to it .
I all ready have a 10 mana ..but it doesn't have much rocker ..so scary on big drops .
Any reviews on this board would be great ..I don't mind the high 170 litre volume as I will be paddling
In some deep dark water ...I'm 97 kgs. I also like the look of the 9.1 Hokua .150 litre .any of these two .

I'm about 95 kg and have the 9'1"x32" Hokua.. It's an awesome board but do find it a little tippy in choppy water.. I'm thinking the 9'6" version would be perfect for you.. You will notice a huge difference between it and the 10' Mana.. and IMO the biggest mistake you can make is getting a board that's even slightly too small for you.. The 9'1" like mine should still work for you but I'm thinking the new 9'6" version would be even better..

Thanks JB .in Myocum ...10 mins from Byron .
I think the bigger of the two boards would suit me better ,if the 9.1 is a little. Rocky in chop ,which I have to deal with all the time ..I'm the dude out the back catching the big ones. .it looks like a really nice board .no I'm not worried about the extra volume .i can throw the mana around ,and this will be 20 litres less ....yes.

I ride the 9.1 Hokua and love it. It is my 1st sup from a short board background. The rocker is so forgiving in a decent sized wave and turns pretty well. I find now it is a bit too large and hold me back performance wise in a 3/4ft wave and thus I have just demo'd the 8.3 @ 120lts. ( I weigh 80kgs) I did not notice much difference in the balance or the catching of waves but it makes a huge difference getting out. I think at your weight the 9.1 will float you pretty easy and allow some manoeuvres that perhaps the 9.6 will not.

I could not even think about buying a board that I have never ridden..just due to the costs of sups.

If you are near Byron you should come down to the coast and organise a demo with the guys at Surf FX..you can't beat them for their service and demo equipment. No pressure and just super helpful.