I am looking for a new board. My first board was a Fanatic All wave 9'0", 159 litres. Had great fun and got me addicted (after surfing my whole life). My latest board is a Smik Hipster 8'6", 132 litres. While riding the Smik is great I am finding it hard work in between waves (stability wise, I am 62 and 100kg) . So I am looking to move back up to around 150 litres. Needs to be under 9'0" to get on a airplane. The main thing I want is stability out the back. As I am mostly surfing clean, hollow waves to about 5ft I only need the board to handle the drop and go fast, down the line. I am not particularly concerned with top to bottom turning. Any suggestions please?

What do you mean by stability?
- lateral stability (falling by rolling to the side) ==> you need more width (especially at nose and tail), not necessarily volume.
- longitudinal stability (falling forward or backwards, having a hard time getting up because the tail sinks) ==> you need more volume, and probably more length.

I agree with jviesinga, the simplest solution could be the hipster 8'10".

And also, look at these tips, it is very important to keep your feet away from the rails:
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/Mastering-lateral-balance-on-a-small-SUP-board

Agree with FM talk to Scotty and you should be able to work up something together. I got a custom 8'3" Hipster Pin @ 32" wide and it's fantastic and travel friendly-part of the reason I went custom and well priced too!
Smik's got a new design out now, Expresso, would love to hear a review on it.
Scott surfs pretty heavy waves down SW WA so should have that aspect covered

colas said..
What do you mean by stability?
- lateral stability (falling by rolling to the side) ==> you need more width (especially at nose and tail), not necessarily volume.
- longitudinal stability (falling forward or backwards, having a hard time getting up because the tail sinks) ==> you need more volume, and probably more length.

I agree with jviesinga, the simplest solution could be the hipster 8'10".

And also, look at these tips, it is very important to keep your feet away from the rails:
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/Mastering-lateral-balance-on-a-small-SUP-board

Lateral stability. It's just a lot of work for me maintaining balance on the 132l board while waiting out the back in between sets compared to the 159l board which was like a steady platform