Dee Jay , ive been swapping it up between a 10'3 TAKAYAMA SURFTECH & then a few boards from STARBOARD that Ive had the pleasure to try whilst SUPping alongside Scotty McKercher & Svein Rasmussen.
The STARBOARD range is developing so nicely & the 10'3 & 9'1 SUP that Ive been testing is sweet as Ive been doing a bit with fin configurations to hopefully be able to suggest some options for crew after they have purchased boards & want to change the ride up a little, to keep the board feeling fresh & funky.
I must admit for the past week Ive become very friendly with the STARBOARD 8'5 Quad & after putting some STRETCH Quad fins in & adjusting the back foot pressure to avoid major tail slide it has become a SUP with sick surfability & loads of speed.
Im keen to try it on the first day of this mega swell to see if I can hold the edge on the big driving bottom turn because the surfability from that point on will be so much fun, my only concern is it may slide out coming off the bottom if I put too much weight down through excitement looking down the line. But in any case Ill give it a burst & let you all know if you like.
Cheers Pete
Im also going to try the 10'3 STARBOARD with some side bits & a FUTURE FIN CUTAWAY 7.5" REAR fin & also a 6" REAR FIN , just to see what happens as its been heaps of fun working out the different points that the tail releases & changing up the amount of weight needed to get the board off the top.
Ive got butterflies of excitement in my belly for the anticipation of whats gonna be here when I wake up in the morning & then for some days after that..

Yeah baby thats the way to bring her around lets see those guys on the micro Sups pull that off.

Great shot , Love it

Rob

pete sez: "Im also going to try the 10'3 STARBOARD with some side bits & a FUTURE FIN CUTAWAY 7.5" REAR fin & also a 6" REAR FIN , just to see what happens as its been heaps of fun working out the different points that the tail releases & changing up the amount of weight needed to get the board off the top."

so, pete, what's the 10.3 like compared to the 10.5, if you've seen that one? just two inches shorter? why?
meanwhile, keep us posted on your fin thoughts. i've got a 10.5 and have yet to find the best fin combo for it.
thanks!

Linter . The 10'3 you can see on STARBOARD website & it is the GUN in the catalogue , however we are now playing with that shape & pushing around width etc etc.. Cheers Pete

linter said...

SUPBALIcom said...


Defintely try the small side bites with the 7.5" FUTURES CUTAWAY rear fin & /or the 7' FAT BOY rear fin from FCS both behave differently but make the board lots of fun & Im super keen to hear back from you o your opinion so please be sure to let me know what happens..
Id be interested to hear what you have already tried & what sort of waves you are riding?
Cheers Pete

Great info, Pete. Thanks. I was riding a fairly standard looking, wide based 9.5" fin, which wasn't really working that well. Then I added the stock Starboard side bites and I like it a lot better. Don't know why, but it seems to cut back much easier.

My waves are not at all like your Bali waves. It's all east-coast-USA point breaks and reefs, nothing really over 5', pretty easy going stuff. And I'm kind of laid back in my surfing approach as well. I like turned, getting in trim, walking up a bit, walking back, trying to rip a cutback, and like that. I also generally like a good bit of stability, which is why I'm on the 10.5 in the first place.

All that being the case, how do you think an 8.5" Futures Cutaway would do when matched with the Starboard bites? (I also have a set of FCS GL side bitess, which are about 3.5" x 3.5", or about 1" smaller than the Starboard bites; think they'd be any better or worse?).

And what would the Fatboy do diffeently? Would one combo be better for walking to the nose than the other?

Thanks again for your help!

Im excited by what could happen next if you put in the FAT BOY fin with the smallest side bites you have , all of a sudden you should have ALL the drive you want down the line & then as you roll back & push down for the cutback you are going to enjoy the ride around the corner so much more & just push a touch harder & it should release a little more then expected .. also the FAT BOY will give you the chance to walk to the nose with out sliding out if you stick your toes over the edge for a prolonged period.. look forward to hearing back from you!
Cheers SUP PETE

linter said...

okay, pete, i'm going to give the fatboy a chance. what size do you think would work best, maybe leaning a little toward a noseriding size? can't wait to give this a go!

Linter try the 7" & I look forward to some pics & to hear from you to see how it went for you! cheers Pete

linter said...

smallest fatboy i can find hereabouts is 8". think that's gong to stiffen things up too much with the side bites?

i think i can get a 7.25" greenough stage 6, though: same idea, bigger tip. might give that a go. what do you think? that or the 8" fatboy?

wish fins weren't so damn expensive!

Grab the 8'0 FATBOY save some $$$$ & enjoy the ride.
Look forward to hearing back from you!
Cheers Pete