Hi,

We have just tried several boards and am a little confused to which is best for our needs. We have only just started stand up paddleboarding and are more likely to use on flat water with the occasional small wave so would like something that glides well but is also maneouvrable. Today we narrowed it down to a few but just wanted some feedback. I am 75kg and looked at the Surf Tech Gerry Lopez 'Big Darling' 10'6 x 29 x 4 1/4 and the Starboard Drive 10'5 x 30 x 4. My partner is 6'1 and 90kg and he tried a Waterman C4 Pohako 10'6 x 29 3/4 x 4 1/8. We also have a 10 year old who will sup and tandem. We are looking at buying two boards.

Can anyone tell us any more about these boards, are they a good pick. Should we be looking at others, we trialled about 10.

Thanks for your help, really looking forward to getting out on the water.

if you are going to spend most of your time on flat water, you may want to look at slightly longer boards...11.5 +,, these may also tick the tandem box for you too..



there are some longer boards out there; that surf ok offering plenty of fun on small and big waves and go great on the flat water too, like mine

If you don't want to bust the bank and want a decent all round board that will fit the size bill etc I would look seriously at the NSP range. I recently picked up a 10'6 as a family and friends board and i think it's great. Tough as and will be one I will probably keep forever.

I would tend to agree with aus301. The 10.6 nsp is a very good board for a lighter novice and will be awesome with a littly on the front - they paddle great and surf quite nicely too. I am 75kg and have paddled this board around with my nieces on the front no problem at all. As for the 10ft nsp - it's a fantastic board and is a gem to paddle in the flat and very capable in the surf.. Its probably most suited to a person up to maybe 80kg max in the surf but very comfy up to that weight in the flat. Both boards I think retail for around $1250 so are great value and extremely tough boards.

Thanks I saw the NSP 10', 10'2, 10'6 and 11' and thought they were a good price but wasn't able to trial them. Do they also have good resale? Probably won't matter just a point of interest. The difference is quite a bit between them and the Starboard Drive which starts at $1399. The Drive has 5 different types i.e. carbon, silver, white etc. I tried the silver but don't really understand how it compares with the white and the others for that matter but the carbon is over the price point we have. If anyone can explain that would be appreciated.

Has anyone ridden the drive as well as the 10'6 NSP and know how they compare?

Thanks for all your feedback it's really appreciated.

MM1 said...
The Drive has 5 different types i.e. carbon, silver, white etc. I tried the silver but don't really understand how it compares with the white and the others for that matter but the carbon is over the price point we have. If anyone can explain that would be appreciated.

The carbon construction is a light weight, stiff, high performance construction - it's really best for the short wave boards or else the longer race boards. I don't think you need it on a Drive as it won't help performance for you at this level. It's great to have a light weight board but the trade off is that it is more easily damaged and costs more to fix.

The white, candy and silver AST boards are all the same construction, they're really quite strong, though not as stiff as the carbon (again, that's a performance matter that you don't need to concern yourself with at this level). Other than cosmetic, they each just have different deck grip on the surface. The white has no deck pad at all (making it the cheapest and relatively light weight) but if you think you'll spend any time paddling on your knees, this one won't be very comfortable for you. Instead of rubber deck pad, it relies on a painted on deck grip that's a little abrasive. The candy AST has a small rubber pad in the middle, which is great for kneeling on. I think the rest of the deck has a very thin layer of rubber. The silver AST has a 3/4 deck pad so it weighs a little more but it might make the tandem paddling easier.

The other construction is the Wood, which looks beautiful but is a little more expensive than the ASTs.

Thanks for the clarification on the drive. I had been told something different than that and couldn't see what they were talking about when I read the specs.

Does anyone know anymore about the drive versus the NSP 10'6?

I tried the suplove 10'6 I think but didn't like it quite as much. Is it heavier? Didn't see the 11'2 adventurer.

Thanks everyone for all your help particularly Dale and Mark at Jamieson Park Paddle, so great to be able to trial several boards in the one place. Have gone with a second hand Gerry Lopez 'Big Darling' 10'6 for myself and a new,11'2 for my partner. Had a lovely paddle on south coast lake this morning, only problem now is our son is so enthused we may have to find him a second hand board too. All good!! Thanks.