There's a technique called the J-paddle which works.

Feather the paddle when you move it forwards (ie. twist it so the blade is sideways and catches less air).

At the front of the stroke put the paddle in the water sideways and about a foot or so out from the rail. As you start your stroke give the paddle a twist and a bit of thrust towards the rail.

At first you will have quite a pronounced sideways pull but when you get more practice it is more of a twist.

Finish the stroke as normal.

With practice you can actually paddle along and turn towards the side you are paddling.

The only problem with this is you have to concentrate on your technique and it's not great when you just want to dig in a pound your way through chop or sprint for a wave.

I am looking the effect of a bigger fin. I have had some offers to borrow fins so I'll see how that works.

I think the Star-board 11'2" is a perfect beginner wave oriented board that is quite capable on flat water. I don't think I would be modifying it too much. Better to get your use out of it then sell it and buy something exactly suited to your purposes.

Hi elbeau,

There is no reason why you couldn't get FCS plug put into the 11'2. FCS will increase your ability to hold a straight line when paddling.

I wouldn't bother though - You should be able to easily get 10-15 strokes on one side just be putting weight on the rail on the side you are paddling.

The FCS fins will create extra drag slowing your flat water paddling down and personally I reckon the 11'2 surfs heaps better as a single fin.

I emailed Star-board and Svein got back to me and said fitting a 9-10" fin would solve the problem straight away.

I'll still try some old fins before investing in anything good but I really like the idea of being able to tune a board for different uses by simply changing fins.

Thanks everyone for the input. I appreciate it. I will try the bigger fin. That looks like the easiest and least expensive option and I'll also practice paddle technique.
Cheers Beau