Tuesday, January 6, 2009

My Sub Vector is HERE






I surfed the board for 1 1/2 hours this afternoon in the worst possible conditions. Wind blowing 30 side shore. Great for down wind racing with a Vortice, but hell on the water for surfing. I would normally never attempt to surf in such crap, but with a new board.....

This "might be" the most stable board I have ever surfed. Now before you call BS on me, let me explain. I have been surfing potato chips for a long time. My instincts and skills are tuned for low CG boards (that ride low in the water). Every time I ride something chunky, it's a nightmare for me. I hated the Naish 11'6. I could never get my sea legs on that corker. I have the same issues with my Vortice. I wobble like a newbie for the first 10 minutes I'm on that thing. Eventually things settle down and I adapt. But riding high is something that just doesn't work for me. Your balance gets upset by every little piece of chop when your CG is in the stratosphere. I even have the same issues (to a lesser degree) with PSH boards and the JL 10'4. When I walked into the surf shop and saw my new board, there was some apprehension. This board looked like a corker. When I got to the water and first jumped to me feet, the stability and familiarity was instant. Relieved!

I'd rate the stability 2X better than the BK Pro. 3X better than the 9'3 PSH Ripper. The concave deck works like magic at lowering the CG.

Now for how it surfs.......

Tide was full high, so I had to search out the rogue wind swells that would pitch up steep enough to pretend it was real surfing. The board could almost catch anything. It's fast and easy to paddle into rogue wind swell. That's impressive. The waves I did catch and surf didn't last long before they vanished or closed out. Working with what I had, the board snapped lightning quick turns. Maybe quicker than the 9'0 Bat tail at my weight. I was able to move from one wave to the next, as the waves reformed. It's a fast gliding board for a shortboard.

One cool thing I experienced, was the ability to move all around on the board "with ease" to give it whatever it needed to surf the wave to its maximum. When I surf potato chips, designed for middle weight surfers, I often feel like Shrek or Big Bird trying to dance around on the deck. I make one wrong move and blow the whole wave. That usually happens on the perfect wave too! No more issues with this big boys board. Yeah!

Stability longitudinally is superb too. When surfing the 9'3 PSH Ripper, foot position is critical at my weight. 6" off and I'm toast. This was my only concern going down to a 9'3. Would it be super sensitive to where I stand. The answer is NO. In fact, it feels more like a 9'6. That's how comfortable it was!

Middle weights and light weights, eat your heart out baby. This one's made for ME and my fellow Shrek sized surfers. Haha!

One more thought. I had been wondering what I would do for a rough water board. I figured when I ordered this 9'3, I'd have to get something larger for northeasters and southeast winds, when sea texture is a nightmare, but the urge to surf is calling me. WRONG, this board does it all. I saved a ton of money with this board.

3 comments:

gjb said...

Alright DW, Great news. I like the look of the board too. Looking forward to hearing more evaluation of your new baby.. When this crap cleans up I want to see some Video of you getting it on..... What are the true dementions of your board? I've seen conflicting width #'s.. Stoked for you. I know Jamie will be wanting one now.. Enjoy.. Glen

gjb said...

I see 28 13/16 I thought they wer in the 29 plus width. Doesn't matter. Its your new Farrari on the waves.. Thanks Glen

NC Paddle Surfer said...

It is odd Dave and Todd don't know the dimensions of a board when they make videos about it. Movie star nerves maybe?

I've always known the correct dimensions. It was published in their catalog.