FORUM : about volume !!!

Matteo, 85kg, happy owner of the 8’6 Mob 155L, is thinking about the KARMEN FSP. Should he orient himself towards the 9’8 155L or the 8’9 140L? Here L’Ours reply : “I have always said that on a SUP you must always have comfort, so a bit of volume. But 155L for 85 kg is exaggerating. With your weight, you should have a 120L Mob max. Above this volume you start to limit any possibilities that are exploitable. The Board is less reactive, she’s overwhelmed once the waves pick up, and you can’t tighten up those turns. There will always be a necessary phase your learned skills are put to the test and you will need to get to the next level. So the big question is : are you ready for the challenge? It seems you are not because you haven’t done it already. Next big question : why are do you feel you need these bigger volumes? You are not an isolated case : Lots of people do what you’re doing. Usually because they are unaware of their capacities. They’ve tried 20L less Boards and didn’t feel comfortable, so, they get stuck on these bigger volumes.
But if they would have originally bought the right volume Board, they would have got on top of it easily. In practice the two sides of SUP must be distinguished : 1/ rowing, getting past the Bar and waiting for waves : that’s where we like the volume, it’s true, it helps. 2/ surfing : excess volume is surfing suicide. So, where do you draw the line? 80% on rowing and 20% on surfing? Or the opposite? Often people say they oversize to keep from falling. But it’s mainly not to fall off when rowing, which leads them to fall a lot while surfing. Which in my opinion is a mistake because the goal is to surf. Finally, what I really see is a collective nostalgia for the NFA 12 ‘. At the beginning of the SUP it was the reference of the series boards. Why ? Because it was EVERYTHING: walks, long distances, surfing, 360 °, noserides, pretty stylish curves, early take offs … But she was cumbersome on the ground. So little by little people have abandoned it for smaller boards but comparable lift: came to fruition compact boards. So if your use of an 8’6 is that of a 12 ‘, then I understand your need for volume. This small point seemed necessary to me. So yes, you’ll be really good on an 8’9 Karmen Matteo.” Advisor : Patrice Guénolé et GONG Surfboards. Source : GONG SUP, we share that we know.
Tags : GONG Surfboards, GONG SUP, SUP, stand up paddle,