Good enough for Mick, hey ? ^^^

When things get thick and steep, single-fins can hold tight in the pocket ...
rather than blasting out towards the shoulder and out of the barrel.
They go well in waves with size and grunt.
Of course thrusters create their own speed and go places on a small wave ...
places no single-fin ever could.

Good question Wavey, I still have an old fav Santosha rounded pin from the early eighties that I have hung onto because it is in good condition and and has a bit of history.
Back then it was all about the barrel for me and most guys and there is no doubt the gunny single fins were good at holding a line on a steep or barrelling wave.
I remember trying to get used to the way the thrusters would get sucked up the face on the hollow sucky sections.
Like you say thrusters create their own speed through turns but in a straight line there is more drag because of the toe-in of the side fins.

Only a few days ago I had a conversation with someone out in the lineup about the old Cheyne Horan Lazerzap single fins, showing my age I know but does anyone remember them?

I have often thought about dragging out the single fin and giving it a go with the kite but haven't got around to it, mainly because I dont want to damage the old board and like Rowdy said it would ruin the feng shui .

Has anyone tried a single fin with a kite?

if you think a single fin surfs top to bottom, I wanna ride what ever single fin you rode. Riding a single fin requires you to slow everything down, no sudden movements, a drwn out bottom turn and sometimes a tight top turn. Riding a thruster in comparison is like riding on train tracks.

and? it's a tight top turn... Obviously if your as skilled as mick fanning you can pull this sort of stuff nearly every wave. I didn't say you couldn't do this stuff I just said it requires different timing. initiating the bottom turn cannot be a sharp movement like on a thruster when you go vertical, it's a slower more progressive initiation.
I guarantee though you stick the average "wavekiter" on a single fin and just sit back and wait for the laughs. (unkookedstrapped of course)

waveslave said...

sir ROWDY said...
Riding a single fin requires you to slow everything down, no sudden movements, a drwn out bottom turn and sometimes a tight top turn.

Buttons was doing stuff like that in the 70's

Horan went his own way and rode pigdawg boards. If he had not gone against the grain to his own detriment he would have been a world champ I reckon. He was a stylin surfer but just couldn't change his comp riding to suit the times.

He makes a nice mung bean stew these days.

My mate had a McCoy lazerzap shape around 83/84? Looked the sh!t but rode like one unfortunately. Pretty sure from memory it was a thruster in the lazerzap outline. Was so ordinary it donated to my mate by his older sister's boyfriend (he knew how to get in the good books).

Driving a woody wagon is great for nostalgia but you are never gonne burn rubber in one. Same for singles, twinnies etc. Live the dream, or ride real world gear. Each to their own.



BTW I would have thoought that it would take a massive amount of reinforcement to hold in a huge single fin under the loads kiting on a board creates? More hass than it's worth - might as well kite on a woody.

Threads naturally detour on this site Slave.

I thought you might have notic.. wow that's a hot chick walkin past.. what were you rubbishing on about again?

Answer to your Q? Cause - despite Mick fangin in the pic - they don't perform as well and will most likely bust out with half your board still hanging off it. Full stop.

BTW (contrary to my full stop) Kiters have thrusters and quads easily available and some can remove/replace fins so a twin or even single is possible. Dunno why you'd want to copy poleboarding tho truly? Try a centre fin sometime could be deluxe.

sir ROWDY said...

if you think a single fin surfs top to bottom, I wanna ride what ever single fin you rode. Riding a single fin requires you to slow everything down, no sudden movements, a drwn out bottom turn and sometimes a tight top turn. Riding a thruster in comparison is like riding on train tracks.

yeh well it was back in the day" so could well be a case of
"the older I get ,the better I was"
Remember some sick sessions on them tho for sure, on our Noosa point breaks.
The boards where 5'11 bare nature from Byron with channels and even more amazing is the fact that I can still remember some moments with different boards from the eighties

sir ROWDY said...

Did you even read anything people wrote in this thread about single fin characteristics? From your last post Mr Slave I'm guessing thats a big no.

I read all the posts, Rowdy ...
but I'll continue to ignore yours though.
lol.

Micks a legend

cause they don't.

i still surf single fins. My brother inlaw has a large collection of retro boards and replica's. I've always wanted to take one out at my local point break but i definately dont think the style the you can surf a single fin will be able to be translated to surfing with a kite. Although im sure someone will prove me wrong

nice analogy ^^^^^
A mate just ordered a 6'8 single fin for down the line surfing
If he lets me take it out with the kite I will let you know.
I can't see me getting on the waves it was designed for anyway
That little single fin Micks ridding looks pretty cool but.

I would like to own that Aloha.

dave...... said...

Simple, surfboard-design 101