Cheers. Hoping to make it to the Swansea one.

hairybear01 said..
I have been looking at wood 7'8 hypernut for all conditions, small wave board. Currently weigh around 85kgs. Saw carbon demo boards in Starboard van but not out surfing. Any footage of them surfing, kicking around? Can any experienced sup'ers that demoed compare them with other vanguards - Deep Minion, Gulliver Vbox and also starboard Airborne. Im on a 8'8 x32 JP WB, but want something smaller I can throw around and still manage to paddle in some chop.

Hi Hairybear01,

I have spent a fair bit of time on the Wood 7'8 recently as all the other demo boards have been over east.

Personally I think you should be looking at the 7'4 x 30 and not the 7'8 for your weight. I find this style of board works best when you get the volume to weight ratio as best as possible. There is only 6 L difference in volume but the 7'4 has plenty of stability and offers more in performance.

The Hypernut is basically an Airborne on steroids, it has all the same characteristics but a much broader range of usability. The Airborne was best suited to suckier beach break waves around head high or less. Any more than this and the speed it generated early started to top out, whereas the Hypernut continues to accelerate and will hold it's own in bigger conditions.

I guess you need to decide if you want to trade off a bit of stability for more performance and also if you are keeping the 8'8 WB.


Cheers,
Marco

beached56 said..
marco, i'm about 92 kgs and 6'3"...do you think the 7'8" or 8'0" would be a better fit? my smallest board is a Simmons style 8'4"*31" 136L which i find just barely stable enough, for reference.

Hi Beached56,

In terms of weight you are on the cusp of either board, if you are finding your Simmons challenging a further drop of 21L to the 7'8 (115L) would probably be a pretty big step. Any difference in outline would be harder to compare by this drop in volume, this would be noticed more between the 8'0 and your 8'4 but it's difficult for me to comment on that. It's quite possible that the 8'0 would actually be more stable than your 8'4 as the shapes do vary quite a bit.

If your and intermediate paddler I would go the 8'0, but if your pretty experienced or looking for a step up in performance then go the 7'8 (especially if you are keeping the 8'4).

Cheers,
Marco

10 days....

As soon i put my hands on it, i promise to post a review

I will have the 7'2, 7,4, 8'0 and 8,6 hyper nut at Palm beach for the SPSC day this Sunday 16th thanks to Wind Surf and Snow.. Contact the shop for more details

Johndesu said..
Hi marco gribi - You said that the "Hypernut is basically like an Airborne on steroids" - which Airborne? or do you mean all in general, also the smallest Hypernut is a bit big for me so how can you compare it to a 7'4" Airborne which I surf normally?:-)
thanks regards John :-)

Hi John,

There are some pretty big design differences between the Airborne and the Hypernuts and these differences apply across the range. The amount of speed the Hypernuts generate is the main factor in why they are better than an Airborne. The Airborne would accelerate quickly but has a pretty slow top speed which suited them to smaller beach break style surf. Whereas the Hypernuts continue to excellerate and therefore also handle larger surf making them more versatile.

I also find that the HN is just more reactive in initiating a turn and also following through / linking up the next turn, much of this is aided by the speed but also the comparative length / stability differences make them more forgiving.

As a result of the Hypernut being a more versatile board for similar conditions, the Airborne range has been dropped for 2016. Only the 8'8 continues under the wide point name.

Starboard are releasing two smaller models of the Hypernut this season that may suit you better, I cannot help on feedback as we have not seen them yet.
6'9 x 23 @ 69L
6'10 x 26.5 @ 91L


Cheers,
Marco

6'9 x23 !!! Thats a surfboard!! must be zanes board

Thanks for the info Marco - I definitly will try a smaller Hypernut in the future. Just one other question about the stability of the Hypernut compared to the Airborne (I think the stability of the Airbornes in general is excellent - mainly because of their thin profile overall, as well as rail profile) - do you think that the Hypernut in general is more stable then the Airborne and by how much??:-)

Hi John,

The differences in stability varies a bit depending on the size, mainly due to the differences in volume.

If comparing the 7'2 x 28 HN with the 7'4 x 28.5 AB there is a fair difference in stability (maybe 20%) because of the outline and 20L of volume. I would struggle on the 7'4 AB in anything less than ideal conditions but on the HN I can stand and relax even when it's a bit lumpy. I can't give great feedback on specific performance differences as I had very little time on the 7'4 AB.

With the 7'4 x 30 HN and the 7'10 x 30 AB they are a little more similar and possibly only 10% difference in stability. However the 7'4 HN is a much more reactive board even though it has thicker rails and more volume.

So even though the Hypernuts are higher volumed and thicker railed than similar AB's I would say the overall platform of the HN is more reactive and holds greater speed, a smoother rail feel in the bottom turn and rail to rail transition.

One thing I have also noticed on the HN is that you can comfortably take pretty late drops, when you shift the weight back and engage that back part of the rail the Nut outline provides some clearance to the wider nose. Even though you think it may catch and bury the nose it doesn't seem to.

Cheers,
Marco

I have pre order in uk but only 7'4" or 8' available. Being beginner to intermediate I am playing safe with the 8' but this may be a bit big for my 5'9" 80 kgs. Cant wait though!!!

I want to pick up a Hypernut when they finally make their way to the east coast of the US and was hoping for a little help in deciding if it's the right board for me.

Some info first, I'm 57 yrs old and about 92 kg. I mostly switch between a 11'2" Starboard Blend and an 8'10" Starboard Widepoint. I struggle on the Widepoint when it gets a little choppy and switch over to the blend. I mostly surf shallow sandbar breaks and don't get out in waves above shoulder high.

I thought the HN would be good compliment to these two boards and thinking about the 8' or even the 8'6" HN. I realize both of these boards are rated for heavier riders than the 8'10" WP but I'm mostly concerned about the stability of them compared to the WP since they both are lower in volume.

Any help would be appreciated

Thanks, that does help.

Unfortunately there are not a lot of people that SUP surf at my local breaks and no one has yet to get a Tomo style SUP. So I probably won't be able to test one before I buy. What's really interesting to me is that the Fanatic Pro 9'6" is less stable than the 8'4" Minion, even though it is wider and has 20 liters more volume. That gives me a little more confidence to go towards the 8'0" HN. which is what my 17 year old son REALLY wants me to get.

Was that a custom Minion? They are really nice boards but I don't think anyone in the US stocks them.

No, I didn't sense any negativity at all about the Fanatic. That's a great board.

I'm just continually surprised on the reduced volumes that surfers are using with the Tomo style boards.

There was a guy my size killing it on a sub 100 liter Tomo board the other day. Although he was sponsored and in amazing shape.

Johndesu said..
OK thanks Marco, - I want to test / demo the two smallest ones (the 6'9" & 6'10") they look sweet but there is no mention of weights anywhere - do you know what the exact weight of each is ?:-)
thanks regards John :-)

Hi John,

Sorry no info on weights as yet, generally they take an average of the first production and use this figure. As the smaller Hypernuts have only been released for order this info in not on hand.

If I had to make a guess I would say around the 5.5 - 6kg


Cheers,
Marco

Ok 90 kilos high level of skill. Which size? 7'2 7'4 or 7'8? Currently ride airborne 7'10 x 31.5.. Let me know what u guys think? Thanks