It surfs like an 8ft mal with a stick in your hand, good release on the tail from vertical snaps, easy to carry, fits on a plane, girlfriend could easily carry it.
Owned this board for about 4 months and surfed it for over 100hrs
If you are stepping down from a larger board and want an easy transition then its not a bad choice but its certainly no keeper if you want progression unlike some other boards/brands in its size range. You'll soon see that you want better rails, rocker, V's & concaves etc etc all of which are entry level at best. Construction is good though.
It all comes down to what you want and your expectations of the board as some people really love it. I just out grew it pretty quickly.
The Element is my first SUP and I've had it for about 5 weeks (from Greenline in Broadbeach). I bought for the crossover between flat water and surf and have been on a steep learning curve in the surf but enjoying it a lot. I would probably have found the Whopper more stable but likely would've grown out of it quicker.
The best thing about it though is that it fits in the lift in the building I live in, 9'8" is the absolute maximum length when on the diagonal.
I have had an element since april it surfs ok ,I have play around with fins mainly going smaller this has changed the perfomance made it loser ,In saying that I have just moved on to a Jimmy Lewis Mano its a rocket ship . I would have struggled going to the J L if not for the Element which I still use if its choppy.
My mate has recently bought one and hes about 95kg. It has taken his sup surfing up a couple of notches and it will be a keeper for him. They are a terrific board and they paddle pretty well and surf really nice and loose. They paddle in well and have plenty of rocker for steeper waves. If you want a good allround smaller board then its a hard board to go past. We have a similar sized sup that I prefer but the element would definately be my second choice of anything out there in that mid 9ft range.
