Good luck buddy. You definitely need to demo as many as

Hi
have you considered basket ball? Ok sorry probably suggested many times already.

Dam I am 5' 8" and 75 kg so as per comments above absolutely no help to you at your level for specific requirements.

However you seem to have an idea of what you want so go talk to a custom board guy, I have and now have 2 of the best boards I have had to date at very reasonable prices.

Good luck

Not being boring with new fancy latest surfing designs but what about something like a Starby 10 5 wide point? Too long? The Mana and Allwave you mention are both proven designs. What about Jimmy Lewis Maestra 9 ft 9 .....or is 33 wide too wide. Jimmy Lewis has also just brought out a bigger World Wide wave sup which is 32 wide and 9 3.....160 litres and big wide tail......good performance on this....short too. Might be tricky at first but you will rip on it. I have no connection with JL except have a couple of his boards....great designs.


www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/New-Jimmy-Lewis-World-Wide-93-SWEET/

Hi Bigkiwi,

When your SUP technique is OK, you will be able to ride something like 8'-something x 32" x 140l for having a shortboard feeling
I will give examples in the Gong line, so that you can look at the pics and dims, but only as a guide: Most brands are OK, and Gong is not sold in OZ anyways
This could mean the Empire 8'9" www.gong-galaxy.com/magazine/pics/1-hour-4-boards/

But I dont think you are ready for it yet, better hone your skills on some intermediate board that would be ease your progression:
Something like 9'x" x 34"-35" x 150-160l not too wide nose, with somewhat thin rails (domed deck)
The Empire 9'3" would be ideal: gongsupshop.com/epages/box1707.sf/fr_FR/?ObjectPath=/Shops/box1707/Products/GON5SUPEMP93
The shape would give a you more of a shortboard feel than something like gongsupshop.com/epages/box1707.sf/fr_FR/?ObjectPath=/Shops/box1707/Products/GONSUPBORDER9

Note that when we say "shortboard feel" for a SUP, it is more like a 1970-shortboard rather than a 2015 one
Wide is great for stability at your height. But at your weight, too wide will make the board quite slow to paddle, so it is all a compromise. A wider nose may give you enough additional stability to be able to reduce main&tail widths for easier carving, for instance the sunova speeed www.sunovasurfboards.com/product/speeed-sup/ could be the killer board for you

There are a few big units on here, me included (6'2, 127kg)

Look at:

1) JP Fusion 10/8 x 34 (my board of choice)
2) Naish Mana 10' x 33
3) Fanatic Allwave 9'8 x 33 (I used to own the previous 9'10 x 33, sold it in favour of the 10'8 Fusion)


In that order.

All are around the 190 litre mark, which is probably a workable minimum for a bloke your size. The JP has that bit extra width but nice stepped rails and a decent nose kick - like AA says don't get hung up on the length, IMO the 10'8 surfs like a size smaller anyway. You're not going to find much under 10' that will float you and not be unduly influenced by your height, reckon you should demo a Fusion if you can (or pm me, there are a couple of us larger chaps in Vic that have them).

Short board feel for a big guy.. This one's also worth concidering..

Funny thing, just looked at the hokua x 32 today, so am going to arrange to demo the 9'6". As you are a very similar size, can I ask how long (and skill level) you have been SUPping for when you took on the Hokua 9'6"? How did you find the Hokua overall?

Hey big kiwi at 6'7" it must be hard to find a good sup but I bet you can throw up scaffolding like nothing else !!!

Just jokes mate! I have to put in some votes for the starboard whopper it is such a sweet board for the big guy, I am 6'3 and 105kgs probably closer to 110 when I started. I went about roughly the second half of my first year sup surfing on the whopper. I loved the board it has a nice wide nose which is super stable and helps you get in real early and catch anything you go for and a rounded pin tail which is thinned out enough to give it some bite with the width and overall shape making it really easy to turn. I had it out in probably head and a half reef break waves around Margaret river and it held in well the extra width was really noticeable in more solid surf though.

The Avanti might be another good option there is a a local guy here about your size who surfs really well on one and has supped for years and still loves the Avanti

Definitely go with a big board around the 10 ft mark you'll need it as your learning and you'll have a lot more fun

Bigkiwi said..
Hi guys

I know this is an old topic, so sorry to repeat. However I get a little pi*#ed -off with the industry who continually push small surfboards, kites, Sups etc. From my 25 years of riding boards and kites of various discriptions.......the weee fella in the shop is usually always wrong! I am struggling for a wave SUP! All the shop guys try to flog you a 170L shocker and the problem is, all the weight ratings on the boards go up to 105kg. Well I am 115kg (probably 120kg with wettie) and a very high centre of gravity at 6'7", so I never really fit any mold. I have been surfing for 25 years, kiting for 15yrs and recently started SUPPIng on a 12 footer. Today I tried the new Slingshot G-Whizz 9'4" x 35 x 5" which is a massive 205L. Great to paddle, but not so great to surf. So thinking of trying the 10' Mana or 9"8 Allwave (both around 190L). I have never been a longboarder and at 44 years old, trying to keep the length down to a shortboard ttype format.

Any thoughts guys and gals. I'd be very keen to hear from Supthecreek (great reviews) and any other large lads on their experience.

Big Jim

Hi BigKiwi, have been reading other fellas and especially what Colas said in first "you will be able to ride something like 8'-something x 32" x 140l for having a shortboard feeling"
So I draw for you same board as I surf daily by summer waves with a 140 liters. Dont refer to volume to think stability. Volume is needed to float and its repartition is giving stability.
So have a watch on the " Bigkiwi model "of my own design.If you're interesting by it I can send proper files to you for building it where you are.

AA said..
BK if I still sold the PSH Hull Paddlers I would be recommending one of those for sure! They ripped for the bigger guy.

I love that pic.

Wobiri?
Pretty fun sup/mal day by the looks! Not 6' bombie, but still, Nice one!

BigSeppo said..
I'm with Hilly -- "avoid fat wide boards."

I'm 6'4" / 120 kilos.

Very roughly, length is glide. And width is drag. With short and wide early on, you paddle in a circle and go slow on a wave.

Having said that...

The progression I advise guys our size is:
1) A 200L beast of some sort for the first few days. Borrow this if you can, as you shouldn't need it long.
2) A Starboard Whopper-like board 10' x 34". 170L or so. Surprisingly fun to surf at our size. No need to sell this board. Ride it on super bumpy days. And teach others on it.
3) A Starboard WidePoint like board 9'5' x 32". 155L or so.

Then if you really into it, the great performance and top end speed in the surf kicks in with boards at 30" wide or less. Stay at 9'0" or above.

For my high performance boards...

I went down to 7'4" x 32" x 4." The board was ugly, and my surfing on it was ugly, and slow. I thought I was ripping... I thought I was cool because I had a such a short board. Nope, and nope.

Now I'm back up around 9'0" x 29.5" x 4.75". It looks and feels like legit surfing again. I've been at it a long time. This is a low volume board for us that is a real challenge to us.

Stick with the progression above and you will save yourself time and headaches. It's proven, I promise.

BigSeppo

I'm with BigSeppo on the narrower / thinner end game. I'm 6'4" but a bit leaner at 95kg and survived my SUP surfing learning experience and freshly torn knee cartilage on a Coreban Icon at 10’ x 29.5” x 4.5” and 162 L which I still run today. If you've been surfing / kiting then I'd have thought you'd probably be good to go straight there / thereabouts. Wrap up with plenty of rail / paddle protection tho!

Have you tried one of these

Hi BigKiwi

Lots of good info above..... along with the usual pipe dreams

Sorry for the slow reply, I just saw this thread... I have been on the road a lot for the last 6 weeks.

Your weight shouldn't pose much of a problem because at your age, balance skills are usually still pretty good and it sounds like you have always been active.
Your height is the consideration for sure.... and something that I can't gauge very well except through the eyes of friends.

I just paddled the new 9'8 x 33 @ 187 L Allwave last week, it is quite different from my earlier 9'10
It felt a bit less stable than the 9'10 but even paddling it, I could feel that the new shape had improved the "action" of the board... it felt much more responsive when spin turning and paddling.
I never surfed my 9'10 much, since I had the 9'6 Allwave at the same time (I was at 108 kg 63 yo at the time)
I mostly just flat-watered paddled on it.
My thoughts after paddling and looking over the new 9'8 is that it will be a better performer than the old 9'10 but possibly at the cost of some stability.
Where the Allwave design favors you, is in rail thickness and flat deck
The stability comes from the rails which would benefit a taller rider

IMO....I would prefer the 9'8 Allwave over the Whopper or the Fusion if you are looking for more performance
Stability would be close enough, I believe
I think at your age, you should be able to adjust to the 9'8 fairly quickly..... as a reminder, I am 67 and 100 kg

Here is a link to a very useful "Big Guy" thread on the Standupzone.
This link will bring you to page 4.
Half way down that page I did a LONG post regarding weight vs skill vs volume.... I ended up having to post it backwards....and in 4 parts to get it done.
Great big/tall guy reply's on the other pages as well.

www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php/topic,27613.45.html

Other thoughts:
A trusted friend who surfs really well, loves his JL Kwad
So I surmise, the 9'11 x33 @175 L, is well worth a look

I will finish with the board that has blown me away in ALL areas..... The Sunova Speeed.
I have sold all my other surf SUPs (cept a 12'6 Starboard cruiser that I flat-water & troll down the beach)
if you can demo a 9'5 x 31.5 160 L Sunova Speeed I think you would find....this is where you want to end up
It WILL handle you at some point.... maybe not right now.... but as your "step down" in a few months
I have both the 8'10 - 130L and the 9'5 - 160 L (for full winter gear) and I gotta say..... both sizes ride virtually the same with a bit of adjustment for the extra size.
I can NOT say that about my Allwaves.... each size jump felt geometric..... bigger meant noticeably less performance.
In contrast.... although the 9'5 Speeed is a HUGE jump of 30 liters and 2.25" in width from my 8'10, the performance remains very close.
Bert Burger has done a masterful job of keeping performance the same throughout the size range
Big boy shortboard for sure

Just for fun.... here are some pics of my buddy who is in his 50's, 6'1 and 140 kg..... paddling a 160 L 9'5 Speeed
He was fairly submerged at a 1.1 "float factor".... but he found it surprisingly easy to paddle (he stayed dry)
At your weight this board would put you at a float factor of 1.4 which is comfortably in the "intermediate" category (without height consideration)
"Float factor" is discussed in the above thread

Sorry for delay. I went for the 10" starboard whopper and loving it!! Thanks for all the feedback!