I am 5' 8" and looking for a surfboard to learn on. which is right?

Question

i go to new smyrna which is in florida. i know how to stand up and ride a wave its just i want to start surfing. im 5' 8". which board is right for me? it needs to be an affordable board and i WANT A BOARD!

Answer 1

liquid shredder. Those are cheap, very soft and bouyant. I say size 7'. I dont know though.

Answer 2

Well, what style of surfing do you aspire to? Want to shred the waves, snapping big cutbacks and pumping for lots of speed? In that case, try to find a shortboard, somewhere around 6'.

If you would rather cruise the waves, and get up to front of the board and hang five, you should get a longboard, probably somewhere around 9'.

(If you really want to learn about the differences between these two styles, rent Endless Summer 2)

If it's something in between, try a fun board, which has some of the benefits of both.

If you're in Florida then you have definitely heard of Ron Jon's. They have some great prices on boards, and you can check them out online:

http://www.ronjons.com/ProductList.aspx?...

Answer 3

Good advice above. If you've never surfed before, I highly recommend renting first, at least once or twice, so you are sure you like it. A lot of people say they want to learn, but go out to try it and realize it's harder than it looks and stop. Sounds like you are determined though.

Boards are expensive, but if money's not an issue, then buy new. I like to invest in new boards because you are the first owner of it and can take really good care of it. The only history the board has is with you. I like that. But if money is tight, go used, but make sure it's in good condition: no open dings, not too much discoloration, make sure it's not water logged, etc.

Like stated above, what type of surfing do you want to do? If you want to shortboard, your height allows you to go smaller. But how much do you weigh? If you're heavier, you might want to get a thicker board that will float you more. If you get too small of a board, it will be hard to paddle and catch waves on. If you're thin, you can get a thinner board. You don't want too thick of a board because it will make it harder to manuever.

If you want to longboard, you don't need a huge 10' board. You can get a 9'0. Again, you can go thinner with these also since you aren't huge. Go into surf shops and tell them the type of surfing you want to do. They can help you with the specific dimensions of the board according to your height and weight.

Answer 4

depends...florida... id say get a shortboard man. the important factors to evaluate are ur weight, swimming ability and boarding ability.  If u r light, a strong swimmer (ie competed on a team at some point) and know how to skate/snowboard or something, get a 6'3" shortboard.  If ur heavy, bad swimmer, and cant balance on a skateboard, better start out on an 8 ft. Doyle.  Either way, go into all ur local boardshops and find some old yellow/brown used board for under 100.  first boards get banged up!  enjoy the waves brother.