If you haven’t already, check out the previous article where I cover ocean safety before moving on. In this article I’m going to help you pick out the best surf board to use as a beginner.
Alright, so you want to learn how to surf and you’ve started looking for a surfboard, but quickly realized there are tons of sizes, shapes, and price points. Don’t fret, those are all things you can worry about in a few months when you start getting more confident in the water. Right now, the best board for you is going to be… drumroll please…
A FOAM BOARD!
Preferably either an 8 or 9 foot foam board. This really depends on your age/size/height/weight. Children/teens/active adults will be fine on an 8 foot board. If you are a little bigger, go with the 9 foot board, you’ll be happy with the extra size.
So you’re probably asking, Jason, why is a foam board the best board to learn on? A couple reasons. You aren’t Kelly Slater. You aren’t going to be ripping/shredding the gnar during your first session.
But Jason, I skateboard! You skateboard? Big deal! It won’t help right now.
But Jason, I snowboard! You snowboard? Big deal! It won’t help right now.
For real though, a foamboard is the perfect board for a number of reasons. They have LOTS of volume. Volume is the measurement of how bouyant the surfboard is. So the more volume, the more you’ll float. The more you float, the easier it is to paddle. So lots of volume as a beginner is helpful because it makes it EASIER to paddle and EASIER to get into waves. And more waves = more fun! Surfing is not about how cool your board looks or how small it is, surfing is about getting waves. You want that extra volume right now.
Foamboards are also really safe as a beginner. You can protect yourself, but more importantly other people! You don’t want to get hit with a fiberglass board, and either does anybody else. When you are first learning, just understanding how to manage a board in the water is difficult, so a soft foamboard is your friend.
Let me tell you about my first few times out surfing. I learned on a 9 foot board my first time. I was lucky, I got up on my first session and caught a few open faced waves. During my next few sessions I went down to an 8 foot board, caught more waves and was feeling confident. I thought to myself, I could probably handle a real board already and then out of nowhere a wave smashed the board/plastic fins right into crotch. Luckily the fins were plastic, or I’d be telling a worse story.
I stayed on a foam board for a few months before transferring to a fiberglass board, and it did wonders for me. The more time you spend standing on a board, actually surfing, the faster you are going to progress. If you downsize to quickly, you’ll waste days and days failing to paddle into waves that you could have been riding on a big foam board.
Trust me, embrace the foam and you’ll be riding a “real board” in no time. I actually still enjoy taking out the foam board every now and then, especially when the waves are super weak or small, because you can get into pretty much anything.
So where can you pick one of these bad boys up? Go to your local surf shop and rent one for a few days, make sure you are actually going to stick with it before dropping some cash. When you are ready, search craigslist for a used foamboard or check your local used sporting good store like play it again sports. If you have a costco nearby, go there, they usually have them for 99 bucks! Or find one on Amazon, I have a few of my favorite ones linked below:
Wavestorm 8’ Classic Surfboard
Wavestorm 8’ Classic Pinline Surfboard
Wave Bandit EZ Rider 8’0 Surfboard
Wave Bandit Ben Gravy Pro EZ Rider 9’0 Surfboard
If you guys have any questions or comments about choosing your first board, feel free to leave a comment on my YouTube video or shoot me an email. In the next episode I’ll take you shopping and help you pick out a wetsuit (if it’s needed in your area). Yew!!