Do you have any experiences to report yet?  I briefly had a Whopper, but I found that, in the marginal conditions I bought to sail it in, I was always struggling to get into a wave.  I think that the width makes it a bit too much work to sail.  For that matter, I felt like I had an anchor on while paddling it, too.

I'm on a 9'8" Element now.  It's not a speed demon by any means, but it's easier to get moving than the Whopper was.  I can't imagine either of them really being very easy to ride like a shortboard, but we don't get 20 knots down here in San Diego very often anyway!

I've had 3 surf sessions (3'-5') and one WS ( 3' - mast high surf with a 5.3 Fire). Compared to the Naish 10'6", the Whopper is not as fun to WS on in powered conditions. It feels draggy and unresponsive, which is strange since it SUPs on a wave so well. I may just need to spend more time WSng in waves to get a better feel for the Whopper, but I'm stoked with its SUP-surfing ability. It does need to be positioned a bit more on the steeper part of the wave to drop in when paddling or sailing compared to some of the other SUPs I've tried, but I'm getting used to it. I'm betting playing with fin size could make it much better for WSng as well, as the the main fin is tiny and the side biters create a ton of drag. So far so good generally though! One caveat though, this board has a TON of leverage over you and is a beast if tossed at you in a fall from a breaking wave. My wife and I were tandem riding this board in smaller surf and she caught the board in the forehead when it flipped over in the whitewater. Ouch.

Last edited by can555 (2009-11-26 08:51:42)

no, i don't use straps.  it's not a board for really "throwing" around - much more longboard style.  i used to use a single back strap on an old board for carrying.  i assumed that i would use it to stay attached when going out through the break, but i never really needed it.  we're about the same weight, so i think it should float you fine.  if you want to visit san diego, you can try mine!