Counterpoint: Why You Should Shortboard

I don't think the last article got wastebasketed because it was anti-shortboard, but because it was poorly written. This article has slightly more thought behind it than the last one (and thankfully doesn't take such a needlessly antagonistic tone), it's still a pretty poor article. Whatever SurfScience is going for with this series, they are doing a lousy job at it. Sorry, don't want to sound harsh, but I wouldn't be surprised if this one gets panned too. :(

it's not really fair to start a fight with longboarders - that's like taunting Gandhi. . .

I'm going to skip the article, based on Tracey's review, but I will respond to the premise. It's like saying potato chips are more delicious than ice cream. It's a stupid argument and is purely a matter of taste. Personally, I adore both. Likewise, in surfing. I had a blast on my longboard last summer - but love my shortboard as well.

The beauty of the situation is you don't have to decide; you can do both.

So, for all you bi-curious shortboarders out there - why don't you borrow your friends log this summer. You just might find that you enjoy it (and it'll be our little secret).

Personally, I agree that *everyone else* should shortboard. That way I can just sit outside on a 9'6" and catch whatever I want.

I think each wave begs for a different board. There's crossover but within reason and both artforms should be highly respected if the person surfing is being respectful.

For Example: don't sit in front of ###### at Linda Mar on a waist high day on your shortboard and get frustrated when the longboarders are catching all the waves.
But if the wave is bigger and faster, be conscious of the surfers around you and know you and your board's limits. Don't be catching all the waves no matter what!

Unfortunately, I have to admit that there was a grain of truth in the first 'sarcastic' part of the article for me. I admit to starting with the short board because I thought it was cooler, more core, and lead to better percentages with the chicks.

Now I surf for purely selfless, in tune with mother nature, non-competitive reasons. And if I seem to notice how many waves you're getting compared to me, it's just because you're projecting that on me.

I ride a middle sized board. So there. Write an article about that Surf Science.

I just wanted to point out that they have 2 articles posted for pros/cons of shortboarding. I think you'll see it's not really contentious if you read both:

Con: http://www.surfscience.com/topics/types-of-surfboard/shortboard/why-you-...

Pro: http://www.surfscience.com/topics/types-of-surfboard/shortboard/why-you-...

From reading the article, it seriously sounds like this person does not ride a shortboard. For example, here's a quote:

"You might have a lazy back footed day where you cruise the wave, slowly pumping the line, but you can turn that around on the same board and surf off of your front foot, slapping the lip repeatedly."

Any shortboarder, even one as unskilled as I am, knows that this is exactly an opposite description of how shortboards work. If the author were to ever actually try to cruise off his back foot, he'd find that his board would just come to a stop.

Another example of the author's apparent lack of knowledge is his assertion that high-performance barrel riding is the sole province of shortboards. Since the author likes to use pro surfers as examples, I'd only have to invite him to look up video of Dave Rastovich or any number of others who ride fishes and alterna-boards who get deep in the barrel.

BTW, I read the other article when it was originally posted. Full of misinformation and unnecessary snarkiness.

This is said SurfScience. I appreciate the feedback. We will be doing a point/counterpoint for a few different board models including: logs, funboards, hybrids, fish, single fins, alaias & SUPs.

Our goal was to challenge the idea that surfers had to fit into a mold and ride one type of board or be one type of surfer. We are strong believers that every session calls for a different board. If you have the resources to have a quiver, good for you, make good use of it. We just think surfers should make board riding decisions based on what the pros ride. Those guys are so good, that they could surf anything and make it look hot, (see Kelly Slater surfing a door), surfers should be realistic about what they can accomplish and what boards can do that.

The first article came out wrong, we reviewed it as a team and made some changes. The main points were lost in the sarcasm.

Anyhow, hopefully you'll check back as the others go up, if you have any points to add, we'd love the feedback. You can email us at admin@surfscience.com.

Thanks for your post, SurfScience. I do agree that the second article was much better. It was more objective.

From my perspective, each surfboard is a tool to create a different experience. It's not an us vs them war of short vs long vs sup vs handplane vs boogie board. The first article came off as antagonistic, reinforcing that stereotype. I do think that an objective discussion of the capabilities of different styles of boards is certainly important (especially for folks like us here in Nor Cal who have a variety of conditions we can take on). I don't think the snark was especially helpful in the first article. It puts people on the defensive. The second article tacked the capabilities of a shortboard much more clearly. The first it was hard to tell if it was supposed to be able the capabilities of a longboard or just bashing shortboards.

I think the large variety of boards out there give us the opportunity to continually learn. As a longboarder, I work on nose riding, gliding, and all the fun things you can really only do with a longboard. As a shortboarder....well, I'm a lousy shortboarder so I'm working on everything on that front. I want to learn new boards and try new things.

This vid of Heydon Bunting always makes me smile. He's on guns, longboards, shortboards, body surfing, inflatable mats, and more, having a great time. That's the kind of surfer I want to be, the kind that can have fun out there riding anything.

@SurfScience ... good to hear from you on StokeReport. Here's kelly slater riding a door in case any of you missed it.

Thanks Tracey, I agree, enjoying waves with whatever allows you to do that best is the way to go.