I have spent a lot of time Windsurfing, but inspired by Al's ability to get out in all conditions I'd like to get out in the surf a bit
more.
I had a couple of days surfing tuition about 5 years ago, but have not been surfing since.
A mate has offered to sell me a single fin 9' custom built Malibu board, 
the questions are
- is this the right sort of board for Borth
- being a custom board is it a bit delicate for a relative beginner
- if it's not the right board, what is and where can I gat one 
If I get it - I'll be back here for tips on the vocab. 
and what do you guys do with all that wax 
The board sounds fine in length, although the most popular size for beginers is a mini mal in the 7ft- 8ft range right now. It will all
depend on your weight, ability, balance etc. A more boyant board will allow you to catch waves easier and earlier thus giving you more
time to get to your feet without falling off. Longer boards can be harder to turn.
There are loads of boyant "shortbaords" or fun boards about at the moment, also called Fish, as an alternative to a long board or
mal.
We just like our cars to smell nice so we leave the wax melt in the glove box, boot, well maybe that's just me
Thanks, I am a bit on the lardy side, and I am not the most dainty person, (I'm more akin to Gimli than Legolas) 
My mate has offered to lend me the mal to see how I get on. So I'll try with the big board.
I'll fill in a diary when I get out there.
Sweet mate, "borrow" the board, get good at standing and riding the waves and then buy a nice custom board
Cool man, got to be honest I aint the lightest of people either but I'm
getting there on my 6ft 10 "shortboard" although I did surf a lot as a teenager so my mind knows what to do, just trying to convince my
body to do it now.
Gr8. Picking the board up 2morrow
Blimey.... you'll be bleaching your hair next....
Must let us know how you get on.
quote:
Originally posted by Dave
Gr8. Picking the board up 2morrow
I'm not sure if any decent waves will make their way here in the near future, but we'll get you out on crappy windblown waves if
nothing else...
I've got a new board to try out as well... Maui & Sons 6'10".... I've never surfed anything that big before (except for messing
around on rescue paddle boards), but I am getting older, so maybe I'll need it soon. Mind you, if its small and blown out I'm sure my
little 5'10" will be more fun.
I should at least have a laugh watching you anyway Dave! 
Al.
The genral consensus on the surfing message boards is we will see some good size waves this weekend or early next week
If the waves are smaller would you not better off on your longer board? More boyant, easier to catch waves on, needs less push from the
wave to keep a float, and all the rest of it.
I know we are supposed to see some good sized waves, but the low (the remnants of Hurricane Fabian) that will produce them is taking
quite a northerly track across the Atlantic, so the waves will be coming from the WNW...North coasts of Cornwall and the West of
Ireland should get the waves, but North Devon will be smaller, South Wales smaller again and the waves probably won't make it here at
all... The winds should produce something to play on though.
My 5'10" is pretty wide, so if its just windblown mush it goes OK and as its so small it means I can throw it around in the small
sections, theres nowhere to go with a bigger board as its rare that there a proper wall to surf here,. So I tend to find that I use my
5'10" pretty much all the time. Omce it gets above about 4 foot I change up to my bigger board (6'4") though as the small one is a
little too loose and the tail tends to slide out when bottom-turning. It'll be good to give the 6'10" I've acquired for a while a go
though but it feels pretty big and cumbersome to me just carrying it. I might find I like it though!
I'll have to have a go on the 9 footer you've got as well Dave, I've been feeling like treating myself to a proper longboard for a
while now, so will have to give it a go.
Al.
Sorry to hear you wont see any waves up there, I'll get something down here though
quote:
small one is a little too loose and the tail tends to slide out when bottom-turning.
(and probably loose a few pounds too) 
SURF ALERT
The Hurricane has switched course and now looks like its going to be sending anything up 20ft waves our way.
'SURF ADVISORY: HURRICANE SWELL ON THE WAY TO HIT THURSDAY! The remains of Hurricaine Fabien is heading our way as the first major
swell of the season pushes in from a Westerly direction - Thursday will probably be manic although it's way too early to know what the
winds will do. It could change though, so check back here Monday for the latest.'
I'd have to say that in the early days of your surfing career, a longer board is better. I started surfing on a 6'8 popout, moved to a 6'6 custom that was very narrow and thin. After years of not progressing at all, I admitted it to myself and got a 7'5 mini-mal. It's transformed my surfing, I now catch loads more waves, get up earlier and generally have a lot more fun than on my short board. When I get the cash together I'll get another thruster, but for a lot of the conditions we get in this country a loose mini-mal with a good bit of rocker is super-fun!
Well Dave, you can't complain about the waves that rolled into Borth on Sunday. Thats pretty much as good as it gets here. Lovely sunny
day and a nice 3 foot super clean swell. It had dropped off a litle by the time you got to the beach, but it was still OK.
The board looks fine for you as well, plenty of bouyancy so you can catch the waves nice and early, and plenty of stabilty. (its
actually longer than all of my sailboards). It still won't be easy though as surfing is one of the more difficult F-O-N sports to get
the hang of. Stick with it and you'll get it though, once you can get to your feet on the open face it all becomes easy. And don't
forget to get straight to your feet, miss out the knees bit otherwise you'll end up always doing it which just isn't good!!
Al.