First river surf of 2015 - SUP for the Soul

The snow has just started melting and last week we got our first taste! Here are Erin and I “sharing” a wave on Boulder Creek.

photo credit: Richard Harrison

The water was low and rocky, so we brought out our most durable boards: the Glide Sesh, Badfish MVP-S (with Sharkskin), and the Hala Peno. Our friend Daniel came along as well and brought his 8′ Badfish River Surfer. Having a wide variety of boards allowed us to see which board would surf this wave the best.

I had my money on the MVP-S surfing this wave the best because it had worked great on this same wave at higher water. Unfortunately at these low levels, the fin of the MVP-S kept running into the rocks that created the wave. I put on the smallest fin I had and moved it all the way back, but it still wanted to drag and bump against the rocks. I eventually decided to go finless, which was less than ideal but still entertaining.

The Hala Peno was the one inflatable we brought, and by far the most durable. Good thing it was durable too, since it was a struggle to keep the board from pearling and sticking to the river bottom in front of the wave. It required staying way back on the board and never allowing the nose to touch the water.

The 8′ Badfish River Surfer did surprisingly well despite being the longest board on the wave. The shallow, rocky conditions were always a concern though since this board was definitely the most fragile. Daniel used a single center FCS fin, which I recommended he very loosely tighten the screws on. We knew we’d be hitting rocks, and I always feel it’s better to lose a fin than destroy a fin plug. In the end, we lost a fin from that board but kept it from sustaining any major damage.

To my surprise the Glide Sesh came out the champion of this wave. Something about its shape and fin box location, kept the fin from hitting any rocks (despite using the biggest fin of the day). It was the second most durable board, which allowed it to leave the water in the same condition it entered it, and it didn’t lose any fins.

Each wave is different and while you can make an educated guess on which board will surf it best, in the end you just need to get out there and test it out!

Update: here’s a video that Daniel put together!