What boards are you looking at like shaper / model.
@Mayday, this will be the second board that I have bought since I started surfing about 7 years ago. My first board was a 7'3 quad fish and that was really just a shot in the dark; someone told me I should get it, so I did. In retrospect, it probably would have been better at the time for me to get a bigger longer board, but the shorter fish did jump-start my conditioning. My other board was given to me last year by a neighbor who was moving to Japan. It's a 7'8 Frierson, glassed in thruster setup, rocked, shaped in '95 in Virginia Beach. Definitely a little step up (in volume) from the shorter fish, and it was the first thruster I surfed so it's really kind of grown on me. If I ever get to the point where I am bombing DOH winter storms, that would be my board. I'm 50, very surf-fit, have been in the ocean my whole life, and usually get 5-10 hours in the water (Long Island) per week. Throw in two surf trips per year, and you get a good idea of my skill level. If "intermediate" was scored 1-10, I'm a 4 or 5.
I'm at a point where I could use a board that will turn easier and sharper, without the lower volume that usually comes with true HPSB's. I also want to have some freedom with fin set-ups, since I think there is a lot of experience I still need to get across different set-ups. That's the reason I am considering a groveler with 5-fin box, something along the lines and style of the Lost R.V. shape. I would also like a board that can bridge the gap between groveler waves and bigger waves, something that may overlap with smaller surf but has the ability to extend into bigger surf, like one of the larger Lost Driver kind of shapes.
I surf with a friend who knows most of the local shaper options where we surf and whose style and fitness is similar to mine, although he's more advanced. He reccomended Natures Shapes, where he gets his boards shaped. I'm completely open to suggestions or advice on all of this.
