Small Wave Board Q&A with Todd Questions: Casey Koteen, TransWorld SURF
-It’s basically about the two main options when it comes to shrinking your shortboard. First is the groveler type board (2-4 inches smaller than your normal shortboard), and the other is a full on fish/retro type of shape. What are the pluses and minuses of both?
I look at the groveler as a small wave adaptation of your high performance board....I like to put a similar rocker/ bottom curve in it through the back half of the board so it will pocket into the wave and let you do all the critical, explosive stuff. For this, I also drop the entry a bit so it gets into waves quicker and down the line faster in waves without push. I also like to go with a bit fuller outline maybe around 1/2" wider in the nose and a 1/4" or so wider in the tail and about 1/2" wider through the mid....a fuller outline gives the board more surface area/ planing area which gives it more get up and go. Basically the board needs to create speed when the wave is not going to do it for you. I'll go a bit fuller in the rails too....not too much, but just a touch for this same reason....it helps the board to push back through turns quicker when you lay it over on rail.
As for retro boards, I think of the approach as just different, your not really trying to blow the fins out on every turn....I like to refer to a good retro as a "trainer" cause it teaches you good rail work and how to use the whole board not just the fins. For sure a retro will un-hype things a bit so you flow things out and get to relax between maneuvers....and that's because a good retro will carry a steady drive under your feet that involves less work. So rule number one in the design of a retro is make it fast, drivey....easy.... And the way I like to do that is by going with a pretty dang flat rocker....rocker always plays the biggest role in any board design...(and flat rockers go faster in flatter weaker waves, just like curvier rockers go faster in curvier more powerful waves....the rocker has to fit the shape of the wave you're gonna be surfing)....so basically you wanna go flat, thick, wide, but keep some concave in there so the board holds and doesn't slide all over the place. The one problem with the flat to vee bottom boards of the original 70's and early 80's retros is that, even though they flew, they didn't have the traction you need....that is where the modern retro has got to have some modern hull contours going on to keep it hooked in....then amidst the rail work and super carves you may just get in a few fins out tail whips too.....yeawhoooo.
So in a nutshell, grovelers are for high performance small wave surfing and should ride as a small wave complement to your normal good waves slice'em and dice'em board.... While retro's ought to train you, relax you and give you a little change-up to get back to basics and keep it fresh and speedy with less brain activity and knee or back strain.
-Thruster or quad on the stubby shortboard?
If there is a question, then do a five fin plug set-up so you can go as thruster if the waves a more beachbreaky and cornery (thruster pivots tighter and holds better in these conditions), or you can go quad if you need down the line slingshot drive. Since there is no back center fin (which is where most of lateral trim speed drag comes from) the quad goes batting through sectiony mushy pointbreaks like a speed angel.
-in terms of volume, does the groveler type board that’s 2-4” smaller and say 1/2” wider have the same volume as the average shortboard?
Pretty close to it maybe a touch more if you want a real wave stealer for crowded small summertime.
-what does it not do as well as a normal shortboard? (it must have some drawbacks, otherwise the entire world tour would be riding them all the time, right?)
It really depends who you are....if you're on the world tour, you're johnny on the spot surfing all the time, all trained up and you've got your fast twitch muscle thing super tuned, so you are going to want to be riding the most honed down, responsive weapon you can have under your feet....so it is going to be more rare for that type of surfer to ride a groveler or retro. If you are a free surfer, you can experiment around more, so there is going to be more variety in board selection there as well. And if your not either of those, then the only drawback to riding any particular shape or style of board is in riding a board that you are not having the most fun on at the spot where you're surfing.
-Full on fish-type shapes plane even better than a shortboard, but let’s be honest, they don’t exactly turn on a dime for most mortals. Because of this, do you recommend them for near flat, or very soft, slopey waves? Or, what waves suit this kind of board best?
