Stand up paddle boards are in high demand right now and the supply of quality stand up boards is still playing catch up. Here in Hawaii, stand up paddle (SUP) board shapers who have been shaping boards from traditional fiberglass materials have become so overwhelmed with demand that the average wait time for a SUP has ballooned to six months. The SUP demand has been so high that surf shops specializing in stand up paddle boards have popped up, most notably Wet Feet in the Aina Haina Shopping Center. The company claims to be the world’s first SUP surf shop and offers a variety of stand up epoxy surfboards, stand up paddles, and other SUP accessories.

Wet Feet Surf Shop – Aina Haina – Specializing in Stand up Paddle Boards & Accessories

So why has stand up paddle surfing generated so much attention in such a short time span? The sport of SUP surfing has been around since the early days of Duke Kahanamoku and the Waikiki Beachboys. It saw a recent surge in popularity after many of the big wave surfers began using SUP as a way to train in the off season. Stand up paddle surfing requires a heightened sense of balance and a strong core which helps stabilize the board and maneuver it. You’ll often see a number of surfers on the North Shore paddling their SUPs in the summer time when the waves are small as a way to stay fit and in shape before the North Pacific re-awakens. Many SUP surfers have noted fat loss and tone bodies as a result of consistent stand up paddling and surfing and there are even SUP surfers in the Midwest paddling their boards in lakes! Stand up paddle surfing has shown the most explosive growth rate since wind surfing and has caught on in Hawaii, California, East Coast, Australia, and Europe.

A key to having fun stand up paddle surfing is choosing the proper board. Stand up paddle boards usually start from 10′ depending on the size of the surfer with typical width being 26″+ wide and 4″+ inches thick. The typical stand up paddle boards I’ve seen on the South Shore of Oahu are around 11’0 x 28″ x 4.75″. While I’m not the biggest fan of epoxy surfboards, I feel that stand up paddle boards actually benefit from epoxy technology making the SUPs much lighter and more ding resistant. Can you imagine carrying an 11′ fiberglass paddle board over your head every time you surf?

Every surfer should at least try stand up paddle surfing at least once and see how much core strength they develop and how much fat you start burning. You’ll also notice that your surfing will begin to improve. I’m a constant fan of experimenting, learning, and riding a variety of different surfboards.

Stand Up Paddle Shapers and Shops – Oahu

Wet Feet Surf Shop Hawaii

Kimo Greene Surfboards

Tropical Blends Surf Shop

SurfCo Hawaii, the Oahu based surf company that produces nose guards, diamond tips, quick fix ding repair, and Proteck fins has created an interesting traction pad. Launched earlier this year, Surfco’s Hawaiian Hot Grip traction pads are the first ever clear molded traction pads which feature a CAD-designed one piece clear traction pad. The CAD design helps with streamlining the traction pad and the ergonomically designed air cushions provide a unique and comfortable fit for surfers.

The interesting aspect to this particular traction is the pad is manufactured out of the same material as Surfco’s noseguards, which provides a non-abrasive surface. If there’s one gripe I have about all the surfboard traction pads out there (Dakine traction pads, OAM, Xtrak, etc) is that those things rip my knees up pretty good when I surf every day. Last time I checked the pads had ripped all the hair off my knees so now I have bald spots!

The Hawaiian Hot Grip pad also directs water toward the back of the board due to the channels in the grip pad yet still provides an area for comfortable foot placement. The heavy duty peel and stick adhesive combined with noseguard primer (included) makes the application of the pad quick and simple. Don’t you hate it when your traction pad has 6 pieces and when you finally try putting it on your new board the pieces don’t fit and aren’t aligned properly? What a waste of time.

I’ll be getting a new custom surfboard soon and I’ll let you all know what I think of the Hawaiian Hot Grip traction pad. Stay tuned for a full review.

I’m sure all of you have seen various ads in Surf magazines claiming that the funky looking fin called Turbo Tunnel provides longer noserides and smooth powerful turns. I was curious as ever and tested the company’s 9.5″ fin as a single on my 9’0 Kimo Greene Honolulu model. I tested the Turbo Tunnel fin at one of Oahu’s popular town spots, Queens in Waikiki, which produces perfect slow and rolling waves that sets up perfectly for noseriding. Conditions were clean and the waves were in the waist to occasional head high range. I was pretty excited to see how much of a difference this fin would make in my noseriding ability and on the first few waves I got to the nose without much problem on my Kimo Greene. The Honolulu model in itself is quite easy to noseride but after testing the Turbo Tunnel throughout that session, it appeared that the fin didn’t feel any different than the standard 9″ Proteck Superflex fin I have been using.

The Turbo Tunnel website claims that the fin basically improves all aspects of performance in your current longboard providing longer noserides, quicker turns, and extra speed. There are also numerous testimonials on the site with customer claims of more noseriding stability and overall improvement of the surfer’s performance. In my opinion, the Turbo Tunnel felt like any other fin and the results weren’t as significant as the company has claimed on their website and various magazine ads. While I don’t doubt that their customers are stoked on the Turbo Tunnel, perhaps the actual measurable difference is minute and is more of a mental state where the surfer thinks that the fin is really pushing their performance to a new level.

I will test this fin again a few more times to find a definite conclusion on the Turbo Tunnel fin.

Wave Weapons, based in Oceanside, CA is a Christian surfboard company run by Louis David Lytle, a relatively well known big wave charger. He surfed and learned the art of shaping from Dick Brewer in Hawaii. During the 70’s and 80’s, Lytle learned a lot about board design by surfing Hawaii’s powerful waves at places like Pipeline and Sunset Beach. He took what he learned from Dick Brewer and made his own modifications based on his own surfing experiences.

Lytle has also shown his appreciation to our military by offering a blowout sale on brand new surfboards with proceeds going to their military surfing project. Their project was a success. 180 new surfboards were sold and nine U.S. Marines were given brand new surfboards. Military personnel always get a 50% discount on all in-stock surfboards. What a great offer!
Wave Weapons offers a variety of surfboards including the following shapes:

Modern/Hybrid Fishes
Twin Fin Fishes
Standard Shortboards
Guns
Mini Tankers
Longboards

Feugo Surfboards, based in Redondo Beach, CA features surfboards shaped by Roland Chocarro and Jennifer Holbrook. Chocarro has been shaping surfboards in Southern California for more than 20 years and besides shaping under the Feugo label, owns Secret Spot Surf Shop and the Surfworks factory. His Surfworks factory has worked with such labels as Stewart, Rhyn Noll, Harbour, and Irwin. He has shaped every type of board from fishes to kite boards and his philosophy is to provide a high quality surfboard at a reasonable price.

Jennifer Holbrook, who hails from Florida, has been developing her shaping skills while working at Chocarro’s Surfworks factory. She credits her surf instructing experience with influencing her shaping philosophy and has specialized in shaping boards specifically for women.

Feugo Surfboards offers the following custom surfboards & shapes:

Firestate Longboards – Offering both traditional and mini malibu longboards which feature a classic style nose  for hanging ten and a progressive last half of the board for high performance surfing.

Inferno Fun/Hybrid – These boards offer a full nose and wide outline for easy paddling and wave catching ability. The pointier nose offers better maneuvering than mini tankers with similar paddling ability.

Pyrotechnic Shortboard – These shortboards offering the paddling similar to that of a funboard with extra thickness and a wider than normal outline provides surfers with easy wave entry.

Hand Shaped Customs – Feugo also offers guns, fishes, and every other shape in between.