Step up board

[Wandi]

What board in the range would be recommended as a step up
I'm approx 82kg give or take a few
I usually ride boards in the liters range from 29.4 to 31.0
I have my eye on a 6'10 which is up around the 36 litre mark
Initially I think that this is way too big
But IMO in bigger waves you need all the help you can get
With all the water moving around and the fact that you work a lot harder when the swell is up
I know a smaller board will be easier to ride once on the wave but if you can't paddle in with ease your kidding yourself
Thus the thinking I should overdo it slightly volume wise for a step up
I notice it's in the upper range in the volume calculator for my weight/skill level
Any thoughts

[prjwebb]

Have you had a chance to feel up the board? I'd say if the rails are thin enough to still give you plenty of control it could work well. I'm guessing the 6'10" is the rounded pin so that tail is going to hold in real well compared to say a squash or a big thick dominator tail. Duck diving solid waves could be a concern!

[Chris]

i think it depends on what size waves you are stepping up in. If you are in 2.5x overhead or greater and steep, then yeah, the 6'10 is a good option, but that is really like a commitment board for a wave such as pipe or massive indo.

To me a step up is the next board after a shortboard where you would typically increase maybe 2-4 inches for that solid over head to double overhead+ where conditions need a little more board.

In the end its a factor of waves, personal paddling tendencies and other variables like wind and preference, but to me a 610 is a big one!!!

[prjwebb]

Haha yeah, not quite a rhino chaser but maybe a wilderbeast chaser!

[Wandi]

Reason I'm asking is that I have the opportunity to pick up a direct drive mega cheap
I thought all advice would point to smaller boards but it is very tempting
To buy or not to buy that is the question