My aim is to review boards for the average knockabout surfer (or ‘kook’ like me), without all the technical terms and manoeuvres.
The guys at The Board Exchange said that they had read some of my board reviews and liked what I was doing, so they kindly offered to lend me a 6’8 ‘Sunday’ by Firewire to review. So of course, I said yes at the chance to try a new board!
The ‘Sunday’ is a very versatile board. It is designed to be ridden as a single fin, a single fin with two side bites for the longer lengths, or as a twin fin for the shorter lengths. I had it set up as mid length Twinny, as something a little different to the rest of my quiver.
The Sunday as a mid length twin… WOW! It is pretty different to what I’m used to riding, and it definitely was not the easiest board to surf when I first jumped on it, that’s for sure. But it is one that I was determined to master.
The Sunday at the 6’8 size is still a lot of board for a mid length, so duck diving was really hard. I managed to get under some but could really feel it on the ones that I couldn’t get deep enough. Maybe one or two sizes down would have been more comfortable getting under waves, but that’s just me personally.
The board paddled around easy due to the shape of the nose being really wide and stubby. I felt like which ever wave I decided to paddle for I would catch. All it would take to get onto the wave is a couple of long strokes and the board would do the rest.
The rocker in the nose made it smooth for waves under chest hight. I probably wouldn’t take it out in any bigger swell then that. Realistically, it’s not made for that anyway. The Board is called ‘Sunday’ for a reason… No one wants to work hard on a Sunday, they just want to relax and go with the flow.
I could definitely feel the performance aspect that firewire bring to their boards. The ‘Sunday’ is made out of their helium technology. Helium, if you don’t know is Firewire’s lightest foam blank with Paulownia timber for the rails. So that means that the board is super light under the arm and manoeuvres really responsive in the water. I also like that they have painted the rails black with a small amount of timber exposed down at the tail. This makes the white of the deck really stand out.
On the first couple of waves the Sunday felt extra loose and skatey compared to other twin fin’s that I have surfed. This is because of the extra length the board has. I found it hard to control at the start. Im not going to lie, it took me a couple of surf’s on the Sunday before it clicked and started to work properly for me.
I was surfing my local beach break and the conditions were perfect for The Sunday. They were fat, rolling waves and 2-3ft and the board loved it. I felt more confident with my feet slightly further forward on the board which naturally made it a more stable ride. Even with my feet up the board a bit I found that the board could be moved around fairly easy.
Once I figured out how to ride it, I found it hard to get off it! I'm going to be a bit sad when I have to hand it back. It made me realise that there is a hole in my quiver. I think I’m missing a mid length twin…
The ‘Sunday’ comes in sizes that start at 5’6 and run all the way to 7’3, and retails at $1080.
I rate this 8/10, If you have any questions reach out or to keep up to date with what I am doing follow my socials, https://www.instagram.com/southcoast.kook/
To buy this board or boards similar to this, click the link here and have a look at the amazing range from Global Surf Industries.
