The General - Surfboard Review by The South Coast Kook
My aim is to review boards for the average knockabout surfer (or ‘kook’ like me), without all the technical terms and manoeuvres.
I was looking at buying a cost effective mid length board knowing that the pure use of this board was to just catch waves with ease, and to have a bit of fun with my feet placement by moving up and down the board.
The General was the board for me. I never thought I would buy a foamie but there was two reasons this board put me over the line.
First, was the construction - The core of the board is EPS with a Plywood Stringer so when you first grab this board you can definitely notice a difference compared to other softboards as its firmer and doesn't feel like it will break straight away. You don’t have to know a lot about surfing or surf board construction to notice this difference.
The second, was the price! The 7’6” retails for $645, with fins.
I chose this length because it is a good size to just throw in the back of the car and once the grom is big enough, I can’t wait to put her on the front and give her the experience of catching waves with the safety of the soft board.
The board has a textured deck, which I was skeptical about at first but surprisingly it felt very grippy on the chest for paddling and has more than enough grip under foot, that I didn’t need wax.
For my first surf, I set it up as a single fin. The board paddled like a dream. I was able to catch waves very easy and once on the wave I was surprised how well it surfed. It felt like any other board that I have surfed with plenty of forgiveness under foot. The board was a little chattery on the bigger size waves but nothing to complain about.
I felt like I had the comfort and forgiveness to play around and start walking up the board a bit and had the ability to generate speed because the board has a modern rocker.
The mates that I was surfing with that day, definitely hated me! Sitting deeper and having the extra foam compared to them, I had the pick of the waves, racked up a solid wave count, and frothed the first surf on it!
Next time, I went with a two plus one fin set up. I noticed straight away how much better it held me on the wave. I could generate even more speed because of how much easier it was to go from rail to rail. Even though it had been a while between riding this board, I found it so easy to pick up where I left off.
I tend to be pretty hard on my equipment, and do stupid things like sitting too deep in sections and getting closed out on… But after a few surfs, the board still looks brand new! I am unsure how long the deck grip will last if you surfed it constantly but for now its working really well and still looks like new.
Overall, I really like this board!
If you’re a beginner looking for your first board or you’re after a board the whole family could surf ‘The General' is the one for you.
I rate this board 7.5/10, 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 learn more about the amazing company Ocean & Earth, Click here to listen to the podcast episode I recorded with the CEO Phil 'Macca' McDonald.
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.
LG, walking to the nose
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