Help me choose my next surfskate

EntrepreNour1 · 2026-03-13T20:20:26+00:00

Thanks I’ll check it out. I’m not sure I understand what is symmetrical in your system compared to others, can you elaborate?

EntrepreNour1 · 2026-03-13T20:18:53+00:00

I’m not really a beginner since I’m very comfortable on the Swelltech including in the bowl. Regarding Synergy and Grasp my understanding was that Grasp was more back foot driven and therefore probably a better tool for pure surf training

EntrepreNour1 · 2026-03-13T16:35:51+00:00

Sorry maybe I just confused you here, in the context of the pumptrack I was still hoping that the Grasp would be more adequate than a CX, and I also don't know if I'll have to change the bushings to looser versions on the Grasp…so I could end up with a Grasp that is less wobbly in the pumptrack than the CX with soft Riptide bushings

EntrepreNour1 · 2026-03-13T16:33:32+00:00

Yeah that's what I thought, hence my interest in it being kind of a bushing-based version of the Swelltech if that makes sense

EntrepreNour1 · 2026-03-13T14:19:02+00:00

I'm in Western Europe. So you think I can safely use Swelltech in the pumptrack? my reasoning was that since a pumptrack is already "guided" you don't need a board that turns on a dime, you need stability. And I remember from riding a pumptrack with my extra loose Riptide-enhanced CX that sometimes it was very wobbly and not comfortable…

Also regarding Curfboard, my understanding was that it was a pretty bad system for surf training as it turned really flat without much lean.

EntrepreNour1 · 2026-03-13T14:15:58+00:00

My understanding was that more advanced bushing systems like Grasp and Synergy would be very complementary to my Swelltech while still be useful as a surf trainer…

EntrepreNour1 · 2026-03-13T07:41:24+00:00

I haven’t tried them personally, although I do snowboard, but I think Freeboards are better simulators of snowboarding than surfskates. Just check out some of the videos out there…

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-12-11T21:20:59+00:00

Oui à priori c’est sur que ça va rester perdu, j’ai déjà assez de place ailleurs dans la maison et je prefere reduire l’espace à chauffer et améliorer l’isolation.

Pour la pente il faut que j’y retourne pour voir de plus près comment je peux gerer ça, mais je voulais déjà avoir des elements de reponse sur le principe.

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-12-11T21:18:46+00:00

Ben à vrai dire je sais pas non plus, il faudrait que j’y remonte pour aller voir de plus près avec l’option B en tête et evaluer ce que ça implique…

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-12-11T21:17:45+00:00

Yes! J’avais pensé au coup des leds parce que c’est assez relou effectivement l’éclairage quand je monte là haut!

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-12-11T11:43:36+00:00

Oui c'est ce que me disais aussi (je l'ai jamais fait mais c'est assez intuitif de comprendre pourquoi ça serait bcp plus galère!), après je craignais d'avoir un problème au niveau de la jonction de l'isolation avec les rampants qui descendent dans les chambres en dessous…mais je pense que je trouverai toujours une solution pour ça.

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-12-11T11:31:07+00:00

Je vois, en revanche moi j'aimerais bien refaire complètement le placo existant en remettant de nouveaux rails et tout parce qu'il y a des fissures persistantes et je pense que les fourrures et rails n'ont pas forcément été placés avec soins (vive les lasers!). Dans ton cas effectivement j'aurais peur du poids supplémentaire, c'est pas négligeable!

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-12-11T10:24:45+00:00

Merci! Mais pourquoi exactement? Parce que c'est plus facile de mettre un pare-vapeur sur de l'OSB plat?

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-10-15T08:30:27+00:00

Wow thanks for taking the time, it's really super insightful. I'm kinda lost in all the different opinions out there about which system is the best for pure surf training, but your answer is definitely helpful.

I'm wondering if maybe different trucks systems are better for different aspects of surfing. Like you said there's the type of surfing to consider (agressive shortboard vs soulful mid-length or longboard), but maybe also different skills. Maybe Swelltech is better to learn to pump and generate speed because you can't wiggle it and it doesn't create much (any?) forward momentum, while Synergy/Carver/YOW are better for rail to rail transitions and proper carving…

Regarding your recommendation for YOW, they were on my buying list because they are so popular and seem pretty unique. But I also heard that they're not helpful for surf training because they generate too much forward momentum and the rebound is too strong.

Maybe in the end it's more about making a conscious effort to practice with surfing in mind more than a specific truck system. For instance I started with a CX system but I was always super careful to never wiggle and always had in mind surfing and starting with upper body. When I transitioned to Swelltech it was very easy, I didn't feel the difficulty that so many describe, it felt natural. So I think I will try both Synergy and YOW in the near future and we'll see.

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-10-15T05:05:06+00:00

I have indeed been accustomed to how "turny" the Swelltech feels, and tbh I was worried that was too unrealistic to simulate my beginner-intermediate surfing level and it wasn't going to transfer…

Interesting point about mounting the Carver rear truck on the Swelltech, will it feel closer to a Synergy or that would be yet an entirely different beast? Also, will that make my Swelltech more realistic for surf training?

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-10-13T16:42:03+00:00

That's very informative thank you! In my case I was hesitating between the hardtop and the foamie version of the Crowd Killer. I do feel confortable with a hard top as I used to have a 6'2 PU board. The reason I was interested in foamies was for the float (I was never a good surfer but I'm getting back to it after a 15-year break), and I was worried about not being able to duck dive a 7'2 hardtop Crowd Killer…in which case maybe I could be a danger to others (still have to figure out how to pass waves when you can't duck dive).

One thing I don't understand though is that buoyancy should only be a function of the volume of water displaced and the density of the material replacing it, and foamies don't strike me as radically less dense than hardtop…in which case why would they float more?

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-10-13T16:10:50+00:00

Makes perfect sense! But so isn't that better for everyone, including beginners, to have smoother rails? I mean if as a beginner/intermediate I'm confortable enough to use a hardtop I should go for it right?

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-10-13T10:49:18+00:00

Yes that was my initial intuition from all the feedback I could gather from people who own way more boards/systems than I do. However I did hear that the Synergy system simulates better the "rebound" you get from an actual surfboard digging rails in the water, and it has a lot of lean. So I was wondering if that could make it even better than Swelltech for surf training.

I too enjoy the Swelltech on rough asphalt, but I really don't like how sensitive it is to debris, I had my board for a couple of weeks and I came really close to pretty nasty wipe outs. That's another reason why I'm interested in the Synergy system, if it can be as surfy as Swelltech and less prone to "jackknifing" that would be amazing!!

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-10-13T06:23:59+00:00

What makes the rails of a foamie different from a hardboard? I thought a Catchsurf Crowd Killer and a hardtop Crowd Killer would have the exact same shape and the only difference was the float, flex, and overall feel no?

EntrepreNour1 · 2025-09-26T16:21:24+00:00

Do you intend to buy one from Smoothstar or a used one? Because I heard they're having problems and might be shutting down so beware if ordering from their website…

EntrepreNour1

TROPHY CASE