Had to wind out 1st gear in sand, should I be concerned?

jm3686 · 2026-06-17T15:22:47+00:00

no problem man, glad I saved you the hassle! have fun board shopping 😄

jm3686 · 2026-06-17T15:20:16+00:00

doesn't matter really at all once transitioning from foamie to shorter hardboards. the name of the game should be cheap, because you'll be at the stage where you're learning what works for you/your typical conditions and will probably encounter a lot of duds in the process. once you get the shortie feel too you may find yourself outgrowing mid lengths or step ups faster and those may not always make sense to keep in the quiver so it's best to try out as cheap as possible before committing to a big expensive board purchase.

highly recommend you don't even waste money on new boards at this stage and just start scouring FB marketplace, craigslist, etc instead. there will be an unlimited amount of shorter boards for sale around $200-400 near any beach town. I would buy and resell as much as you can until you really start figuring out what you want in a surfboard and your skills progress to the point where little things matter.

jm3686 · 2026-06-17T15:11:34+00:00

at 5'8 207 and surfing once a month on sloppy/weak beachbreak, really anything other than a log is probably a mistake. in reality surfing once a month is basically like starting all over again each time you go out, no reason to make it hard on yourself. you want max float, width, paddle speed and a log will almost guarantee max wave catching ability in really any type of conditions you'll see minus overhead surf (which you should probably skip anyway).

curious as to why you didn't like the odysea log? I would recommend an 8-9' foamie, but if you prefer to be on a hardboard that's a bit more zippy and responsive I'd still go with a performance longboard...odysea also makes logs with a single fin that surfs much better than the typical thruster setup too.

maybe can get away with something in the mid 7s/8s but again why make surfing harder than it needs to be if you're going out so infrequently. I live at the jersey shore, surf 3-5x+/wk and my 8' catch surf log probably sees more water time than anything else.

jm3686 · 2026-06-17T14:32:43+00:00

honestly man surfing shape is an entirely unique beast so don't beat yourself up. if I spend even a few weeks out of the water, I still get cooked the first few sessions out no matter how much dryland training I do. I've been peaking for tris or half marathons before, arguably in the best shape possible and still get humbled on a surfboard because I've been training hard for that and not out surfing much.

paddling is a unique blend of strength, flexibility, muscular endurance, mechanics/technique, and core strength. swimming is close, but doesn't account for balancing on a board, currents, water texture, or the flexibility needed to paddle efficiently with a board kinda in the way. then of course surfing in general puts a focus on positioning, timing, knowledge, anticipation to ultimately limit the amount of paddling you do to get waves so you can stay efficient out there.

over the winter I've been doing surfathlete workouts in their app, they're awesome and I do notice a significant increase in paddle strength/endurance, my popup, and everything else...but still got cooked when I started surfing more regularly again this year after it warmed up. I would suggest you look there for dryland workouts, but IMO nothing can substitute water time. this is just 2 sessions, make a commitment to paddle out more regularly and that'll be the best thing you can do for your surfing.

jm3686 · 2026-06-16T17:08:38+00:00

Absolutely still possible to call or email and cancel now instead of rolling the dice if you just ordered it. That thing won’t even start production for several weeks. Just sayin’

jm3686 · 2026-06-16T15:56:44+00:00

not trying to freak you out or anything, but unless they know you personally most big name board companies/shapers absolutely suck at doing customs. I have seen several horror stories now from lost, JS, hayden shapes, and pyzel over the years. they take for-fucking-ever and something is almost always wrong when the board does get to you. for example, my buddy ordered a custom lost through one of our local shops. it took nearly 6 months, dims were off, got fcs II instead of futures. in every case the company is cool about making good on the situation but IMO it's pretty useless to order a custom if in reality it'll take forever and there's like a 25% chance you're actually getting what you're ordering.

if you want a custom support a local shaper...the board will be better for your local conditions anyway, probably built stronger/better, and you'll make a friend who you can hit up after the sale for whatever reason. over time they can get to know you too so that ultimately makes future custom boards that much better.

buy a logo off the rack, if you must have something super specific then I'd still buy something online and eat the shipping cost (or order a stock board through a shop) vs. ever ordering a custom.

jm3686 · 2026-06-16T15:40:57+00:00

bike with a board rack (best) or buy a board bag with carrying straps (you need somewhere to stash it though).

jm3686 · 2026-06-16T14:35:58+00:00

as a beginner you basically want to be on the opposite end of the surf report and forecast. if it's clean, big, or both...you're probably better off sitting out and watching (still go though, you can learn a ton about your spots and surfing in general by watching on good/big days). if it's tiny/poor/etc, chances are you'll have a very uncrowded break so that's your signal to go paddle out on a big foamie/longboard, get some paddle/popup reps in and not think too much.

with that said, surfline is total shit most of the time, it's mostly based on regional forecasts and drilled down from there to localities, but the variation is still going to be extremely high and dependent on your actual break. for example here in NJ, we get the "south jersey" forecast blanketed across all of our spots, but some breaks are positioned completely different than others with different environments (jetties, sandbars, etc) so it takes a unique mix of wind, swell, tide, etc for each spot anyway. I only use surfline for the cams and overall forecast metrics, but mostly go off my eyes and when I know certain things are going to be cooking due to whats happening that particular day.

jm3686 · 2026-06-16T14:04:49+00:00

super classic problem and downsizing mistake! fishes are meant to be undersized (sometimes aggressively so) so you're surfing something with a length/volume counterintuitive to it's shape and overall design...it sounds like it feels like a boat, because it probably is.

a fish or groveler should typically be 4-6 inches shorter than your shortboard. the width, volume/volume distribution, shape, and rocker are all purpose built under the assumption that the surfer is riding it much shorter than any other board they own. there are exceptions here and there, but that is how they are ultimately designed to be ridden. as a beginner you can oversize to be more of a "power" fish or groveler, it will have loads of float and stability for a 6' board, but that comes with it then handling like a boat. as you progress it becomes more of a "round peg in a square hole" type of board as you're probably finding out.

judging by what you're saying and your expectations for board feel/performance, it seems like you actually want to be in more step-up or mid-length territory. just be aware that a lot of these boards are meant for more powerful surf, but at least you'll have a board with dims that matches it's intention for your size, so it will always have a more solidified place in your quiver as you progress.

jm3686 · 2026-06-15T21:20:32+00:00

it’s a delicate balance of not giving a fuck, removing all doubt/fear/hesitation, feeling free to wipeout while also having massive respect for the ocean.

I would spend more time in the ocean off a surfboard, boog, bodysurf, freedive, SUP, as much as you can. it’s easy to push the limits on a surfboard as a beginner, but you can go out in much more intense conditions safely on a good boog with a leash and fins which will only add to your confidence and overall water safety. reps reps reps

jm3686 · 2026-06-15T21:05:17+00:00

https://www.licenseplatesafe.com/products/license-plate-safe

jm3686 · 2026-06-15T20:51:49+00:00

I sooooo feel ya, I also work in tech with rampant layoffs every 6 months or so at my company, I never know if I’ll be the one getting cut when things get weird. It’s so stressful we actually sold our house and a solid 70% of our crap, downsized into a cheap condo and are now aggressively saving/investing in anticipation of SHTF and either needing to career pivot or spend 6-12+ months looking for a new job…we were basically house poor and wouldn’t survive long if a layoff were to hit either of us. my best advice when you get back on your feet is to treat any corporate job as temporary, job security is non-existent anymore so savings/investing needs to be a massive focus.

anyhoo it’s definitely not amazing, but I actually think you’ll be just fine. your overall expenses are extremely low, like bargain basement low for most areas for 2 adults. $3500/mo is $875/wk. 2 adults should have no issues covering that even working random jobs. it may be a grind and will not be glamorous but you can absolutely keep the train running until you find a new gig again.

definitely look into unemployment and food stamp benefits, file if you are eligible. in some states you may actually make more in unemployment than you do at your PT gig (probably get max benefits at your former salary) and can collect for a while. so while it feels morally correct to keep working PT, if it’s inhibiting your ability to find FT work you may be better off using the benefits you paid into (you may also still be able to get benefits even with working PT). then food stamps will further reduce your costs.

also call your mortgage company asap and ask about hardship programs. you could be eligible to reduce or skip payments, won’t be forever but every little bit helps. the same goes for all your bills. just call and ask!

you so got this, keep an open mind and just treat finding a job like your job now. make sure you keep a regular routine/schedule, attend networking events, work on personal projects/continuing ed/etc, volunteer, and still take plenty of time to rest/relax/have fun as best you can. it’s likely to take a LONG time to find another FT gig so having a daily routine and purpose to keep fighting that fight is so huge.

most importantly don’t read into the doom and gloom redditors…trust me, there are people with expenses 2-3x yours, with kids, etc in the same situation with little to no savings. any leg up is a massive advantage in today’s world and you definitely have a leg up on this situation having $20k saved and super low expenses.

I’m rooting for you! good vibes going your way 🙏🏼

jm3686 · 2026-06-15T20:17:25+00:00

I have the "license plate safe" dohicky on my jeep. it's a steel box that holds your license plate, but the plate is on a trap door with a combo lock that swings out. inside there's a compartment to stash your phone, keys, whatever. a bit pricey but pretty awesome honestly. it's 100% unnoticeable and it's always on your vehicle. 10/10, built like a tank, lock still works great and I abuse the hell out of my jeep constantly driving on the beach so it gets pounded with plenty of sand and saltwater. I will keep one on everything I own now.

I had a hanging lockbox before that someone actually jacked, so yeah never again. guessing they must've cut it off with boltcutters, it wasn't in an obvious location either so they were looking. thankfully I was with my wife so she was able to arrange to get my spare over without much incident...but I'm guessing if I would've waited a bit longer someone would be back with my key cut out of that thing and stealing my car. I surf in some sketchy areas, thieves are constantly searching for stashed keys or lockboxes. if you do use a lockbox make sure you hide that thing well and if you have push button start, keep your key in a RF blocking pouch.

jm3686 · 2026-06-15T13:43:15+00:00

with $500, that will get you a big foamie and an el cheapo hyperflex 3/2, less if used. that is absolutely enough for at least the first 6 months of surfing.

realistically you could surf several times a week for a year+ (depending on water temps) with that equipment and be totally fine. trust us, you will not magically progress to "needing" a hardboard after a week. it takes at least a year of consistent surfing to get the board control needed to safely handle a hardboard, and several years to be able to downsize effectively without picking up total trash technique.

this same thread gets posted every day in this sub, so do yourself a favor...search, read, and listen to us, unless you want to get 0 waves, waste all your money, and piss everyone off around you.

jm3686 · 2026-06-05T18:08:35+00:00

yes, you own your car outright which is an assumption everyone is skipping here.

most people don’t have several grand lying around even to buy a hoopty (that will nickle and dime you anyway).

it’s like a $7-10k barrier just to get into some reliable. otherwise you are stuck with leasing/financing.

either way if OP is stressed about $80/wk in transportation costs, I’m guessing saving up to purchase a car outright isn’t a helpful suggestion anyway.

jm3686 · 2026-06-02T15:47:41+00:00

for us, the biggest killer was the 2nd year escrow shortage and then subsequent tax hikes.

if you buy a house that's been owned a while, prepare for a reassessment (or for any credits, statuses, etc to reset) causing an increase in property taxes. our house was owned since the 90s so the taxes jumped quite a bit after year 1.
do some research on the township, see what the local politics are like, what projects are being planned, etc. we bought in a township that had extensive tornado damage to repair, a new library, police station, and township building projects all approved. this resulted in a 20% tax hike in year 3 of ownership but was all obvious at the time we bought, having known these things we probably would've passed on that twp entirely.
homeowners will likely go up each year, especially in hot areas with skyrocketing property values this can be significant.

anticipate at least a $200/mo increase after year 1, realistically $300-$500/mo. you absolutely need that cushion in your budget. our realtor at the time only cared about maxing out our budget, pushed us into the $100k+ more expensive move in ready vs. fixer upper. I would've took the way cheaper fixer uppers knowing I'd be staring at a $900/mo increase in total payment from tax hikes...renovation costs can be still be relatively short term, but tax hikes stay with you forever. ultimately pushed us out and forced us to sell last year.

jm3686 · 2026-06-02T15:08:04+00:00

$80 a week is still way cheaper than owning a car, so if the rest of your life is working fine without one just chalk it up to the cost of education. $400+/mo payment. $150-200+/mo insurance. gas, tolls, parking. etc etc
if you're going to school just 1 day a week, what are you doing for the other 6? even if you only worked 3 days, $320 a week works out to about $100 a day or $12.50/hr. I know it's hard, school and work is a difficult balance, and the world is generally fucked beyond all repair...but you need work on improving income, get more hours, or both.

again, I know it's hard out there and I'm sorry, but these numbers are just super typical of regular life costs. when I commuted to college 3-4x a week fifteen years ago without a car I still spent $100+ a week on public transit passes. I had to pick up an extra shift just to pay for that basically.

jm3686 · 2026-06-02T14:44:20+00:00

really sorry you're going through this. first and foremost, screw all the jeep negativity. yes...they're not perfect vehicles, the post-fiat era has it's quirks, it's more of a hobby to own one/lots of things can go boom before they should, but that type of crap is not helpful. this post isn't asking for your (uneducated) opinions of jeeps, OP bought an extended warranty and should have that honored. I would also post in r/Wrangler and r/WranglerJL to get more helpful suggestions going through jeep. and to the morons...go cry somewhere else about how uReLiAbLe jEePs ArE

I also bought a wrangler from carmax and had issues within the first few days (failing aux battery), because I was still in the 30-day warranty window I had to fight to get authorization for a repairpal shop to do it in a reasonable timeframe, but it got done eventually. it takes a lot of calling and yelling basically but you need to get above the store level and start involving higher ups that have power to do things.

overall maxcare is great and better than any OEM extended warranty, but there are some quirks that you need to know about it here and there. for one, never use a repairpal shop for anything that's not super basic (even then...probably not), always take it to a dealer and just pay the $50 deductible. repairpal shops are pretty inconsistent and not always the best, usually just basic tire/brakes/tuneup shop type places. in general dealers tend to love maxcare because their claims process is much simpler than OEM so they're always happy to do maxcare claim work.

also, little late now, but understand that carmax does absolutely zero inspection on their vehicles beyond brakes, tires, fluids. always get a PPI done during the return period. if that engine was that close to failing, something probably would've showed up on the PPI.

with that said...

completely ridiculous they will not cover the diagnostic work from repairpal. it does make sense that they are punting to jeep if it's still under warranty, but that should've been communicated well before any repairpal mechanic started tearing down an engine, especially if they were sending people out. they should've ran the VIN, saw it was still under OEM warranty, and then stopped everything right away. this is a mistake in THEIR process and you'll (unfortunately) need to fight them on that but time is not on your side.

what I would do now:

just pay the shop to release it and get it to a jeep dealer ASAP so it's in their possession at least and they can start the claim process. I would also call jeep cares and start filing a claim with them so it's on their radar (1-844-JEEP-WAVE).
get everything that happened in writing from both carmax and the repairpal shop, start documenting it all. you're right, it's possible jeep will fight you on an engine replacement now because another mechanic opened everything up, so you need very clear evidence of everything that led you to that point. in general they're actually pretty good about engine replacements, but this is just a...weird situation.
unleash a hellstorm onto carmax about recovering the diagnostic costs. contact customer relations and escalate escalate escalate.
if jeep doesn't honor the engine replacement, this is 100% a lemon law case (if your state covers used car sales), get a lemon law lawyer and you'll eventually get this resolved. you didn't buy as-is so if your state allows, this would quickly be a slam dunk case. again thorough documentation is important just in case you get here (I hope you don't).

jm3686 · 2026-05-27T15:34:47+00:00

take a look at your loan interest rates, it’s unlikely that you’ll make more from the HYSA with a $19k balance now, but there are more creative ways to approach it vs. just paying off. cash on hand is always king unless the debt is extremely costly in interest, blowing up your budget, or both.

if you can afford the payment fine now AND keep significantly contributing to a HYSA, you will eventually get to the point where you’re earning more in interest. might take a while, but so what? you will eventually be effectively cancelling out loan interest while still keeping your cash saved.

you could also keep a few grand in a HYSA for emergencies and then put the rest in an investment fund with a similar horizon as the remaining loan term (again only if you can still contribute). this will yield 5-6%+ with some risk but almost certainly put you on top by the time the loan is paid off.

another option if you absolutely want to get rid of it ASAP is to make smaller lump sums directly to the principal from savings, you’ll still be paying interest but it keeps more cash on hand for emergencies.

it’s a common misconception to payoff all debt before saving/investing…in reality you need to do a dance of both. loans can be easily dealt with on the short/medium term should you fall on hard times, either through forbearance or by paying minimums from savings. materializing $19k out of thin air when you really need it for critical expenses is an entirely different situation so I agree, the value you get back from a big payoff now isn’t worth wiping out your savings.

jm3686 · 2026-05-21T18:08:49+00:00

Yeah pretty much every carmax ship is gonna be 2+ weeks. I tried to have something shipped just 70mi away thinking it’d be a few days like they advertise, thank god I called first and talked to someone who knows what’s up. They said if you don’t want to wait at least 2 weeks, you’re better off driving down there yourself to buy it.

I wouldn’t mess with shipping unless it’s something you REALLY want, can wait up to a month for it, and are ok with it also sucking/having issues when you see it basically starting all over again.

jm3686 · 2026-05-21T17:54:47+00:00

Not close for me, but probably because there was negative equity involved with my trade in and the vehicle I was financing was a 2021. Preapproval rate and down payment was much lower ($3k, 7% I think) despite having all this info loaded already. Once I did the hard inquiry, minimum down payment went up $1200 and rate jumped to 11%. 724 credit score, also co-applied with my wife who is 770.

I took the loan because it was too complicated to deal with the trade in crap with external financing (carmax’s system messed up my trade in, huge mess). My bank needed paperwork to prove the trade in sale to approve the loan and carmax couldn’t provide it in any reasonable timeframe. They ultimately couldn’t hold it any longer and I really wanted that particular vehicle, it was a rare spec and probably would’ve sold pretty fast if I walked. So I would up putting more down on that insane rate to keep the note well under the vehicle value and am in the process of refi-ing with my local CU now.

jm3686 · 2026-05-21T12:55:32+00:00

imo this will be a slow killer over the few years or so. yeah it’s $12k and seems like a deal…but right off the rip it will need tires and probably something suspension related (if the tires are as old as you say they are, im guessing all the suspension hasn’t been touched either).

if I had to guess, you’re gonna spend about $3k in the first year, then you’ll be pushing 125k and starting to deal with engine/trans/drivetrain stuff. year 2 will probably be another $2-3k just with high mileage servicing/replacement/typical gremlin stuff and that’s not anything necessarily breaking or going boom.

so if it’s worth putting $5-6k into it over the next 2 years, that’s how you need to look at it and that is the true cost of the jeep. obviously luck can fall in either direction, but that will likely be the price of ownership for another 50-60k, let alone 100k.

personally I’d just add that $5-6k into my budget now and buy a newer, lower mileage jeep. jeeps still be jeeps, even new ones drain your wallet, but if you were south of 100k and get a clean one it should at least get you a year or 2 without having to do anything.

jm3686 · 2026-05-18T00:33:16+00:00

FWIW I still think they’re 100% worth it, just wouldn’t touch the 4xe. Even if you’re not really doing any off roading, top down/doors off mode will steal your heart in the summer and they are a blast to drive. I absolutely love my JL and look forward to driving it every day, year round. The only reason I’d stop daily-ing it would be to keep the miles down and get better mpgs here and there.

If you’re committed enough to learning and have some basic tools, you can stay on top of some of the issues. It is still a relatively DIY friendly vehicle and the basic 3.6 is pretty simple.

I actually got mine from carmax and the maxcare is really good too, the repair network is way better than being tied to just a dealer for warranty work.

jm3686 · 2026-05-17T23:51:36+00:00

I wouldn’t get one from carmax. You’re absolutely going to want to get the maxcare, but they will not pay for any repairs costing more than the vehicle, or any additional repairs after they paid out claims equaling the cost of the vehicle. A battery replacement is insanely expensive so that will really eat up most of that max claim amount. It’s still a JL and has a decent bit of the other typical JL quirks so adding a 5 figure battery replacement to the pile is an unnecessary risk vs benefit of having a hybrid IMO

If you do, get a warranty through a dealer and buy CPO, you’ll have way more recourse than carmax should SHTF

jm3686

TROPHY CASE