Kneeboard Surfing USA Community Forum

I've looked at different paipo designs, and have looked at mats, too. Mats look awesome, but I'm not sure they are for me. Maybe, but then again, maybe not. Does anyone know of a shaper that can make a paipo for a good price? I'm not talking about the type of paipos that you see on www.paipo.com or a razor thin hardboard--more of a bellyboard style board. I don't want to pay the price of a full sized hardboard for a bellyboard, so I'm wondering, are there any old school shapers that can do it on the cheap ($200 or less)?

Thanks!

The reason I'm asking is because I want a hard board that I can prone on, and I'm not sure how soon I'll be kneeboarding, even after getting my cast off, because my left leg has spreading numbness and my right leg will be rehabbing. But I'd love to give a shaper some business on an experimental prone board (if I can save enough money from my new job starting monday!)

--marc

PS--I was thinking of something sort of like this, maybe more surfboard-like:

http://www.larryobrien.com/lollipop.htm

I beleive Romanosky qouted me as that board costing the same as a normal kneeboard, that's why I'm asking if anyone else can do it.

Plastic popouts called bellyboogers were produced in Australia in the 1970s. They were not overly buoyant but paddled OK and in my experience they really hung in on steep sections.
http://www.surfresearch.com.au/00000150.html

I've never tried to make a board but I reckon even I could probably tackle a relatively simple design like this and end up with something functional. Maybe you should consider having a go and and recycle an old blank.

Here in Santa Cruz are two shapers who have made paipos since the 60's;
Try John Mel at Freeline or Jon Manss.

The cost of materials is expensive no matter how you look at it. I'm going to be making a barrel board to riding little summer tubes. Probably around 5'2"- so no float - just throw down into the barrel and go.

I stripped a trashed shortboard and have a nice little blank.
I'll make the fins out of mahogany plywood and will use old scraps of 'glass I have left over from my days doing board restorations/repairs.

That may be the way to go. Recycle that funky standup board.

you might look at the Waveskater
http://www.waveskater.com/
haven't ridden it myself but it's gotten some positive reviews over at rodntube.com

Tom Morey strikes again.

Y ?

Actually, the truth is that Morey had VERY LITTLE to do with Wave Skater. The Wave Skater is the creation of Bruce Blumenfeld. Bruce got Morey superficially involved in the project, and now I'm quite sure that Bruce is - to some degree - sorry about that decision. At this point in time, Tom Morey has zero involvement in the Wave Skater project.

Just this afternoon, with the approach of T.S. Ernesto, I was out in the water in Melbourne Beach having great rides on one of my Wave Skaters. Some of you may have seen my Hurricane Fighter Plane, the Mysterious Turtle, or my 4'10" fish, Namkhai, on the League of Lamaroos site. Those are the paipos I've been riding for quite a while... but now the whole thing is about the Wave Skater. It's like the missing link between bodyboards and full-on finned paipo riding. I'm having an absolute blast with mine. I recommend the Wave Skater, and I fully believe it is the future of bodyboarding, hands down. And for riders of conventional paipos - trust me - it's a great ride. Give it time... work with it... be patient... learn its nuances... and have fun.

-tumak

looks good. But they need to make a better promotional video clip than the one on their site of a bunch of kids riding the soup at a swim beach.

kBRO, Steve Walden is an old school shaper with the type of background and open mind to tackle your project. He shaped several excellant kneeboards for me way back when.He has a shop in Ventura. Rich Pavel at the Greenroom in Ocean Beach has made some awesome paipos in the past but, like Romo's would probably cost close to the same as a new kneeboard.

I checked the Wave Skater site and their promo vid is indeed lame as a 3 legged cow. I emailed them about it and here's what came back:

Already being taken care of out in California. Our first concern was
showing the board for the average user. And on the day we hired a camera
crew to film, the waves were terrible. But we made the most of what we
could that day. Our second video should be completed in the next two weeks
and then up on our web site a few weeks after that. So please stay
tuned....

KenM wrote:kBRO, Steve Walden is an old school shaper with the type of background and open mind to tackle your project. He shaped several excellant kneeboards for me way back when.He has a shop in Ventura. Rich Pavel at the Greenroom in Ocean Beach has made some awesome paipos in the past but, like Romo's would probably cost close to the same as a new kneeboard.

Hey man, thanks a bunch. I appreciate any info on this subject. Maybe I'll try calling Walden after a few paychecks come through.

And the WAVE SKATER...I've read nothing but bad reviews about it from bodyboarders. These are from hardcore bodyboarders, but nonetheless, I'm from a strong bodyboarding background, so I can't imagine anything good happening when I use one.

Do you grip the board a different way than a normal bodyboard? Or is it just a crappy board that doesn't work? I'm not saying that it doesn't work, just that I've seen no positive reviews on bodyboarding sites, which have people that match my background.

kneelingBROTHA - In my experience, people often have a pretty hard time giving up the old and accepting the new. I think this is a case of people using inferior and outdated equipment and getting used to that equipment's performance, and then using that as the standard. The standard bodyboard is now antiquated and archaic, and I believe the Wave Skater will replace the old foam sandwich all over the world.

Bodyboarders I've met have, to the man, immediately seen the superiority of the Wave Skater. Who's giving it negative press... and why? My bet is that it comes down to money one way or another. The Establishment doesn't stand to make money off the new way??? Just wondering...

hey tumak...what kind of breaks are you riding?

Here's the skinny...according even to Jay Reale (who hasn't ridden one himself but has talked to many test pilots) the reports are that it doesn't ride well for heavy conditions.

Jay Reale, as you may or may not know, runs www.ebodyboarding.com , THE biggest internet bodyboarding store. He's really friendly, and I'm betting he would have nothing to gain by saying the wave skater doesn't ride well, nor would he ignore an opportunity to make sales. He's no longer officially a pro sponger, so he's not biased towards any particular equipment.

Its not negative press either. I learned this from him on the ebodyboarding.com message board, where many others displayed their dismay.

And trust me, if there was a bodyboard available that worked better than the current ones, everyone would switch to it.

I feel comfortable saying that there's no "establishment" working against the Wave Skater. If it was found by bodyboarders, used to bodyboards, to be superior to the equipment they were riding, they would jump on the Wave Skater boat, because there really is no money in most all of their sponsorships anyhow.

Bodyboarding is poor, and everyone wants to push the limits. If the Wave Skater was better, and was easy to adjust to, I would have heard about it definately.

But, on the flip side, if the Wave Skater is better and is HARD to adjust to, let me know your riding techniques.

Trust me--there's no campaign against the Wave Skater.

Nobody can afford it.

The proof is in the pudding as they say.................

Now the "pudding" shown served on the Wave Skater site was runny and soft.
Maybe better for babies and old folks without teeth.

Go to any bodyboard site and you find "pudding" you can sink your teeth into.
Like this..........






I hope they (Wave Skater) come up with a better batch of "pudding" for their next video to proove their claims.

Going to be hard to beat though.

kneelingBROTHA,

Just ride a regular bodyboard, hard versions aren't very good.

Thanks Bud! I really appreciate the input from someone who has such extensive experience. I'll just go with the regular boogie action then, and mix in the kneeboarding when my legs permit it.