Board for cautious rider

I am looking ahead to next season for a board that my wife can ride. She is in her mid 50's and a very cautious rider. It took her a long time to attempt to ride and quite a while to actually get up, but she really enjoys it now. She has been riding for about the last 2 months on a Hyperlite Landlock. The Landlock is very stable for her (A good thing) but a pretty slow board.

There are not many places to buy and test out boards where I am in Florida. I am thinking about a board with decent size fins for stability but faster in a medium size wake good for riders in a weight range of 135 plus or minus 20lbs. (she is in the middle of that)A good cruising board.

Suggestions anyone?

HL Broadcast

I would say the blue lake, that board is great for crusiing, and I am significantly bigger than your wife, for her it would be very mellow and relaxed.

The Liquid Force Custom Thruster is a 3 fin 4' 6" board. It is very stable and still pretty nimble. It would probably be a decent board for her.

SMED boards and Props make some good smaller boards that are still very stable. I don't have experience with them, but I hear good things about the Inland Surfer boards.

hyperlite broadcast would be a great board. you can put whatever size fins you like on it and its a little faster than the landlock, not to mention she will be able to manuever it better and still have the stability from the width of the board

ditto Blue Lake..

Cruise all day on a Blue Lake. Tilt your head and shoulders forward and shoot towards the boat. My wife progressed from a HL Broadcast 4.9 to the Blue.

Only reason the wife didn't learn on the Blue Lake is that it's very bouant and a bit harder to water start on than the HL that will sink under her a bit easier on water starts. Since your wife already has the water starts down then you are good to go. My wife is 120lbs, I'm 150, and friends that are just over 200lbs all like the speed, control, and cruising of the blue.

It seems a like a lot of people like the Blue Lake. I would like the versatility of the board due to the fact a larger riders like it. I have several larger friends who cannot ride the old Landlock we have because it is too slow.

What about the Yellow Loogey?

The yellow loogey/green loogey is more of a skim style board, but still retains the surf feel because of the construction. Just about anyone can ride the blue lake and cruise on it, but bigger guys will find the green/yellow loogey to possibly be a bit squirrely.

I rode the Yellow Loogey and didn't enjoy it very much. I like the feel of my Phase Five Prop. The Loogey felt too slow and not loose enough for me. This could be a good thing for someone wanting a more stable feeling board.

I ride the yellow loogie and love it. I tried the blue lake for giggles and found it a little big for me although it was an easy to ride cruiser. I am the same size as your wife but have been surfing for several years progressing from broadcast to coex to yellow loogie.
I find that the loogie has the speed I need to keep up with factory ballast only wakes. I can surf any wake with that board even a factory only X Star.

The Landlock is very stable for her (A good thing) but a pretty slow board.

Is there a reason you are looking for a faster board for the little woman? If she's as cautious as you suggest, I can't imagine she's suggesting: "I need something faster! This Landlock is TOO slow!"

I guess I'm not sure why you're seeking the change, Dennis.

the reason for the change is because our surf wake is average and the 5 yr old Landlock is a dinosaur. I want a board for my wife, but reality is many people will ride it and I am hoping for a bit more speed without sacrificing stability. I would have had her try the JaMako I had, but it was stolen. I want to replace that board with something she can ride and progress her riding.

Another vote for the Inland Surfer Blue Lake.

This may sound strange, but I sometimes mellow down the wake for her so she does not feel intimidated. This is the main reason I want a faster board that can cruise on a mellow wake.

Then go Blue, a better all around board and very fast.

Actually I think you want a board with bouyancy, not necessarily speed. Smaller crappy wakes can be ridden on a board that floats the rider really well. As an example a 3" thick longboard can be ridden by just about anyone in the foam, whereas the Blue or another board doesn't have enough bouyancy to propel someone in the foam. Many times boards with more bouyancy are longer and so are also typically faster down-the-line.

The Blue is a solid board, tough to go wrong with that considering all the criteria you want the board to handle. The JaMako as a thruster is a good floaty and stable board, too. Too bad that got stolen.

The WO board as a thruster would be a good option also, meant for bigger folks, it will have more foam and thus the bouyancy you're looking for.

When I say mellow the wake I just put the taps down to 2 or 3 in order to take the edge off the lip. It is still a good medium size wake. I am lost Surfdad, what is a WO board?

If the board to TOO buoyant it might make it difficult for her to get up, but again it is hard to judge without trying and there aren't places around here to do that. I am destined to purchase with the good help of you all in here.

I thank you for all your help and any other suggestions are welcome.

Sorry Dennis WO = Wakeoutlaws.com. They have a proprietary board they sell. None of the boards I listed is too corky for your wife. You're right, a too big board can be difficult for lighter weight riders to flip when getting up

I know Wakeoutlaws is discounting board for the end of season right now. Is there one you might suggest?

The one I was thinking about, I believe, is called the Outlaw. This is the link. Way too much hype in the ad copy, IMO, but it's a solid board for your situation.

That board comes in two lengths a 4'7" and a 4'10". Depending upon the size of the rest of your crew, you might be able to get away with the 4'7". They sell it with the Futures 437 Thruster fin set. Leave the trailer in for those wanting a stable ride and remove it for those that want to mess with a looser tail.

Why are you guys awake and on wakeworld at 5:30 in the morning. SURFDAD that has to be like 2:30 your time. Thats CRAZY. Get more sleep and ride more often.

The time on the message board is Pacific time.

OH Got ya I was thinking that was early.

Hey Dennis, Check out Wakesurfing mag There is a board in there called the thumb that she might like, very stable and fast

I forgot about the Thumb - that's a fun board. Michael Daugherty of Wakesurf Magazine riding the Thumb behind our boat this summer during a photo shoot of James.