Need Your Opinions!

I need your guys' opinions about board sizing. I've ridden for a couple years and this last season was te most wakeboarding i've ever done. This last season I also felt like I had to "work" the board I was riding all season long, I know its not necessarily the board because I rode a couple boards of the same size. I rode the '08 and '09 transcend 142, 141 Pure, '09 Marius 140, and '08 watson 142. I loved all the boards except the marius (cant stand the board). Although I liked how all the boards rode, they all felt kinda like I had to work them harder than I should (except the watson cause its so light). So im thinking about going to a size 138 or 139. Im 5'11", 185 lbs. Do you guys think that sizing down would be a bad idea or would a smaller board be fine and might only feel a little bit slower or etc.? Please let me know what you guys think and if you have any personal experiences of sizing down your board then I'd like to hear them! Thanks!

for your height and size, 138/39 is good. I'm 5'10" 160 lb and I ride the Ronix One 138. You could even go with a 140 but if you are looking for a smaller board, don't go any shorter than a 138. Best thing you could do is just keep trying boards out and demo some before you make a purchase. Also, since you say you feel like you have to work to get the board to respond, make sure your bindings are set up correctly. You might have too narrow of a stance or you are sitting with too much heel or toe weight. Center the bindings edge to edge and tip to tail.

Codi,
I'm 5'10", 155lbs. and ride the Transcend 142. If you are feeling like you are having to "work" too much when riding, perhaps the problem is with technique and not gear. Get a lesson or ride with someone new. If you are wanting to progress, surround yourself with other riders of the same mindset--ones that can help you with body position, handle position, edge technique and build confidence. You should be able to get more out of your riding but actually doing less. Remember, also, to have fun and not get discouraged. if you ever get down my way, let's ride!!

Thanks guys! Ya i ride with a couple great crews who are very talented riders here in nor-cal and always compete in the INT's and stuff. I got my stance all figured out fine and stuff, im pretty picky when it comes to my stance set up. I also had the privilage to go ride with Bryan Hutton this last summer while he was up here for the spring ride in nor-cal and he did a great job of teaching me body and handle positioning, it definately made my riding progress much faster than i expected! He was totally cool and patient with helping me and everything, it was awesome! It seems like size is all personal preference for boards. I guess I just gotta try riding a 38 or 39 to see what I like. Chuck, I'd def be down to riding if im ever in your area! And if your ever up here, I got a couple great crews to ride with!

185 on 139. Have ridden 142 w/out probs. I agree, your form is off...

I disliked wakeboarding until I found a board that felt right and that is a LF Witness 136...I am 5'11 3/4" and 165.

It doesnt make sense how you can say my form is off if you've never seen me ride. Im not saying I am errorless with my riding because im far from errorless (like everyone else), but its also not that easy to go as far as saying someones form is wrong when with wakeboarding, personal style plays a huge part in ones riding. Im sure my form is perfectly fine to be honest, given that I can ride my board with fluent confidence. So like I said, my riding is fine, I just want to know if a smaller board would create any problems that anyone else has experienced??? That was my question. Thanks for the input guys but lets not turn this into a coaching session. Thanks

Andy- Thanks for the short n sweet of what I asked for

I'm the same size and ride a 142.

Marius, Pure, Transcend, Watson---all very different boards.

"Although I like how all the boards rode, they all felt kinda like I had to work them harder than I should"

My response was based on your statements. Please don't be offended. You shouldn't be feeling like you have to work harder. It's not the boards, it's you. I thought I rode just fine(raley, back roll, 360) when I first went to The Boarding School......guess what I learned the first week? How to edge properly, change handle position, proper body position, how to get more by doing less and how to jump the wake. All things I thought I was doing correctly. I ride much better now, several inverts/spins, have better style, take fewer hard hits and have more fun riding/progressing. I'll be going back to The Boarding School in the spring.
I'm not telling you to take a lesson, but even the best riders in the world receive coaching--just something to think about.
I'm twice your age, weigh 30lbs. less and ride a 142 just fine......it's not the board.

Thanks for the advice chuck! I wasnt offended by your comment at all, i was just throwing the idea out to the rest about people claiming bad form if they havent seen the person ride, no worries! Its all good! Thank you for the advice!