Thanks to Keith at Hawaiian South Shore, we got to take out one of the more interesting fins on the market, the Wavegrinder.  The fin has been around for a few years and we were excited to take one out in the surf for some stand up paddle surfing action in waist to shoulder high waves on Oahu's North Shore. In this Finsights article, you'll learn what the Wavegrinder is and what we found as the pros and cons of the unconventional fin.

      The Wavegrinder fin is an angular upright fin that draws on technology and hydrodynamic principles used by the yachting and airplane industries. The pronounced feature of the Wavegrinder is what they call "winglets". These are small wings near the tip of the fin designed to reduce drag and increase lift.
 
    Without reading too much about the theory behind the fin, we tested the Wavegrinder fin on a performance stand up paddle surfboard under 10'.  We were more concerned with performance than theory, so truthfully, we'll read the complete story about the theory behind the fin after we finish the review. We ran it as a single fin, as we understand it was meant to be run, and set the fin about 1/2" from the front of the box.

A company by the name of DIY Surf Gear has come on the scene with a product called DIY Surf Gear: Surf Paddle Plans which includes a series of illustrated instructions and knowledge about how to build a stand up surf paddle at home. Being a person that has always wanted a wooden paddle to take out from time to time, I went to it and built a paddle using one of three paddle building methods provided in the package. It took me an afternoon to shape and assemble the paddle. I decided to put a layer of fiberglass over the whole thing, which isn't necessary, but I thought I'd just give it a try, which took another afternoon. Then, after it dried, I sanded it smooth and took it out on the water. I have to admit, in a day when everything is store-bought and everything can be replaced by swiping a credit card, it was a fulfulling experience to build a paddle with my own hands, fine tune it, and take it out on the water. Truth be known, I actually built the paddle for my wife, and she's stoked on it. In this article, I'll share my experience building my first paddle.