Other than the obvious difference in board length, what differs in the experience of riding a longboard compared to a shortboard?

the longer it is, the harder it is to control.like turn and stuff. however it is easier to stand up on if it is longer. cause l had surfing lessons on like a 9ft board and then l went out and bought a shorter one and it was a lot harder to stand up on lol. and you do not see people on 8 ft boards carving huge waves. haha l do not know if that made any sense because l do not know the surfer vocabulary. but you probably know what l mean.

Think of a longboard as a cruising board. For the most part, you're going to be surfing mellow waves, getting long rides, & doing slow & ''artistic'' maneuvers. Think, walking on the board, hanging ten, cross stepping. Real chill vibe.

On a short board, you're moving a lot faster, & doing quicker moves. Think cut back, floater, & roundhouse. A short board is more of a high performance board. You're going to go faster.

A long board is easier to learn on. It is easier to catch the wave, & easier to stand up on. Because there is a larger area you're standing on, it is a lot easier to balance on a long board. The shorter & more narrow a board is, the more ''wobbly'' it is going to be.

Also, when you're on a long board, it is almost impossible to duck dive when a wave is coming towards u & you're trying to paddle out. Most long boarders have to ''turtle'' their boards. That is when u grab the rails & flip upside down, so you're under ur board, & the fins r pointed up. The wave will usually just pass right over you, so u can flip back over, & continue paddling out. On a short board, u can duck dive to get out to the line up. Basically grab the rails, up closer to the nose of the board, pull yourself up & place a knee or foot on the tail of the board. Kinda make a triangle with ur body & the board & shove the nose under the approaching wave. You will ''dive'' under the wave, & be able to paddle out to the line up.

l recommend owning a few boards that u can choose to ride depending on what the conditions r like. l take out a long board when the waves r small. It will be easier to catch the small waves on a long board. And, l can have a fun, chill day walking up & down the board & doing fun little tricks. On a bigger, more powerful day l will take out one of my short boards. It is easier to get out to where l want to be, & more fun to do fast maneuvers on the bigger waves.

longer it is easier to learn on and balance on but it is a little harder to control. the longer the board the easier to learn on.

shorter it is its easier to pull of tricks and manuever but harder to balance on because of the shprtness in length.

hope l helped <3 Hunter