l am a beginner but would like to buy a board that l can grow on.I'd rather not get a long board.l live in San Diego so the waves are pretty small now since its summer.thank you for your

You are a begginer, you really need a begginer board. You need to go down to the local surf shop and ask them to help you. The biggest mistake begginer surfers make is buying the wrong board. Many surfers think if they buy the best board avaliable designed for really good surfers, that will make them better faster...WRONG.

l recommend buying something used. You do not need a new board for ur first board. Check out craigslist or local surf shops for good deals.

You can learn on a short board, but it is going to be a lot more difficult, & u may get frustrated. Especially with the small waves of summer, it is easier to catch the waves with a bigger board.

You could buy something in between, like a fun board. l learned on a 7'6'' ron jon fun board. It was great because it was wide enough & big enough to make catching the waves easy. But it was small enough that l could turn & maneuver & progress with it.

l still have it, & take it out when the waves r small. But since then l have bought SEVERAL boards of all different sizes to take out depending on the swell & conditions.

l am going to send u an e-mail (or e-mail me!!) & give u some info on a surfing group l belong to in San Diego. It is a great group of people who meet up all the time. We're having a big party on the 14th. And you'd be able to get a lot of new surfing buddies. Our website even has a free classifieds section where we sell boards & stuff to each other. If u can, we're going out this afternoon at 3:30 at Tourmaline, & again at 6pm at South Mission. Tomorrow morning we're meeting at Avalanche around 7am.

((ok, u do not allow e-mails, seriously, e-mail me & l can send u the link for the site. It is a lot of fun & a great way to meet people to surf with.))

Definitely get a used board. l used to surf in SD so l know how the waves are but it does not matter l have had friends break boards in those waters! Your better off starting with at least a 7 footer. The longer the better. You definitely cant rush into it. But you might be a natural but you do not want to hurt yourself. What beach are you surfing at makes a difference also. You should rent one to try them out.

u need a longboard. if u want to get into shortboarding, u have to start with longboarding. go to mitch is or surf ride in solana beach or some surf shops on mission beach or wherever u can find boards & get a long foam board. DO NOT GET A HARDBOARD! i've been surfing san diego for over 5 years & l just got my first hardboard last year. & if u do not think longboarding is cool, learn how to hang ten & then go surf. u will feel like a pro. l like del mar to get used to surfing. since the break is pretty far outside, ride the white wash inside until ur comfortable to surf outside. to surf outside, l like swami is in cardiff because it is a perfect right that u can surf all day long especially with a long board. l have trouble pulling into a wave with a 7 foot board. nothing smaller than 8 feet! have fun & good luck

Go with a longboard if the waves are small you wont be able to catch anything on a shortboard and its alot easier to stand up and practice on a longer board. If you really do not want to get a longboard get something in between like a 7-8'.

Get a big retro fish. It is not as long as a longboard but has plenty of width & thickness along with a deep swallow tail - all of this will help u paddle better & catch tons of waves. You will also be able to grow with these boards since they're a lot more maneuverable than the typical longboard.
Check out 9:Fish Surfboards (http://9fishsurf.com/products.html). They have a couple of models that might be exactly what you're looking for (the 7'4'' Hammerhead or 8'4'' Koi).

You can buy a good long board at Surf Ride or Becker Surfboards. You will want to start off with a long board. And they are kind of exspensive so start savin.