First thing is first. See what style of fin box you have on your board. Are they FCS style or are they the Futures style? FCS fins have two tabs that are inserted into the hull of the board using screws. Futures style fins are inserted into the hull of a board with a larger single tab using screws. Then you want to look at your fin set up to determine how many fins you will need. From my experience all you need on a river wave is a twin fin (2 fin) set up.

It all boils down to what style of surfing you want to do.

When surfing a river wave you are surfing straight. This allows more of the boards surface area to be in the water. Your fins are going to spend majority of the time in the water. I find that a twin fin (2 fin) setup works really well. I don’t really like a quad set up because it makes the board react a lot slower while turning and doing tricks. If I am riding really short fins I will throw in a 2 + 1 fin set up ( 2 side fins and 1 middle fin). This seems to help provide a little bit more stability and still feels loose enough to do tricks. Keep in mind this is my personal preference from my own experience and surf style.

Quick Fin 101

Fin Size

The fin size is referring to the length or height of the fin. A fin that is larger will help provide stability and control. A smaller fin will create a lose skate like feeling on the wave. In bigger more powerful river waves a larger fin will help you keep more control while surfing. Overall a longer/taller fin provides more stability on a river wave.

Fin Base

The fin base refers to the part of the fin that sits flush with the board. It is typically the widest part of the fin. The length of the base will impact how your board turns on a river wave. A longer fin base will create longer turns. A shorter fin base will help you turn quicker.

Fin Flex

Fin flex refers to how much flex the fin has while surfing on a wave. All fins have a certain flex but some have more than others. For the most part the base of the fin will be stiff and toward the tip is where the flex will be. A fin with more flex will allow the fins to break free for a more skate feel.

Find out which fins work best for you based on your style and board setup

Wrapping It Up

Looking at these basic fin features you can decide what fin is going to work best. You can determine what style of surfing you want to do. If you want to have a looser skate style and be able to do all sorts of spin tricks and pop shove its. Use a smaller fin with a shorter base. If you want to hack massive turns and throw buckets of spray chose a bigger fin with a wider base. Or if you want to balance yourself somewhere between those two styles choose a medium size fin and fin base.

The best part is playing around with different shaped and different size fins to see how it affects the board in the water. Have fun with it and figure out what works best for you and your surf style. Keep progressing and having fun!

The post How to Choose the Right Fins for River Surfing appeared first on Riverbreak.

A Munich based Action Sport Venture tells us about their vision about a holistic surfing experience. Learn what Sandro Stark, CEO of HIDRO has to say about surfing, passion and what makes a truly holistic surfing experience.

HIDRO gives river surfers full control over their fin setup.

As a team of four tech and surfing passionistas, we are currently working on a way to provide individualisation to the world of surfing. During our intense collaboration and co-creation with surfers and shapers we recognised one thing: Surfing is broken!

Shapers and small manufacturers around the world are building beautiful individually designed surfboards every day. But when it comes to selecting the right fins we face a high-complex and cheaply mass produced portfolio of fins dominated by two large monopolists.

We thought, that we are missing a piece to realise our full potential and to radically reduce complexity when surfers select their board setup. Right now we connect with pro surfers, shapers and board manufacturers to deliver a blueprint for a truly holistic surfing experience.

How Will This happen?

Right now, we believe that the shapers will be the best evangelists and change-makers for our technology. We’re planning to build an app or software that translates the boards style & measurements but also the weight and improvement areas of the surfer into a set of exactly tailored fins. We are also experimenting with a wide variety of materials. At the moment we are playing around with high-tech 3D-printing materials, combining glass and nylon to reach extraordinary stiffness or using slightly flexible materials with shape-memory.

Our technology will be available to every shaper and manufacturer around the world.

We are working together with Strongwater and created custom branded river surf fins for their boards. Quite recently big wave rider David Langer approached us – since then we have been tapping into new ultra-durable materials like titanium to provide the right fin for Dave and other big wave hunters.

In the near future we are going to develop a solution to make this technology available to every shaper and manufacturer across the world. We benefit from our large industry network that enables us to have fins manufactured locally. This helps everyone to reduce shipping costs and reduce the footprints we leave on our planet.

Right now we already ship the first 3D manufactured river surf middle fin that is based on sustainable resources such as castor oil.

Give It a Shot: 10% Discount for Riverbreak Readers

We teamed up with our friends from Riverbreak Magazine and offer a 10% discount for 1 month by using the promo code WEHEARTRVRBRK on www.hidrosurf.de. So, go visit our online shop and order a HIRDO fin for your board and feel the difference!

Looking forward to everything that’s coming and we are thrilled about every input, support, likes & shares. We are the drifters and dreamers. The wave-hunters. The pirates & poets. The lovers, the risk takers, the change-makers. #HIDRO

The post HIDRO – Fins for River Surfers appeared first on Riverbreak.

25% off on all Green Flex fins at NU.ART surfstuff – This offer is only valid until stock lasts, so be quick and grab yourself some spare fins!

FCS Green Flex fins are made of a new composite fin material made from post-consumer waste. This special material is engineered to replicate the flex and memory of a traditional fibreglass fin, even closer than the current Glass Flex composite.

The performance of the new Green Flex material has been validated by many top tier FCS team riders, along with retailers, and members of the wider surfing community. The FCS Green Flex fins provide incredible response and a positive feel across a wide range of conditions and board models. So, does your river surfboard already have Green Flex fins?

The post Save on FCS Fins for River Surfing appeared first on Riverbreak.