I had been kayak surfing for years in slicey river boats like the S8 and a mullet. I mostly surf on the east coast of the UK, where the waves all form on beach breaks and the take offs are pretty inconsistent. I realised I had reached a plateau. I could feel how much drag there was on the hull as I took off on cleaner waves. I could hardly ever get ahead of the whitewater for more than a turn. So with a great deal of trepidation I started looking for a surf boat. I spoke to Chris Hobson and he was so helpful giving me tons of advice. I drove over to South Wales to try out boats. Chris was again brilliant, helping to get me fitted into a Vulcan and a Fusion. I’m a very big bloke at 6’6, so initially I thought I wanted a Vulcan. I got out in some solid 4ft swell at Rosilli. I felt right at home paddling the Vulcan. The fit of the Vulcan was great, even with my long legs, and it behaved just like my S8 paddling out, but much faster on the wave. I was very happy, but I felt I also wanted to try the Fusion. I could imagine the benefits of a long boat on our east coast waves. Immediately I realised the Fusion was much much harder to paddle and how much I had to learn. I got rinsed a load, span out a few times, got picked up backwards, cartwheeled once etc etc. It was carnage, but it was worth it. I got one glorious wave, got a bottom turn in on one of the bigger sets before it broke and I was just buzzing. I’ve now had my fusion for 9 months or so. I’ve been surfing all winter. I asked Chris to put in fin boxes and am very glad I did. I much prefer the drive of having 2 fins. I feel very comfortable paddling her now up to about 5ft. She really is a fantastic boat for our less than perfect east coast surf. I would never have imagined the rides I get out here. On a good day 5-6 turns on an wave isn’t uncommon, more than I ever hoped for over here. Hoping for even better waves on my summer surf trips… Chris has continued to be amazingly supportive. Thanks mate, you make a great boat!!! Ed

Received my new Vulcan. Boat seems great, but I'm dismayed by the large number of loose pieces of closed-cell foam outfitting that arrived without any instructions. I can't figure out where these all go. It sure would be nice if this site posted a fit guide - how to tune the fit of the boat - using the included parts. The - "T-block" for a thigh brace and back rest seem pretty obvious. But after I started to cut down the piece 2nd from left, to use as a foot brace/bulkead, I realized I don't know if that's what it's meant to be. It certainly isn't an easy fit. The pair on the right don't seem to fit naturally anywhere in the boat. Can anybody offer a sketch or even written instructions?

I'm wondering how the fins have worked out on that one (black & gold) Fusion?