Sunova 8Ball Balsaflex Standard - Futures - 3 Fin - Longboard

The 8BALL is a performance mid-length that lets you hook deep into the pocket, developed from surfers' desire for serious paddle power while still having a board that performs from the tail.

Sunova took some features from its favorite performance shortboards and put a longer front on them. The result is a board that catches waves like a longboard, but surfs from the tail like a shortboard. The nose entry has been flattened for extra paddle power, and just enough surface has been taken out of the nose to prevent the rails from catching on late drops. As soon as you step on the tail, the curvy outline and the shortboard's performance rocker take over and you're off.

Put the 8Ball in the pocket and discover what this board can really do.

• OUTLINE: NARROWER, PULLED-IN LONGBOARD NOSE, WIDEST POINT PULLED BACK INTO A HIP FLYER, ROUNDED PIN
• BOTTOM: FLAT BOTTOM
• ROCKER: FULL HIGH PERFORMANCE ROCKER
• RAILS: STANDARD PROFILE
• FINS (not included): THRUSTER
• PURPOSE: A LOOSE, WELL-PADDLING MID-LENGTH BOARD THAT CAN HANDLE DIVERSE CONDITIONS
• WAVE: HIP-HIGH TO DOUBLE OVERHEAD
• RIDER: BEGINNER TO PRO

About the board

GENERAL PURPOSE | BOARD THEME
A loose, well-paddling mid-length board that can handle diverse conditions.

WAVE TYPE ||| SIZE WHERE IT WORKS BEST
All waves, but the board loves juicy waves. From just under hip-high to double overhead and bigger.

MANEUVERS THE BOARD DOES BEST
Snaps on your back foot and powerful roundhouse cutbacks.

LEVEL IT IS INTENDED FOR
Beginner to pro.

PADDLE POWER
Average.

WHAT WERE YOU THINKING OF WHEN DESIGNING IT?
In the early nineties, longboarding made a comeback, and competitive longboarding too. You had two distinct schools of longboarders: the people born before the late fifties who had the chance to grow up longboarding, with a natural logger style, even if they hadn't been on one for thirty years or more. And then you had the crew born in the sixties who mostly grew up on shortboards. To attract more people to the longboard competitions, an 8ft division was created, with judging rules based on performance shortboard surfing. This is how the 8Ball originated, as an 8ft competition board.

WHERE MIGHT IT COMPROMISE?
This is one of the few boards without compromises: it can handle diverse conditions and comes as close to a true all-rounder as you can get. If anything, perhaps the amount of rocker. The board suits a surfer who keeps their board moving. Anyone who climbs on it like a horse and thinks the board will go by itself will find it doesn't carry as much speed as a board with a flatter rocker.

Summary of shapedetails | Design info

OUTLINE
Narrower, pulled-in longboard nose, widest point pulled back into a hip flyer, rounded pin. The advantage of pulling the widest point back is that you get a long nose and a short tail, making the tail resemble that of a shorter board. When you step on the tail to turn, it really feels like you're on a shorter board. In combination with the hip and flyer, the board performs incredibly short snaps on your back foot, goes vertical easily, and hooks under the lip.

RAILS
Standard profile. Many boards of this length assume the rider needs extra buoyancy and come with thicker rails, which are harder to bury and less sensitive. The 8Ball's rails are relatively refined, especially in the tail, making the back feel more like that of a high-performance shortboard.

ROCKER
Full high-performance rocker. With this amount of rocker, the board fits nicely into the tighter sections of the wave. The board prefers to be pumped for speed rather than waiting for it to build momentum itself. It also likes a short cutback at speed and throw maneuvers, where you might be going slow but can still throw the board against the lip.

BOTTOM
Flat bottom. The idea is to keep the board fast. There are already enough features that make it loose and sensitive, so extra contours are not needed; the design does not rely on bottom contours for control. In addition, the general Sunova construction with the flexible bottom adds an extra dimension that further reduces the need for contours.

DECK
Standard. Not much happening here except the distribution of thickness. Because the nose and tail are quite refined, the swing weight is reduced, and the tail feels sensitive and flexible.

FINS (not included)
Thruster. Absolutely the best performance option. A slightly smaller tail fin is a nice choice, as it makes the tail a bit looser in tight turns under the lip and in snaps in general.

Final word

An 8ft high-performance board that paddles like a longboard and surfs like a shortboard.

Fin(s) included: None.

About Sunova

Sunova is known for lightweight, resilient surfboards built with great attention to material choice and construction. The brand focuses on surfers who want a board that lasts a long time while feeling lively underfoot. This combination of resilience and performance comes in handy in the variable waters in front of Hart Beach.