The yak board is excellant for begginer sit on top surfers. It is good for clean moderate swell with its forgiving design easily catching any hint of a wave, once on the wave the yak board will take off with good speed, with its forgiving design making it capable of modest carving. unfortunately for more experienced paddlers wanting bigger swell and more radical carves the bulky design makes it incredibly difficult to "get out back" through larger messy surf...the yak boards virtues for begginers can become drawbacks for more intermediate to advanced paddlers. Excellant for begginer sit on top surfers and general beach surf but not recommeded for intermediate/advanced level.