We’re often asked,

What boards are best for Macaronis?
What is the optimal quiver to pack?

The opportunity to share waves with surfers from around the world has allowed us useful insight into what designs work most consistently for traveling surfers to Macaronis.

While board design preferences are subjective and highly personal, we can’t help but notice that there are 3 designs that consistently perform across a range of ability levels.

Below are the stand-out favorites for the
Optimal 3 Board Travel Quiver

The categories are:

#1 Small Wave Hybrid Board
#2 Standard Short Board
#3 Step-Up Board

#1 Small Wave Hybrid Board

Model: Hypto Krypto
by Hayden Shapes

The Hypto Krypto makes a great small/medium Macaronis board and conveniently squeezes into board bags with its almost flat rocker.

It’s worth having a shorter/wider hybrid shape at Macaronis because it allows you to get the most from the smaller days that can occasionally pop up between swells.

Easily picking up waves and allowing plenty of time to set your pace with the wave, the Hypto suits just about any surfer’s approach at Macas.

We’ve seen it surfed well with both carving and aerial approaches to the wave. It’s a favorite of Guy Morgan (below) who finds the design excels on the smaller days, allowing for easy speed between turns and making any small onshore afternoon a dream session.

Guy Morgan putting the Hypto Krypto on rail at Macaronis

While the Hypto can be seen often in the lineup at Macas flying above the lip, it’s an equally good option for the intermediate or improving surfer looking for a user-friendly and easy paddling platform.

The same paddle power and user-friendly foam distribution that make it a good option for intermediates also allows the board a surprising wave range. What it lacks in rocker it compensates for with earlier entry into the wave. And although most surfers will find the design effectively tops out in the solid 4 foot range, we’ve seen guys push it beyond that and make it work.

Other Small Wave Hybrid Favorites

Shoe by Emery Surfboards
Nano & EVO by Tomo (available for hire at the resort)

#2 Standard Short Board

Model: Proton & Rook15
by Channel Islands

Just about any standard high performance short board works great at Macaronis, but most surfers find that designs with a touch more rocker & curve, especially in the back half of the board, suit the shape and speed of the wave best.

In this category we have to give the nod to to the Channel Islands Proton & Rook15 (Rookie) models as continually working well for guests from around the world.

The shape of the wave at Macaronis is quite different from a typical Australian or Californian point break with an abundance of open-faced and flatter sections. In contrast, Macas feels the reef uniformly throughout and offers an evenly paced pocket that moves down the reef at the perfect speed for cracking turn after turn. This translates to a pocket surfing approach whether on the backhand or forehand, as opposed to a more drawn out or down-the-line approach to the wave.

Surf coach & frequent guest Matt Grainger (of Manly Surf School) utilizing the Proton’s curves nicely at fun-sized Macaronis

Several Macaronis Resort guests have commented that the generous curve in this design creates an unparalleled feeling of control in the steep part of the wave allowing the surfer ample time to react and push their turns that little bit further… exactly what you want to do at a wave like Macaronis!

One guest we spoke to commented that it almost seemed to “slow the wave down,” allowing him to get more from the wave fitting in more turns in the same space compared to his everyday lower rocker design. He also mentioned that no matter how late he was on the takeoff, the board never seemed to pearl / nose-dive on him.

Other Standard Short Board Favorites

Forget me Not (FMN) by JS
The Spartan by Pyzel (available for hire at the resort)

#3 Step-Up Board

Model: Sweet Spot 2.0
by DHD

At its most hollow, Macaronis does not suit a surfboard with excessive length. This is because the wave’s shape is steep with a tight-radius transition that a longer traditional step-up (6’6″+) does not fit into easily. In other words, too much extra length can work against you at solid Macas.

The newer, post-modern step-up designs overcome the need for excessive length by concentrating the volume of the board under the chest and combining this with a forgiving, wide-point forward outline for maximum paddle power.

The result is a board with the extra couple of liters you want to match the speed of the wave and get you in that hair earlier as it draws off the double up section at the top. In addition to making the drop a bit easier, these designs also fit well in the barrel where the extra length of a traditional step-up can also feel awkward and make navigating higher/tighter barrel sections difficult.

The DHD Sweet Spot 2.0 is a perfect example of this design concept and was reintroduced this year with a little bit of extra rocker.

Last season we saw so many guests surf well on the original Sweet Spot and this upgraded tweak to the exit rocker should only make it work even better at barreling Macas.
This video sums up why the Sweet Spot 2.0 is the perfect Macas step-up: https://vimeo.com/132320318

Other Step-Up Favorites

Pig Dog by SUPER
Short Cut by Pyzel
Blackbird by Rusty

Again, while board design preferences are subjective and highly personal, we hope this review will help you pick the perfect quiver for your next trip to Macas.

See you in the water!