The Flounder Pounder by GSI

The Flounder Pounder by GSI is a great beginner softboard for a great price. I actually bought this for my son when he was first starting at 5 years old and now his younger brother rides it. The thing has held up great over the course of a few years and caught zillions of waves for them. On advice from a friend, I went the 6’6’’, which was slightly longer than I thought, but turned out to be ideal. If your kid is a bit older, ie highschool age, then you’re probably better to look at the next option.

MF Super Soft by MF Softboards

If a highschool kid is wanting to learn to surf, they’re probably going to want to jump onto a fibreglass board or something ‘cool’ looking. But, you don’t learn to play the guitar on a Gibson Les Paul, right? Get an acoustic. In that spirit, an MF Super Soft has some shred cred because of the association with Mick Fanning while still being friendly to ride. I’d say the 7’6’’ or 8’0’’ is the best option for most highschool kids (unless they’re freakishly athletic or naturally gifted). Grown up kids will like them too.

Catch Surf x …Lost RNF Softboard

If you’re a surfer yourself, the next step for kids once they’ve mastered a bigger softboard is probably to give them a go on your regular fibreglass shortboard. I put some soft FCS fins in an old 5’10’’ and let my grom have it at once he was about 6 and a half. Sure, he split his head open on the rail and had to get two stitches that one time, but overall he loved it. For those who want to be a little more cautious, Catch Surf’s …Lost RNF is a killer option. Its fish shape turns pretty well, but will still let them catch waves (without splitting their melons). You’ll probably have a whole lot of fun on it too! Get the 5’5’’ version, otherwise it won’t be as easy to turn for kids wanting to shred. I think there’s a solid argument that you could go straight to this if you don’t want to fork out for the full beginner step as well.

So, your kid has stepped up a bit and now wants their own proper shortboard. They’re going along the face, maybe doing the odd cutdown, and telling you they ‘got barrelled’ after shampooing through a foamy section. So epic. 

There are a handful of great options out there for this step, which can be confusing in itself. I’ve narrowed it down to 3 for slightly different options – The CI Happy Everyday Grom, Sharpeye Synergy YTH, and the Chilli Mini Bird. 

The great thing about all of these is they keep a fair bit of width and volume, even for a grom board, but are shaped in a way that still makes them easy to turn.

Sharpeye Synergy YTH

For kids who rip. This Jack Robinson Pro model is scaled down to grom size. The dimensions and plan shape are all about performance, so if you want something super high level then it’s hard to beat the Sharpeye Synergy YTH. The spray is epic. Looks better means it goes better, right? Surfing is a confidence game and this will give them that.

The Chilli Mini Bird

Both of my kids have surfed this board as they’ve transitioned from softboards to fibreglass. Both have loved it. Here’s a full Minibird Surfboards review if you’re interested. It’s wider up the front so still gives them plenty of paddle speed, but has a pulled in tail so they can start doing their first carves without pushing too hard. Highly recommended.

Channel Islands Happy Everyday Grom

This is your perfect ‘first fibreglass’ surfboard for a kid. It’s a little wider so is more forgiving than CI’s 2.0 Pro in terms of catching waves, but will still allow younger kids to stomp on the tail and rip some fun turns. If your grom is making boardrider club finals, then think about the ‘Pro’ version or the Sharpeye Synergy already mentioned. Otherwise, this is spot on.

So that’s your guide to the best surfboards for kids. If you can, do your best to buy them second hand. The little buggers grow up so fast it’s hard to justify a new board every year (even if I can justify it for myself). Second-hand kid’s surfboards can be hard to come across though, so if you need to go new, my advice would be to borrow one from a friend to try things first before you commit. A little testing goes a long way to get the right option in the long run.

If you’re not in the market for kids boards and want something for yourself, feel free to browse some of other product reviews or buyers guides. Best ones, imo, are the $350-$500 Winter Wetsuits Guide, Mid Length Guide or the CI OG Flyer Review

And to watch one kid who’s improving at an astronomical rate, check the video below of Yadin Nicol’s young grom – King. He dropped the below clip a couple of days, very impressive surfing coming from a 9yr old!