my surfing skills are limited but my 5'5 mandala superchunk twin plus trailer feels almost perfect..fast, pivoty, and I've yet to slide out...mind you I'm not good enough to carry a lot of speed into my turns
if you're looking for an easy paddler and wave catching machine...the waldens are decent...if you're looking to noseride...I'd say there are better boards for that
I also think these shapes make excellent transition boards if you're wanting to surf shortboards coming from longboards...the ease of paddling and catching waves gives you confidence in a shorter length
you'd think there wouldn't be anything uglier than my stiff old man surfing but there is! my golf swing is even uglier...lol....maybe that's why I enjoy both so much....you can have so much fun being very bad at both