(sorry in advance for crappy grammar/punctuation/spelling, I am currently in bed sick and tired from a long day of work, and no coffee to boot.)
Hi, I'm mermaid Kurziana, a primarily freshwater mermaid.
I'm new to mermaiding in general but as a kid had no problems swimming in my own makeshift mermaid tails and monofins that I used to sew together.
I have been a certified PADI scuba diver and coral reef research diver out here in Key West for almost 3 years now, and have EXCELLENT buoyancy control and spatial awareness/movement control in high seas, taking on and off gear underwater, doing things while blind, breathing fluidly and with excellent control (most ppl go 45 mins on a 3,000 PSI tank, I can go almost 1.5 HOURS. I sip air like a dang whale lol), crappy visibility and amongst stingy pokey bitey things on the reef. (because, you know, science.) so far my free-diving breathe hold record is 4.5 minutes.
however I had a few things I wanted opinions on before I dive in and get my first real monofin. I know better than to do things on impulse and to educate myself well before buying anything or doing anything so here I am.
the fantasea 1 by mertailor looks like a good starter shape, and I would pair it with the water lilly skin (SO pretty, I'm a sucker for big flukes and long trailing fins and natural color schemes, I am in LOVE with the faint pink colors too),
but how does it handle, from a more experienced merfolk perspective?
is it too floppy? does it have good propulsion?
can you get far with just a few kicks, or is there a better monofin out there that would do a better job?
is the fantasea 1 a good start for someone who's not quite a beginner in the water but considered so in the merworld?
basically I want the one fin out of the three they have that has the best of both worlds;
-easy to use and comfortable.
-uses the least amount of energy to go the farthest in one kick
-movement looks natural underwater
-could be used for a semi-experienced mermaid right off the bat
- wont break the bank (I could afford any of mertailor's 3 monofins though)
preferably I'd like to stay with mertailor monofins, but out of the 3 they have, I feel like the 1 and 3 are the best bang for your buck, just from an outsiders first glance. I know I could probably handle a fantasea 3 but I feel like even if I could, it would still be smart to work my way up to such a HUGE fluke. eventually I plan on getting it anyways, and pairing it with the Tonga skin.
If y'all think I should just go with the fantasea 3 off the bat with the experience I have and that I could handle it, I have no problems investing in such a huge fluke (yasssss)
ALSO: I plan on having a 'starter' monofin first and practicing with it in the pool in my free time while I save the money for any mertailor products, but I'd like to buy my first legit tail and monofin set from mertailor. they are from my hometown and I like to support local!
I am currently watching and reading and comparing opinions and reviews on a good cheaper end 'practice' monofin as you are reading this.
currently eyeballing the linden, finis, and other popular brands.
I don't intend to wear a skin with the practice one, I just want a smaller beginner fin to fool around with in the pool to warm up with and get the movement and mannerisms of having a tail into my muscle memory before getting the mertailor fluke.
what do you guys think? I'm really just looking for someone to paint me a picture of the three fantasea fins so I can see which would be better for me. or give their own personal experiences and advice. just info. I'm looking for all the info I can get before making such a big decision.
thanks for reading this far!
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