Hi
As mentioned in the previous post I would like to try to
imagine a perfect lightwind, high performance board for the non-racer who likes
to go fast.
I would disqualify modern formula boards from this exercise
because they are difficult and brutal. I
would also exclude 85 cm slalom boards because they are too narrow.
We are looking for something around 90cm wide
with a length of around 2.5m. These
dimensions, I believe, make it possible for the designer to create the
combination of ease, speed, control and early planing we seek.
Light wind boards currently on the market include
Starboard’s UltraSonic, RRD’s X-Fire Lightwind Ltd and JP’s Super Lightwind. These boards all seem to have the correct
dimensions and, on paper, offer exactly what we need – early planning, easy
control and high top speed. I am unsure of all three of them
however. The UltraSonic and the Super
Lightwind both earn enthusiastic reviews when they are tested alone. As soon as other boards are included in
back-to-back testing, weaknesses emerge.
In one test, Fanatic’s Falcon 152 was included in the line-up and the
consensus of the testers after exhaustive comparisons, was that if you want
superior lightwind performance, you would need to go with the Falcon.
The above review also stated that the RRD is
somewhat technical to sail at its full potential. These comments have caused me to reject the
three boards above. I’m sure that they
are all good but I’m not convinced that any of them will become cult
boards. We need a cult board in this class.
So – why not just opt for the Fanatic Falcon 152? This is the board which out-performed the
others in terms of speed and control.
Well, the dimensions and shapes are wrong for a start. The board is only 230cm long. This, together with tail cut-outs and
recessed deck, is a recipe for stalling through
gybes (for the normal sailor). It
is also difficult to get into the straps (you virtually step into the water to
get your feet in). As with most slalom
boards, this one has just one row of footstrap holes. I have read good reports about the
performance of the 152 but also read one owner’s comment that his front foot
keeps coming out of the strap. Red flag!
Despite the above concerns I am going to put the 152 on the
final list. The board will need to be altered
though, before we can accept it as a possible cult board. Other boards which make it onto the list of
possibles are Elix’s R1X,XL (also to be altered), a board from Patrik which
does not yet exist and if Mike Zajicek wants to make our cult board then he is
on the shaper’s list automatically.
It occurred to me that once you start specifying what you do
not want in a particular design, you also need to say what you do want. Here is what we want in my opinion:
- Light construction (under 8kg)
- 90cm width
- 150 litres volume
- Over 245cm length
- Able to carry cammed sails of 10m+ with a 60cm
fin and also perform with a camless 7.8m sail with a 50cm fin (sails from 7.5 –
10m).
- Very early to plane, very easy to gybe and keep planing through. Effortless control at speed.
- Extremely high top speed in medium winds
- A finger slot for carrying (see RRD X-Fire
Lightwind)
- Light straps (see Starboard iSonics)
- Two strap position rows.
- We may need to ditch the cut-outs and may even require something like a diamond tail.
(?)
·
Elix
The big problem with the Elix XL is the length - only 232cm
so not acceptable. Another concern with
this board is the bottom shape. I notice
a pronounced V and I’m not sure that this is what we need for the sort of
speeds and acceleration I envisage. I
may be wrong here of course.
The Elix is definitely an interesting proposition but there
are too many unknowns. If we exclude it
then we are left with three potential boards.
The
first is a board from Patrik.
This awesome machine (which only exists in my head at this
time), uses his Formula v4 hollow board as a starting point. 5cm is removed from each edge to arrive at our
required width of 90cm. The board is then
stretched to achieve a length of 245cm.
Two footstrap rows are required, a finger recess for carrying and hey
presto we have one version of our dream board – the Patrik Lightspeed.
The
bottom would look something like this but as I said, the cut-outs may have to
be ditched. Note how flat the underside
is. Simple and fast!
Patrik, if you are out there, please build the Lightspeed immediately!
Fanatic
We could do a similar exercise with the Fanatic Falcon 152
which, since it is already 90cm wide, would only need to be stretched to make
the grade (once the straps are sorted of course). This is my stretched 152 concept.
Dan, please join the
quest to advance this board class. Build
the Falcon Wing 152 and make so many windsurfers very stoked.
Mike’s Lab
Mike, you automatically join my list of chosen shapers to build
your version of the vision. Here is the
imagined Mike’s Lab Megaflight - a board one would purchase and keep for life
as a prized possession!
There you have it. Three blueprints for a memorable windsurfing concept.
Good winds to those of you not getting too cold
d
