| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
manuel
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 1158
|
 Posted: Thu May 25, 2017 9:53 am Post subject: |
 |
|
I use the following definitions:
- Skatey, rail to rail response from flat, quick turns (great for onshore to sideon)
- Carvey, behavior when the rail is dug in with body inside the turn, usually more front foot (sideon with wind, side to side off), ability to maintain speed when doing longer larger turns
- Slashey, how loose it is out of the top turn (ex: multi fins usually win over single fins)
As described by dmilovich, I found the Fanatic Stubby FW to be skatey and relatively slashey.
_________________
*NEW* - Manu's Windsurfing Blog, The STORE! |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
isobars
Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935
|
| Posted: Sat May 27, 2017 4:25 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Thanks for the feedback, guys; I’ve been too busy to answer.
| capetonian wrote: | | The Fanatic Stubby 99 L snaps around off the back foot. But it's a wave board, not a FSW, and I have not tried the FSW version so I can't 100% answer your question. |
I prefer (fast) wave boards for the Gorge anyway, so that Stubby is a candidate (as is the Quatro Mini-Thruster). My first concern is that they may take some effort to sail properly; I won’t have much effort left in me until I get my testosterone back above zero, grow some new red blood cells, and rebuild dozens of pounds of fast-disappearing muscle after Feb 2018.
| U2U2U2 wrote: | | Your questions are generalized. |
That was my intent. Specific examples are a bonus.
| U2U2U2 wrote: | | Within the 100liter FSW group of current boards( be advised your past history eliminated them as new and costly) |
I don't give a crap what stuff costs; it's performance, by my criteria, that matters to me, and I haven't yet found a stubby I liked for my sailing style and requirements. What's changed now is my requirements; I'm after a Cadillac or Town Car (because of the extreme fatigue my treatment incurs) that turns like a Miata (I still wanna have fun).
| U2U2U2 wrote: | | So newer boards then, each brand has its own priority , early planing, turns, fast turns..etc |
Glad to hear it. I was afraid from what I've read and experienced first hand that the vast majority of Stubbies prefer front rail/foot steering.
| U2U2U2 wrote: | | Sorry to read about your cancer therapy. Wish you all the best. |
Thanks. I mentioned it only because of its profound impact on my board requirements. An hour on the water now feels like a full day last year.
| U2U2U2 wrote: | | far more move oriented than my NAISH 100 Starship |
Yes. I demoed a 2014 Starship before the Wave. I liked the Wave so much better that I bought it in three sizes.
Manuel, your blog board tests are impressive. I will be reading them. My first glance revealed this comment: “I can't wait to start throwing buckets of spray with it.” I call that a wallowater, and one way to do it even merely on a bumpy lake is to forcefully jam your strapped-in back foot upwind/heel-first into a piece of chop or small swell just as you carve off of it. IOW, you’re using your back toes to slash/steer off the wind, and at the same time thrusting the board tail a bit upwind to slam it into the bump back-heel-first. On the good ones a heavy wallowater will rain down on your head during your ensuing bottom turn.
I was looking for a big JP FSW as a candidate (saw a new-looking 84L at the last swap meet for $100; it lasted maybe 5 minutes). However, a wide variety of sources (e.g., owners, the 78L I owned, mag tests, JP reps) downplayed them for my specific criteria.
| dmilovich wrote: | the 105 STB has worked up to 6.5 easily, but that's probably not necessary for your sailing. ... perhaps you can go smaller than 105 and get even more slashability (that's a word, I'm sure of it).
Good luck with your health, dude! I've been reading you for 20 years and really appreciate your insights and contributions . |
Thanks a great deal. Beats complaint all to heck.
I have many boards < 100L, and use my 6.2 very often down to about 85L; I’m covered there. My needs now are moving to more flotation, a super-smooth ride, and increased planing power, all to conserve energy. (My treatments leave many patients unable to walk two blocks; my oncologists are amazed that I can even think about windsurfing.) Yet I still want a board capable of cranking tight turns at speed with little effort. My first candidate will be the used but solid Exocet X-Wave 101 tri-fin I just bought at Windance. Heck, I might even get back on my 135L Sea Lion windSUP which served very well for knee rehab throughout 2014.
| manuel wrote: | I use the following definitions:
- Skatey, rail to rail response from flat, quick turns
- Carvey, behavior when the rail is dug in with body inside the turn, usually more front foot
- Slashey, how loose it is out of the top turn (ex: multi fins usually win over single fins) |
I would tend to lump them together in a continuum, and mix them up many times in most reaches. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
grantmac017
Joined: 04 Aug 2016
Posts: 946
|
| Posted: Sat May 27, 2017 7:51 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I was wondering if you were going to make a return to the Sea lion. I remember reading your enthusiastic review of it at the time. Would you get footstrap inserts installed or stick with surfing it au natural?
Best of luck with the chemo. Attitude and activity is everything. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
dmilovich
Joined: 19 Jul 2009
Posts: 99
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
isobars
Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935
|
| Posted: Sun May 28, 2017 8:11 am Post subject: |
|
|
| grantmac017 wrote: | I was wondering if you were going to make a return to the Sea lion. I remember reading your enthusiastic review of it at the time. Would you get footstrap inserts installed or stick with surfing it au natural?
Best of luck with the chemo. Attitude and activity is everything. |
That's what everyone tells me about the chemo, but the hormone therapy is guaranteed to produce its primary effect: extreme fatigue which sleep does not alleviate. With no testosterone, our red blood cell production stops and thus oxygen transport and energy creation dramatically decrease and our muscles waste away. Both have begun on schedule this week.
Putting straps on a Sea Lion is like putting seat belts on a dirt bike; the whole point of both toys is mobility, as we move all over the aft half of the deck to control the Sea Lion's direction, speed, planing, etc. I learned some very useful techniques while sailing the Sea Lion that transferred directly to windsurfing. However, it still demands energy I may not have until I finish hormone therapy next year. ("Normal" metastatic prostate therapy entails continuing hormone therapy until it literally kills us in a few years; I'm on a more aggressive program that hits even harder but lasts only 13 months. There's more to life than a heartbeat.) |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
grantmac017
Joined: 04 Aug 2016
Posts: 946
|
| Posted: Sun May 28, 2017 10:28 am Post subject: |
|
|
I think perhaps your definition of activity is different than the average patient's (to your credit).
I would not have thought the SL would require much physical activity but the way you describe it makes sense. You are looking for a board your can direct with the least pressure but which doesn't need a ton of power to keep lit up. The SL won't maneuver on pressure alone, it needs movement and pressure. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
isobars
Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935
|
| Posted: Sun May 28, 2017 4:48 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Mine won't see surf. The distance to the ocean, its spotty wind, and other Oregon coastal conditions took it off my list years ago. That doesn't stop me from doing the best imitation I can of DTL sailing in the Gorge, however. Side-off surf conditions are not the only place turning is exciting.
My only problem with that review is this, "Front vs back foot: You can’t drive off the back foot on the fanatic or you will spin out. This goes for all multi fin boards." I've owned dozens of 5- and 3-finned boards from ~1990 to 2014, every one a phenomenal back-foot (in its strap) turner even with no input from the rig or the front foot. I won't buy a board that doesn't turn that way. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
isobars
Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935
|
| Posted: Sun May 28, 2017 5:04 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| grantmac017 wrote: | | I think perhaps your definition of activity is different than the average patient's (to your credit). |
Probable very true. I hope that's not over with.
| grantmac017 wrote: | | would not have thought the SL would require much physical activity but the way you describe it makes sense. You are looking for a board your can direct with the least pressure but which doesn't need a ton of power to keep lit up. The SL won't maneuver on pressure alone, it needs movement and pressure. |
If I'm reading you correctly, that's generally true. However, it does jump from a slog to a plane quickly with a well-coordinated combination of a quick turn off the wind (i.e., stomp the lee swallowtail), a pump, a swell, and a forward weight shift to drop the nose down the face. Once its planing downwind, many options appear, including planing dead- or near-downwind for minutes on end, varying direction between 30 degrees left and 30 degrees right of dead downwind as power and swell afford, which requires lots of quick footwork between the board's tails. That, hooked in without any footstraps, took some practice, especially in winds hovering around gale force. But now I do it all the time on WS boards while strapped and usually hooked in. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
grantmac017
Joined: 04 Aug 2016
Posts: 946
|
| Posted: Mon May 29, 2017 11:53 am Post subject: |
|
|
No way to take a downwinder for longer than a half mile here so I'll take your word for it. I live in the land of flat side-shore and ground pounding on-shore breaks so the swell comment also doesn't ring a bell.
But it DOES sound like an interesting ride if one had such conditions. One of our locals is using his as a foil board with marginal success. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
kevinkan
Joined: 07 Jun 2001
Posts: 1661
Location: San Francisco
|
| Posted: Mon May 29, 2017 1:16 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Got a chance to sail the FreeWave STB 85 the other day for the first time. I'm coming off a knee injury, so I've been waiting to sail this board for some time. Set it up pretty stock, with the mast foot in the center of the mast track, front straps one hole from the front and rear strap one hole from the rear. A decently windy day at 3rd Ave w/ minimal current... 4.4 freestyle sail.
My normal board is a Fanatic Skate TE 93.
First impression is that the board planes up very early and easily, and the ride is very easy and comfortable in a straight line. I was expecting the board to feel more different, but it has a great familiar feel. There was no adjustment period needed for me. This board planes out of jibes really easily... kind of feels like a thinned out Skate despite the much different outline and fin setup. One thing both these boards share is a rear-shifted trim... similar to modern wave boards.
The STB is really fun for slashing chopswell. One of my favorite things to do is a quick upwind flick from the trough followed by a quick, hard backside pivot rip at the top trying to throw up as much spray as possible. This board is really fun for this turn combo... even in small swell like we had on this day. The great glide of the hull keeps you on the plane after the top turn, too.
Anyway, the STB is a really fun board, and I look forward to riding it more.
_________________
Kevin Kan
Sunset Sailboards, San Francisco CA
http://www.sunsetsailboards.com
https://www.instagram.com/sunsetsailboards
http://www.facebook.com/sunsetsailboards
Last edited by kevinkan on Thu Jun 01, 2017 3:32 pm; edited 2 times in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You can attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum
|
|
|
Search
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Register
