Rider: 95kgs advanced rider
Style: sketchy wakestyle
Weather: 12-35 knots
Build Quality: 11/10
Satisfaction: 9.5/10
Disclosure: Team rider for Eastos Extreme Kites(Whyalla, Port lincon)
My Comments: I have now had the 140cm 50 fifty for a thew weeks and have had a chance to test it in various conditions from 13kts right up to 35kts in mainly flat watter but have been out in some larger swell and nasty chop and have ridden with the pro pads and bindings.
The first thing you notice on this board is the way it is built the board is verry light and has heaps of rocker and the chanels that run through the board look weird, but the finish on the board is second to none.
The Pro foot pads are a vast improvement over the hard pads nobile have been using for the last 3-4 years, they are soft and easy to adjust They come in two collors Black or Yellow. I went yellow stands out really well.
The fins are nice and small and bright yellow also, i was glad they were a lot smaller as the ones that came on my 09 666 seemed a bit to big.
The board doesnt have a grab handle which is not a bad thing as they have used the extra inserts fo mountings for bindings.
It really doesnt take to long to bolt this board togetherr all the pads are pre asembled screws and all all you need to do is line them up and screw them down, i have put a lot of boards together and can say this was probably the easyest ever.
So i had the pads on and was a little scepticle about how it would ride beind 140cm i thought it may only be good for boots but as i allready had the pads on it i thought i would give it a go.
I was instantly comfortable on the board, the extra rocker made it feel like a much smaller board, and it tracked upwind like it was on rails even when the wind picked up the board didnt feel to big and handled well. There was no spray in the face and it seemed to handle the short chop better than my 666 and i seemed to be ridding a lot faster. The board almost felt like it was glued to the water but with a bit of a push in the right direction you could get it to skate around easily making turns verry easy.
The pop is amazing! Without doubt this board with all the extra rocker just flys when loaded up way better than any lunacy or 666 i have ever ridden. Landings were smooth and the soft pads soaked up the shock well the board never felt skaty on landings it had just enougth give so you didnt get yanked off the board. It even handled those out of controll over rotated landings when you think your in the drink and you manage to snag one corner of the board and your off ridding again i think the tips have just enougth flex for this. The board like last years 666 still rides and lands toeside efortlessly.
After the first couple of weeks on the board with the pads i was verry impressed i thought i would ride it all season as it was and get rid of the 666. but i really wanted to give the boots a go so draged out a set of sling shot PB Floyds and bolted them strait on easy as heaps of room to mave them around and set your stance.
I have had two rides on the boots so far 17-22kts on a 13m Bandit 3 and 20-25kts on the same kite and you wouldnt believe the difference, the board just becomes mental the pop is out of controll and takes a bit to get used to the ride is steel smooth and fast you can hold down so much more power and go in to turns as hard and fast as you like where a normal board just skips out this thing just threw bucketloads of roost and tracked arount the turn no problems at all.
Ive allways had a problem with getting good pop when unhooking on a really powered kite thats sitting low its normally hard to load up properly so you end up pulling on a heap of depower, but with this board you can just leave the power where you have it set bear off un hook think you have no chnce of loading and popping but give it a go and the board just tracks back up wind untill you release it and the result is way out of controll the extra weight of the board and boots just sends your legs strait up in to massive railys and rolls and had me wondering if i was going to come back down. You do land verry hot but after hooking back in quickly the board will grab a verry hard edge and drive back up wind. It absolutly blew me away.
Conclusion: If your a wake style rider i strongly recomend giving this board a go as it is amazing, dont be put of by the size, try it with or without boots you wont be disapointed either way, I wish i had two of them now one with boots and one without, but for now it will be just one lucky it doesnt take long to switch to pads.
Bad Points:With no grab handle(its a good thing it doesnt need one), the board is a slippery little sucker which has you grabbing the straps or boots to carry it which isnt allways easy, i think the board just needs some little gripps on the side in the middle like last years 666 to make it easyer to hold. just some little ribs or a 3d molding like the skim. If Nobile come to grips with this it will be 10/10 next year.
waxman, do you think the 50 fifty would suit wakeboarding behind a boat, im looking for a kite board with enough rocker to pop off a wake, and to still use as a kite board with boots.
prior to the 50 fifty release i was looking at cab custom or even a ronix viva. im keen to demo one of these bitches for sure.
cheers
james
Hi
Waxi... Thanks for the review!
We'll take good notice of the rippled grip idea for the 139 & 140 as the 141 comes complete with a bright yellow handle. Nobile produces all year round, modifications could be made from one week to the next.
James, we should get one demo back from QLD today or tomorrow. Or we'll just put a new one together... You are welcome to take it to the river as the wind forecast looks pretty average.
Ciao
B
I dont think you would have to many problems on it behind a boat it feels like it would have enougth rocker verry easy to oli etc on flat. If your anywhere around barmera on the weekend i will have the 50 fifty there and your more than welcome to take it for a spin. Should have a couple of jetskis there to drag you around if there is no wind.
Found this vid, some footage from the dealers meating earlyer this year, a lot of riders on the 50 fifty.
I probably should have clarified further with regard to wakeboards having continuous rocker. Didn't quite read the way I intended. In any case I don't necessarily agree that most have 3 stage.
In any case we do agree for the most part on what board would be the best for crossing over, although it's still a compromise in my opinion. More coin but different disciplines means different boards.
yer agreed, your never going to find a one board fits all fix.. get a wake specific for the boat get a kite specific for the kite.. but the reflex and response does work pretty well on both ends of the scale just means u gona have to re learn how to edge up wind as its a bit different.
am i right iin seeing that there is only one stance setting for bindings? just two outer holes for 6 and 8 inch spreads? if so thats disappointing..
wana just give me one so i can tell u how good it is with actual bindings on?
It is mental with bindings on, this board is definatly 100% wakestyle once you put the boots on. Was pulling some huge unhooked railys last night in 28kts on a 9m bandit 3 with only a inch of depower on i could steel load up the board as hard as i wanted, but be warned you will go a long way before you see water again.[}:)]
28knots 9m bandit... did the bandits lose a ton of grunt? or do you weigh in over the 100 range? cos thats a toss load of wind for a 9 bandit.
Advanced rider... 95kg's
who would actually want to put "normal straps" on haha 140 is massive for fruit loops! sounds like a pretty solid board though might have to try it just out of curiosity
Hi
Please find some better editied videos of the Board and the Nobile 2010 Range
nobilekiteboarding.com/
As Waxi, I would also suggest to go to your local Nobile Retailer and give the board a go.
It may seem big to most of us among the others in the rack. In the water under your feet, you can hardly see the extra 4cm to the right and left from your favorite 132 and definitely will not feel these few extra cm once on the run.
Ciao
B
yer i dun see the point riding straps on a 'wakestyle' board. but anyway yer i always like trying new stuff so long as who i demo from doesnt mind me mounting some boots on it
Waxman you seem to know the Nobile Boards well, I need some advice. Can't choose between the NHP or 50 fifty and the size for that matter. I'm 68kgs- 5'9, just started riding powered C kites (best move I've made), have basic unhooked tricks down and just started handle passes. Local beach can get pretty choppy at times. Current board LF recoil 08 132. Any advice would be appreciated. Cheers
Hi waxi,
I bought the new 2010 nhp board. I was hoping it would be an improvment over the 09 nhp which I did have but got rid of because of the amount if spray I got from it killing my eyes. I really liked the feel of the 09 board but the 2010 has lost some of it's agressiveness I feel. The 2010 nhp doesn't feel like it plains as easy and doesn't seem to pop as well as the old one. Have read that you need rouse a rock and roll technique more when popping but have no idea what that means? So perhaps I just doing it wrong but the new board doesn't seem to edge quite as hard as the 09 version either. It's seems better all round in a comfort sense but seems to have lost the fun factor for me.
Thinking I may have been better off going for the fifty 50 board I'm stead. I kite in Poole In the uk and my local supplier of nobile is surface2air. They have the boards for sale but say nobile don't send them demo boards which is a shame so I had to buy blind.
Is the fifty 50 stiffer than the nhp and does it feel more like the old 09 666 than the new nhp? Does it edge harder than the new nhp?
I am 85kgs and 6ft1. My 09 666 was the 134x42. Love the wider board and that length seems to be perfect for me. Will I think the fifty 50 140 is to big for me? Will it feel big under my feet?
Should I make the change. The shop staff are very good at surface2air and have said I can exchange the nhp for the fifty for very little money but not sure if I will find what I looking for byalong the swap which is really the nhp 09 without any spray!?
Its a shame that you dont like your new board, being a new concept shape it may take a bit to get used to. I really dont know if you will benefit from getting the 50 fifty as the ridding technique is going to be fairly similar to the NHP it just has a lot more rocker, that does give you a lot of pop but you do need to use a progressive edge to get the most out of it its not really a stomp type board. It does get up and plain easily due to the extre length but with straps will seem a like you are putting in a bit more efort to edge when the wind gets up but saying that i have never lost the edge it just grips and goes.
It does sound a bit like your not letting the board get enougth speed, these boards like being ridden a little faster, once you have the extra speed you may find it is a lot easyer to pop with, bring the kite a litle lower to get a good solid edge.
It is a shame you couldnt get a demo maby just keep an eye out down the beach you may find someone ridding the 50 fifty that will let you take it fore a spin, or try the next size up nhp you do need a board that is comfortable to ride for you so kitting remains fun.
With the eye problem you are allways going to get watter in them and if this is a problem try wearing some kite specific sunglasses they really do help
I don't have a prolem with water getting in my eyes it's just that on the old nhp jets of it would spray up into my face when edging all the time. Only reason I sold the board as I did love it apart from that.
Even moved away fr nobile cause of it and tried the trax4 fone board. Had problems with that though as itwas a fast board and I rode wainman kites and the 12m boss doesn't sit that far forward in the window so by the time I got a good edge I had already shot down wind alot. Don't have that problem with the mobiles but dooss some of the other characteristics of the trac that were better.
May be I should wiat and see what shinn brings out this year and see if they are what I'm looking for then. Thanks for the reply. Will look for a fifty down the beach just to try.
Didyou say the fifty 50 has more rocker than nhp? Isn't it stiffer and flatter? Does it feel more like the 09 nhp or not and have you actually ridden this years nhp?
The 50 fifty isnt flatter and stiffer, it has quit a bit of rocker as it is designed as a wake style board that can be ridden with boots. It doesnt ride like last years NHP i still have my 134 NHP and like it but definatly prefer the 50 fifty.
I have never had a problem with getting spray in the face from the old 666 but maby due to ridding a more aggresive board like the lunacy in the past i have learnt now to stop the front of the board digging in and can spot those bits of chop that will give some spray and avoid it.
It does sound like you have had a lot of problems with boards, all the boards that you have ridden are all aimed at more advanced ridders, and i think you will find that if you keep looking at this style board you wont find what your are after. Maby try looking at a intermediate board like the 555 or slingshot misfit, and there are a lot more from other brands you may find what you are after.
Had the 555 before buying a 666. The 666 was a great improvment over the 555 and progressed alot faster on due to it having more grip and in my mind more controlable.
I wouldn't say I had problems with any if the boards I have mentioned! I have liked them all for certain characteristics and they all are good boards. Just looking for the one board that has the good bits of all the ones mentioned. Have also owned the nobile shinn pro 09 which was to soft and also ridden the shinn pro 08 A fair bit which was a really great board but the one I have access to is a 132x40. Which is a little to short for my liking. Would still love to try that in the 134x42 as think that would be the board I liked best out of ones I have ridden perhaps?
Thanks for all the info though.
Looks like you have tried a lot of boards in the past. I think that all you can do is keep trying them untill you have found the one you are looking fore but you should know that all boards are different and it is almost imposible for a company to make a board have the best of every feature there allways has to be a compromise to maximise the features you are really after whether it be early planning, less spray more grip, more flex, more pop, light wind ability, good for chop good for surf etc. Once you know what you want from the board it will be a lot easyer to pick one but unfortunatly you cant have it all in one package, as a ridder you may find you need a few different boards to cover your ridding. I have a lot of boards for this reason, 129 lunacy, 134 666NHP, 140 fifty fifty w boots and pads, 137 555, nobile skim, 5'10 fish. I do get a lot of use from all of these boards regularly. If one isnt right for the conditions or style of ridding i have the right one to grab in the back of the ute ready to go.
