What a blast! Goya and Quatro most favorite freewave board again!!
Yeah! Stoked! 
If you need to compare the test result of the other boards I'll be happy to post them.
Ciao
Alberto
From Board Mag :
Angulo SuperGu 92
Exocet Cross II 94
F2 Spice 86
Fanatic Hawk 93
Goya One 85
JP Freestyle Wave 85
Mistral Syncro Pro 92
Naish Freeride Slalom 95
Quatro Freestyle Wave 85
RRD Freestyle Wave 86
Starboard Kombat 87
Tabou 3S 87 Ltd
GOYA ONE 85
Successor to the Goya Freewave, the “One, Aqua Series 85” is the
middle size in a three board range that’s billed as delivering early
planing, good riding, freestyle and powerful blasting.
On the water: The One 85 is very much a moderate
waveboard design, with a fairly wide nose suggesting a slight leaning
towards smaller waves and freestyle. The tail is easily the narrowest
on test, the length at 231.5cm easily the shortest, and the max
planing width easily the narrowest. The planing flat is also the
shortest with a 141.2cm point but the tail rocker is relatively
moderate at only 4mm.
Not surprisingly then, it was clearly a strong favourite in the
waves, and just as clearly the slowest to get planing in marginal 5.7m
weather. Much less predictable was the really balanced feel and
sensible volume distribution that made it feel much more
comfortable and less twitchy or specialised than ‘big waveboards’
can often be guilty of.
It sits quite low in the water and has a secure, manageable nature
rather than feeling fast and flighty, but it blasts and rides chop
comfortably. It’s happy enough in flat water and keen to perform
stronger wind freestyle but comes into its own in swell – or, better
still, waves. It’s a great jumping and riding board, agile, easy,
predictable and controllable.
Range: It will take up to a 5.8m, but its ideal sail range is 4.7-
5.5m and its ideal water state is coastal so there is clear overlap with
smaller waveboards. It can handle almost any (stronger)
windstrength or water conditions if required.
Fittings: A very sensibly sized and decently performing MFC
25cm fin. The deck is nicely padded and domed. Straps are comfy
and easy to adjust, but don’t easily go either very big or very small
and the top velcro strap is flimsy.
Popularity: One of the top three performers for nearly all the
guest testers, and very popular with the testers too. Although this is
partly attributable to the fairly windy test conditions which so suited
to its nature, it’s also clearly merited.
Overall: A board that can fulfil many roles, but its strengths are
definitely biassed towards coastal conditions or high wind freestyle,
and towards reasonably well-powered sailing. Accessible enough to
be considered a ‘high wind board’ for late intermediate to advanced
sailors, yet it can equally be considered as an ideal lighter wind (but
very much wave-oriented) complement to a small waveboard for
advanced to expert sailors. A very classy feel and highly
recommendable for manoeuvre / freestyle / jumping style sailing in
medium winds (c. Force 5).
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Fast Waveboard (with great all-round capabilities)
QUATRO FREESTYLE WAVE 85
New to the UK but not to the world at large, the three-board Quatro
Freestyle Wave range sits between their better-known Wave designs
and a three-board Freemove range. The 85 is the middle board of the
range, which spans 75-95L.
On the water:The bigger, quicker and more lively of the two
very wave-biassed boards in this line-up. It planes up clearly a bit
later than the average of those on test, but still much earlier than an
equivalent sized waveboard. Nevertheless, its strengths are
principally geared to coastal waters. It was clearly more
manoeuvrable and controllable in the waves than the less wavebiassed
designs, particularly with sails below 5.7m. It rides waves
and jumps impeccably, giving a lively, nippy feel rather than supersmooth
or loose.
In flatter water it sits high and has quite a skittery feel. While
clearly designed for more of a wave than slalom / freeride stance, the
deck is comfortable enough to make the board fun for blasting
around over flat water or swell, and – as our GPS results showed –
definitely nippy. The narrowish nose and tail aren’t ideal for freestyle
but the board still performs OK in this arena too.
Range: Very happy with up to 5.8m as long as you’re not trying
to milk every tiniest puff out of marginal wind situations, and wavy
and controllable enough to be a smallest board for average weight
coastal sailors.
Fittings: The straps are comfortable and adjust easily through a
smallish range. The deck is comfortable and the 25cm MFC
Powerbox fin suits the board very well.
Popularity: This board won more top places in the guester
favourite lists than any other and fared very well with the testers too.
Not often found lonely on the beach!
Overall: A really sensible combination of manoeuvrability and
get-up-and-go for a small medium-wind coastal all-rounder. It isn’t
quite a fast-tail, so it does sacrifice a bit of performance in the
marginal winds, but as a partner to a bigger board for taking care of
those iffy jumping / riding days, it’s a very high performing,
comfortable and classy board.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Fast Waveboard (with great all-round capabilities)
Interesting ! Thanks !
Yep, Alberto, would be great if you could post the RRD Freestyle Wave test...
Would you be able to compare both the QUATRO FREESTYLE WAVE and the RDD FW ?
Cheers
Hey Luccio
awesome review for RRD (are the 3 most favorite boards), on you the verdict. I'm guessing where the shape is coming from...
Ciao
Alberto
RRD FREESTYLE WAVE 86
Many times a test winner over the past few years, RRD have wisely not made too many
tweaks to this extremely successful design for 2007. This year’s board sees the nose lift a little
earlier and a little higher, a considerably wider nose and more vee in the underwater shape.
However, that all-important fast-tail is still very much in place. The Freestyle Wave range has
been expanded to 5 different sizes for 2007, spanning 78 to 110L.
On the water: Early planing and acceleration is excellent, right up there with the
freerides and other fast-tail boards, and it blasts comfortably on the longish flat, going upwind
with ease. Compared to other boards that can blast comfortably in low powered conditions,
the RRD feels extremely ready to jump or manoeuvre. The nose rides high, and the board
feels loose and keen to turn.
In waves its natural speed and acceleration combine with the high nose and very reliably
grippy tail to give excellent jumping, even in quite low-powered conditions. While not in the
same league of manoeuvrability as the two most wavey designs in this test, it can certainly
be thrown around extremely hard, flowing easily through tight bottom-turns and slashy topturns.
Its gybing performance is versatile and reliable.
Freestyle suitability is very good with the long flat, wide nose and tiny duck-tail all helping. The only real area where performance suffers is in rougher water and stronger winds, when the wide nose can get quite bouncy at speed, and lighter sailors reported it becoming unsettled.
Range: Although it will take up to 6.0-6.2m if you want to concentrate on more freeride
performance, it works best in the waves with sails of between 5.2 and 5.8m. In stronger
conditions it starts to get a bit bouncy and hectic, but within its ideal range it provides
exceptional versatility.
Fittings: Most sailors loved the spongy deckpads, though some felt they neutered the
feedback the board offers and flattened the deck a bit. (Last year’s model had superb toeraisers;
whatever happened to them?) The straps are comfy and the 25cm MFC fin suits the
board well in its ideal mid windrange. Use something a little bigger for the most marginal
winds, although this is somewhat less easy now that RRD have gone over to classic box
fitting this season in these smaller Freestyle Wave sizes (78 & 86L).
Popularity: Made most guesters’ top five including a first and a second and was much
liked by all the testers (one of whom has since bought one).
Overall: Another killer board from RRD for exploiting marginal coastal conditions to the
max. The fast-tail rocker ensures that you will get planing with as small a sail as possible as
soon as the wind allows, while the unusually pivotal and manoeuvrable feel gives excellent
riding potential. Great jumping and good freestyle complete the mix. Compared to last year’s
board it feels a bit bigger and slappier; a higher weight carrier and better for freestyle, but a
fraction down on control.
It is quite a windstrength-specific design, though. Rather than a do-it-all strong wind allrounder,
it’s definitely a board to maximise coastal sailing fun in lighter winds and be used in
partnership with a proper waveboard to take care of the more solid conditions.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Coastal Fast-Tail All-Rounder
On request:
F2 SPICE 86
“The manoeuvrability of a waveboard with the speed and
excitement of a slalom board. A revolution in board design!”Thus
claims the bumf for F2’s new venture into the all-rounder market,
the Spice. Brave words! Available in three sizes, of which this 86L
model is baby Spice.
On the water: In design terms the board has the extended
flat and lower nose of a moderate slalom rocker combined with tail
rocker of moderate waveboard levels, in a relatively narrow-tailed but
basically modern and conventional outline. It seems that every few
years one of the brands tries this slalom-board-front-half,-waveboard-
back-half rockerline approach out as something ‘new’, but it
always proves problematical. It certainly doesn’t simply combine the
manoeuvrability of a waveboard with the speed of a slalom board! In
marginal 5.7m conditions the Spice planes a bit later than all but the
most wave-oriented of those on test, and it takes a bit more power
before it really releases. Neither does it reach full slalom speed,
being well down the pack on top speed. However, it does deliver a
comfortable blasting-style slalom / freeride ride, and feels quite fast
and exciting when well powered.
In the waves it feels a bit stiffer and heavier than the best jumpers
or riders and it’s not the easiest to flick into sudden changes of
direction, although it goes into a sweet and reliable gybing arc. And
although it feels a tad heavy, its compact planshape and easy sliding
made it one of the more popular boards for freestyle.
Range: It’s fine with a 5.8m as long as you’re fairly well powered
up, but it comes properly into its own with 4.7-5.3m. It can feel a bit
too lively in any stronger winds. It isn’t a specialist in any particular
water state, being equally happy in swell, chop, waves or flat water.
Fittings:The pads and straps are very comfortable and the deck
has a nice moderate dome. The fin is very small, befitting its
freestyle leanings. Get something bigger for freeride type use in its
lower wind range.
Popularity: The Spice didn’t manage to quite challenge the
best for either speed, excitement or manoeuvrability, so it didn’t
score that highly in the overall popularity ratings.
Overall: It’s best suited as a medium to stronger wind
all-rounder, good for a bit of blasting, some freestyle and occasional
use in the waves. Anyone really favouring wave or freestyle use
would probably be better off with the Guerilla 86 and for freeride /
slalom use the F2 XTC 91 should certainly be the better bet.
Hi Alberto, I'm considering the Kombat 87, and wouldn't mind seeing what they had to say. Cheers
Hey dude
here we are, I think the mag is finally arrived to Oz.
All the best
Ciao
Alberto
STARBOARD KOMBAT 87
Although the nose width and forward vee have been increased and
the rocker line tinkered with, this year’s Kombat will definitely feel
familiar to existing Kombat owners. The range has been extended for
2007, with a smaller 79L at one end and the sizeable Kombat Aeros
(117 & 127L) at the other.
On the water: It feels fairly chunky; something picked up on
by all the team and guesters. Since its length and width
measurements are all around average, the extra size is purely in
terms of volume thickness. This gives reassuring reserve float and
volume for intermediates and heavyweights, but does slightly cut
down on responsiveness. Nevertheless, although the board lacks a
slight edge of acceleration and excitement compared to many of the
freerides or fast-tails, it is very well balanced and comfortable for
blasting in flat water. It’s also particularly keen and easy to turn,
which translates into above average waveriding performance. Gybes
too are extremely easy to initiate and although it can lose speed in
the exit it has an easily varied arc of turn. You can feel that extra bulk
when airborne but it still jumps very nicely, particularly as the
landings on the shock-absorbed heel bumpers are beautifully soft.
Range: Happy with up to about 5.8-6.0m, as long as you’re
relatively well powered up while using these bigger sizes. Very
comfortable in stronger winds and with small sail sizes, particularly
under heavier sailors. It copes very well with all water states.
Fittings: It comes with quite a powerful 26cm fin (in classic box
fitting) that suits it well. Get a smaller accessory foil if you’re planning
on exploiting the board’s capabilities with sails of 5.0m or smaller a
lot of the time. The straps are comfortable but don’t easily go very
big. The pads and doming are very comfy.
Popularity: It didn’t quite make anyone’s top favourites list, but
was generally well liked.
Overall: Starboard have come up with a very balanced
all-rounder in the new Kombat. It feels stable and composed blasting
in a straight line, yet it also offers pleasingly loose and manoeuvrable
carving in swell or waves. Rather than focussing on super-early
planing or real high wind control, it provides a good compromise that
encompasses a very wide range of windstrengths, conditions and
abilities. It’s a genuinely versatile all-rounder, particularly for heavier
sailors, and will make an excellent ‘one-only board’ or a medium to
stronger wind board to accompany a higher volume freeride.
RECOMMENDED
Manouevre-Biassed All-Rounder
