New wide boards: Gecko, Firemove etc

[KC7777]

Hey,

Just wondering what the bwd community thinks of the short, superwide boards. Eg, Fanatic Gecko, RRD Firemove, JP Magic Ride etc. vs a fast freeride board (ie Fanatic Hawk).

I know you all sail the Oregon Coast or Columbia Beach on your tiny little wave boards, yada yada, but just be quiet about that for a sec and give me some feedback about these types of boards.

They are short but extra wide (eg. 239cmx73cm wide for a 112L Fanatic Gecko), thin-railed, manoeuvreable, friendly and are quick to plane.

They supposedly sail 15L bigger than they are and plane quicker with smaller sails?

I may sell my 120L Fanatic Hawk (245cm x 68cm) and get a 112L Gecko (238cm x 73cm).

Reason: I don't sail that much at Harrison anymore....but am thinking a 6.0 and 112L super wide Gecko would plane in 13-15 just like my 7.0M and 120L Hawk does. It would be slower.....but maybe a lot more fun in the few days that I actually do sail. Then I could also sell my big boom and 7.0M sail.

I also had a lot of fun this summer sailing big board/small sail combo. ie at Nitinat I was often on my 105L Freewave tri fin with a 4.7M, when in past years I would have been on a 95L and 5.2M?


This is a good vid from Fanatic....check out the wave sailing and bottom turn then off the lip at 4:34 - 4:47:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJChS1p2sJE[/youtube]


PS - any good posters will be invited down to the Mt Baker cabin to discuss further over very large, very cold IPAs (stored in a snowbank outside the door) after skiing/boarding a day of waist deep at Baker. Caveat: you may have to drive over with Kus!

KC

[windaddiction]

Love the look, I will always lean towards more volume given the choice! So having a shape that give volume and performance/fun seems like a win! Getting TOW and having fun is really the whole point right? I love sailing my SUP tons of fun, but having a mix between that and my 112 liter freeride board would be good! I too like having one boom and one mast, and whatever will fit for sails on that rig!

[Joostio]

I sail an 06 starboard aero 117l. It's short and wide. I bought it as an early planing board but due to its wave rocker shape it doesn't plane as early as I had hoped. It does go through the lulls quite well. I also sail it wih smaller sails than intended and I like it. I am sailing it with the provided wave fin and it does spin out a lot. It's fun in wavy conditions and its the board I sail most, but when it gets windy enough for my smaller board it sure is more fun.
http://www.usedcomoxvalley.com/classifi ... s_20429277
How far is it too Baker? I'm always waxed and ready.

[eastside]

Good concept I would say. Tail rocker makes it easier and more forgiving to turn. Issue would be the width I would say, although I have read that bigger guys are using them for waves.

You might want to consider a Fanatic Skate as you like the Fanatics. People in the forums seem to be using them as freeride boards as well as freestyle. Skate 110 is 66.5 cm wide so it is way narrower. You can use them in small waves too, so you can rip up Tribune Bay. I think the glass model has outside footstraps for freeride.

I just got a 2010 F2 Rodeo 98 and it planes up fast. Jumps like crazy. You do have to work it a bit to turn it (no tail rocker) but it turns tight and fast. Works great with my Ezzy wave 5.5 with the freestyle fin/ fsw fin/. Haven't tried the wave fin yet. Handled the 6.3 Panther really well with a 32 cm freeride fin and ripped around Nitnat in minimal wind. 15-17 k? Get a lighter and more powerful sail if you want to get optimal light wind/ smaller sail performance. The variety definitely made my Nat trip more fun.

[Tsawwassen]

I was just up at Roberts yesterday, Rob was fixing my Fanatic SUP, and Rob showed me his latest board he's made for himself. It has a similar design, short and very wide with thin rails. He designed it for the same purpose, getting out in light winds with smaller gear. His boards are far superior to any production board though and he'll shape it to suit you. Might be something to have in your collection of sweet rides. It'll go really really fast too : )

[nanmoo]

I would say your plan is perfect and the board is going to be well suited to what you are trying to accomplish. In fact, no better board quiver plan may have ever been hatched by anyone.

Now when should I be at Baker and what is the Address?

[KC7777]

PS - any good posters will be invited down to the Mt Baker cabin to discuss further over very large, very cold IPAs (stored in a snowbank outside the door) after skiing/boarding a day of waist deep at Baker. Caveat: you may have to drive over with Kus!
KC

Hey Tony....I see you took this literally.

Feb and Mar is typically the best snow at Baker......I will be in touch.

K

[windaddiction]

Not to totally hijack the thread but I was up there in December last year and it was amazing.... by far some of the best skiing.... not as many starbucks as whistler though.

BTW I think you should buy more gear and sell the old stuff off all the time, you give great deals that harness is awesome!

[KC7777]

Not to totally hijack the thread but I was up there in December last year and it was amazing.... by far some of the best skiing.... not as many starbucks as whistler though.

BTW I think you should buy more gear and sell the old stuff off all the time, you give great deals that harness is awesome!

I have been known to buy/sell gear.....and to thread drift. And Baker is epic in Dec....gets dry in Jan....then dumps Feb - April.

My gear problem is even worse for skiiing.....cause I can actually ski.... unlike my suspect windsurf abilities.

Below is some info I posted in "Quiver Pics" on tetongravity (my winter ski website in lieu of bwd).


1st pic is the whole familys quiver.......

My sons (aged 14 and 16)......decided to take a year off of rep soccer to ski 75 days.....saved $1,400 in rep soccer fees which we put into gear. They each have Full Tilt ski boots and the following skis: 177cm 4FRNT YLEs, 176cm Moment Ghost Chants, 174cm Moment Bibbys, 173cm Line Blends, 171cm Line Stepups.....and not pictured is a pair of 174cm Moment Belafontes just bought......and oh ya and a pair of 150cm K2Missbehaveds for the wife.

And a few snowboards: 157cm Burton Barracuda for me and 153cm Bataleon Camel Toe and 150cm LibTech T Rice for my youngest son.

My quiver of 7 skis to rule Baker this year are on the left (and in 2nd pic)....from fattest to narrowest waists (right to left)....ski boots Tecnica Cochise Pro (120 flex) with both AT and alpine soles...can ski my STHs or Dynafit bindings. Three set up for backcountry.

182cm Moment Comi (160/135/145 - rocker/camber) -9cm mount, Dynafit Radical/Sollyfit STH 16 (stupid deep Baker days)
186cm 4FRNT Renegade (135/122/129 - full rocker/reverse camber) -5.5cm mount, Dynafit Radical/Sollyfit STH 16 (charging in deep pow)
187cm 4FRNT YLEs (140/119/140 - moustache rocker/little camber) -2.5cm mount, 4FRNT Deadbolt 15 (pretty close to center mount, for goofing around in deep pow)
187cm 4FRNT Hoji (130/112/121 - full rocker/reverse camber) -5.5cm mount, Dynafit Radical/Sollyfit STH 16 (skiing fast with reverse camber in packed pow)
184cm Moment Deathwish (138/112/129 - dirty moustacher = rocker/camber/flat/camber/rocker),-6cm mount, Rossignol FKS 180 (goofing around in packed pow, do everything ski)
182cm Moment Belafonte (135/106/124 - rocker/camber) -9cm mount, Dynafit Radical/Sollyfit STH 16 (raging groomers, ice & steeps)
183cm Line Blend (132/100/122 - rocker/camber/rocker) -6cm mount, Rossignol FKS 180 (taking it easy after the Belafontes kill me)

Ya I have a problem....though most bought 1 year old at reduced prices.

[BigD]

That's frickin' awesome. I was at the Sportsman Chalet in Bellingham today and I swear you have more gear than they do. Incidentally there is a big swap happening this weekend if you want to buy/sell some.

I'd better make a trip to Baker this season. I gotta see Keith the gnar slayer in action.

[nanmoo]

It's hard to believe that Skiers took so long to figure out the waterski style shape, and for both Skiers and snowboarders to figure out reverse camber rocker sticks.

Rocker literally changed my life, it basically increases the fun factor fifty-fold imho. Now at 6'1"/185lbs I can ride a 152 rockerboard through 2 feet of pow-pow, into the parks, trees, grooomers and ice, all without missing a beat. Now I am really stoked to try out my new 162 rockered split as soon as there is a little more snow!

[slats]

That's hilarious!...I thought I was bad. I still have skis from 30plus years ago in the attic.
I usually rotate three pairs of skis (and boots). My ski quiver is much different though. I usually keep a pair of race boards razor sharp for bulletproof days and charity races, then a pair of GS boards for all mountain technical and then my pow's for those magical days. I was leaning towards a pair of mr pollards last year before tore my ankle ligaments and busted my thumb. Tried the jj's, fuja's and rockers but they were too noodlie for me. I like more technical skiing even off piste. I almost bought a pair of Gotama's but settled on the mantra instead. I loved my technica tns's but I found the Cochise had too much last. My Rossi's are race, my SFB's are for pow and I just bought a new pair of Mantra's for all mountain. Had full tilts but found them too spongy and now have a pair of soly quest max 130's..sweet boot. looking at the soli tourning binding...looks very usable.
looking forward to a good year...got a cat skiing trip booked in kymberly, Christmas at sunpeaks and a week in whistler...the rest at marginal Washington and maybe a few day trips to w/b.

[KC7777]

Hey Tony,

Could not agree more.

2 of my skis are full rocker (reverse camber) and 1 of them is dead flat underfoot, with camber at each end.

At Baker the snow is dense. And deep (have seen FOLO up to his armpits inbounds). It can be heavy too. Then the key is that reverse camber skis can be stiffer, because they are already decambered and don't need to flex as much. Regular camber skis naturally need to be a bit softer to allow the ski to decamber under weight to allow them to float better ie keep the tips up, This is why reverse camber is so magic as the ski can be stiffer to plow through difficult snow and still float nicely in powder at any speed.

Plus they rip soft groomers too.....ask Kus about skiing the Canyon with me last year.

OK nanmoo.....list of topics to discuss at Baker is growing:

1. wide board shapes
2. benefits of reverse camber in boards and skis
3. benefits of going to the Oregon Coast
4. ??

Massive thread hijacking....but if you ski do yourself a favour and go and google videos of a ski called the "4FRNT Renegade" or "4FRNT Hoji"

.....or vids of skier: Eric Horjleifson

Skiing reverse cambered skis is just way more fluid, you never stop moving....check this out.....Eric Hjorleifson on 4FRNT Renegades.....same ski I have with the Dynafits on it above.....the first 3:18 of this vid is what Baker is like!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYvM6j56IBk[/youtube]

[nanmoo]

Now the disclaimer -

For all the rocker hyping we are doing, they do suck harder on ice than a camber board/skis, but what the hell are you doing (and if you are paying for a lift ticket on it even worse!) on ice anyways!

And if reverse camber alone sucks on ice, those waterski outline powder skis with rocker must REALLY suck on ice.

[Joostio]

The full tilts are just the same as the old Raichles, nothing new there. I'm looking at some Cochises for this year too, nice boots, just hope my feet are happy, couldn't make the Salomon Quest 110's get along with my feet last year even though they felt great in the store, heat moulding and punching got me no where. Those Mantra's are AWESOME skis, I'm still a fan of camber, a set back stance makes up for rocker and still rips on groomers.
KC 7's, that's a lot of gear, I don't see the need for more than 2 pair, maybe 3 of skis, something around 115-120 under foot and then something racy with camber for the harder packed days.
See you on the hill!